Zimbabwean Returnees Face Hardship Rebuilding Lives After Leaving South Africa

Zimbabweans who returned from South Africa amid fears of anti-immigrant unrest are confronting unemployment and limited social support as they attempt to rebuild their lives in Zimbabwe.

Anti-immigrant activists had set June 30 as a deadline for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa. The South African government did not impose the deadline and described the date as a normal day, while warning against intimidation and violence. Nonetheless, thousands of migrants left amid fears of unrest.

Information Minister Zhemu Soda said 116,670 Zimbabweans had returned from South Africa by July 28. Of that total, 36,940 were assisted by the Zimbabwean government, while 79,730 returned independently. Soda also said 38,057 returnees had registered for employment.

Returnees struggle to find work

For many returnees, coming home has not immediately brought economic security. Reverend Useni Sibanda, executive director of the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance, said many had spent years abroad and were returning without jobs or adequate support.

“They are coming back to a country where there are no jobs and where the social support systems may not be enough to accommodate them,” Sibanda said.

Samantha Chimbuya, 30, returned after living and working in South Africa, including in KwaZulu-Natal. She said she left because conditions had become unsafe and paid for her own journey to Hurungwe in northern Zimbabwe.

“It was not safe any more. They were raiding our homes, warning us to leave. It was scary,” Chimbuya said.

Chimbuya left Zimbabwe for South Africa in 2019. While there, she said she was able to find work, afford food and believed her children had access to better education and healthcare. Since returning, however, she has struggled to find employment. She had hoped to receive a grant to establish a small business but said she had not received one. Her husband remains in South Africa and is also struggling, according to the supplied account.

Some returnees turn to enterprise

Sidney Bunya returned with his carpentry tools and used his savings to establish a business in Zimbabwe. He developed his carpentry skills in Port Elizabeth after a cousin introduced him to professional carpenters, later specialising in roof trusses.

Bunya said groups demanding permits began raiding his workplace in 2026 and that employers became reluctant to hire him. Establishing a business at home was difficult, he said, but the venture now supports his family and employs five people.

“It was difficult to set up the business. But I am getting more jobs now,” Bunya said.

Government and church support

Local government Minister Daniel Garwe said authorities were screening and profiling returnees to identify their skills and needs. He said reintegration centres were being established, although no timeline was provided in the supplied information.

Garwe said the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Schools was considering recruiting qualified teachers among those who had returned. He also said companies were being encouraged to employ skilled returnees, while vocational training and support for people seeking to start businesses were under consideration.

Churches and local businesses have also been involved in the response. Ray Motsi, president of the Theological College of Zimbabwe, said churches had partnered with businesses to provide training in welding, carpentry and computer science.

Churches were also helping some returnees with shelter, food and transport, Motsi said, but the scale of need was overwhelming.

“We need a deliberate programme to reintegrate these people,” he said, arguing that assistance should go beyond transporting people home.

Rashweat Mukundu, a human rights activist in Harare, called for longer-term government assistance, including small grants, agricultural inputs and machinery. The proposals reflect the broader challenge facing returnees: finding a way to convert their skills and experience abroad into sustainable livelihoods in Zimbabwe.