WhatsApp Remittances and Health: The Cost of Feeding Families Across Borders Money From Abroad, Vegetables at Home, and the Economics of Eating Clean A 32-year-old electrician from Harare never thought he would leave Zimbabwe. Nevertheless, economic collapse forced him out. Today, he lives in Cape Town’s informal settlements, working casual jobs. However, his WhatsApp notifications […]
Migration on the Menu: Kapenta, Food, and Health Following fish, families, and farming knowledge from Lake Kariba to the Cape Opening: A Fish That Travels Further Than People In 2023, dried kapenta from Lake Kariba appeared in informal markets across Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Gqeberha. Alongside mielie meal and tomatoes, traders sold it to low-income
Preserving Heritage: Zimbabwean Migrants’ Heirloom Seeds The Hidden Lifeline of Heritage Seeds On a busy street in Yeoville, Johannesburg, 62-year-old “Mavis” (not her real name) exchanges a small packet of seeds with a neighbour. These are not ordinary seeds—they are her late grandmother’s heirloom crops, passed down through generations in rural Zimbabwe. For Mavis, this
Excluding Non‑Citizens from Food Security in South Africa: Ethics and Policy Opening — A Case of Silent Hunger In late 2023, a family of Zimbabwean migrants living in a Johannesburg township reached out to a local NGO. The mother described how, after losing her informal‑sector job, her children went hungry for days because food parcels
When networks become lifelines: a migrant household in Johannesburg In 2024, a family of Mozambican migrants living in a township near Johannesburg spoke with researchers about their weekly food situation. They reported surviving on “what the group can afford together.” Neither parent had stable employment. Instead, they pooled income and shared staples bought in bulk
Xenophobia and Migrant Food Vendors in South Africa In a dusty corner of inner‑city Johannesburg, 34‑year-old “Amina” (pseudonym), a Zimbabwean national, set up a small open‑air stall selling maize meal and fresh produce. On many days, she brought affordable staples to working‑class households who lacked access to supermarkets. But on 1 September 2019 — during
Informal Food Markets and Migrant Survival in South African Cities Introduction: A Daily Struggle Hidden in Plain Sight At 5 a.m. on a cold winter morning in Johannesburg’s inner city, Amina*, a 29-year-old Somali mother, arranges vegetables at her small pavement stall. She arrived in South Africa six years ago, hoping for stability. Yet rising
Economic Insecurity and Migrant Job-Seeking in South Africa Opening: Stories and Statistics That Set the Scene In the early morning light of a township in Johannesburg, 29‑year‑old “Grace” (name changed) checks her cell phone yet again. She left Harare in 2019, hopeful of earning enough in South Africa to send money home. She initially found
Long-Term Economic Effects of Beitbridge Border Restrictions on SADC Regional Migration Patterns Opening: Beitbridge – A Border Under Strain On 22 December 2021, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) reported that delays at five key border posts along the North-South Corridor—including the Beitbridge Border Post between Zimbabwe and South Africa—cost regional economies roughly R5 billion (US $330 million)
How COVID‑19 Border Closures Affected Zimbabwean Traders Opening: Lives Interrupted On 15 March 2020, Beitbridge Border Post — the key land‐border crossing between South Africa and Zimbabwe — effectively sealed for non‑essential human traffic when 35 of South Africa’s 53 land borders were closed to limit the spread of COVID‑19. ACCORD+2News24+2This seemingly technical public‐health decision rippled into the lives
