Coronavirus may be the last straw to spur South Africa’s Jews to leave in large numbers

When I reflect back on my arrival in South Africa in September 2010, it was a place full of hope and cautious optimism. South Africa had just hosted the FIFA World Cup, GDP growth was almost identical to developed economies such as Canada, and the country’s democracy was maturing.

How hard is it to immigrate to SA?

Does South Africa’s immigration system render us globally competitive? Is it helping or hurting our economy?

Given South Africa’s low economic growth and high unemployment rate, requirements for such a programme could include job creation for South Africans or investment in struggling local industries.

We should not only be reactive to migration issues, such as the ANC’s proposed ban on dual South African/Israeli citizenship and numerous xenophobic riots. Instead, we should be proactive and attract and retain skilled Jewish immigrants who are willing to take the place of those we have lost due to emigration.

In this article, Dan Brotman argues that with the hemorrhaging of the South African Jewish community due to emigration, the South African Jewish Board of Deputies should take a proactive role in lobbying for immigration reform and supporting prospective Jewish immigrants.

Florette and Nsongoni Mulowayi arrived in South Africa from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as refugees in the early 2000s and subsequently became permanent residents.

Despite holding a South African identity document and a BSc degree from the University of Johannesburg, Florette was frequently discriminated against by the private sector when seeking work.

Highly skilled, job creating, taxpaying immigrant? We don't want you here!

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs is deterring skilled immigration at a great cost to South Africa, says En-novate Global Director Dan Brotman.

“In the name of Allah and the Afghan people, we have triumphed over the US,” boasted a commanding mural in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. A cascade of American flag stripes tumbled like falling dominos. These were the eye-catching welcomes to a Jewish guy like me to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, once more under Taliban rule following the withdrawal of American troops in 2021.

I was admitted in 2013 as a permanent resident under “exceptional skills” and have been ordinarily resident in South Africa for more than five years, as required by section 5(1)(c) of the South African Citizenship Act of 1995 (as amended).

In publishing JEWISH AFFAIRS, the SA Jewish Board of Deputies aims to produce a cultural forum which caters for a wide variety of interests in the community. The journal will be a vehicle for the publication of articles of significant thought and opinion on contemporary Jewish issues, and will aim to encourage constructive debate, in the form of reasoned and researched essays, on all matters of Jewish and general interest.