The economics of rights: African Commission mission puts South Africa’s labour market, mining liabilities and migration economy under scrutiny
Pretoria, 2 October 2026. A promotion mission by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has closed with a detailed accounting of the economic conditions shaping rights in South Africa, from an unemployment rate of 33.6 percent and youth joblessness at 47.4 percent, to the rehabilitation costs of more than a thousand abandoned mine openings, to the treatment of foreign nationals whose labour and businesses operate within the informal economy.
The mission, conducted from 28 September to 2 October 2026 under Article 45 of the African Charter and Rule 76(1) of the Rules of Procedure (2020), was authorised by the South African government in fulfilment of its cooperation obligations. It was led by Honourable Commissioner Solomon Ayele Dersso, the Commissioner Rapporteur on South Africa and Chairperson of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights Violations in Africa. He was joined by Commissioners Ourveena Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa; Dr. Litha Musyimi-Ogana, Chairperson of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations/Communities and Minorities and of the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of People Living with HIV; and Salma Sassi-Safer, Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Internally Displaced Persons and Migrants. Legal officers Eva Heza and Estelle Nkounkou of the Secretariat supported the delegation.
The delegation’s economic findings were among the most pointed. The Commission noted that a large portion of the population remains marginalised from access to land and from participation in the major sectors of the economy, and that the slow transformation of land holding perpetuates inequalities inherited from apartheid. At the same time, it commended the adoption of the Amendment to the Expropriation of Land Act as legislative progress toward land justice in fulfilment of the right of peoples to their natural resources under Article 21 of the Charter, alongside continuing implementation of affirmative action legislation that the Commission described as a human rights necessity.
Mining featured prominently on both sides of the ledger. The delegation commended the rehabilitation of 56 asbestos mines and the closure of 1,026 unsafe mining openings. But it flagged the persistence of large numbers of derelict and ownerless mines left without rehabilitation or compliant closure, conditions that enable illegal mining, along with water and groundwater contamination, air pollution and exposure to radioactive materials. It also noted the absence of legislation criminalising illegal mining, the abuse of vulnerable individuals seeking economic opportunities by businesses in the formal economy and by organised criminal enterprises operating in the shadow, and the lack of an independent inquiry into the deaths of suspected illegal miners, known as zama zamas, at the Buffelsfontein mine in Stilfontein. Among its recommendations, the Commission urged South Africa to expand resources for mine rehabilitation and closure, enforce operator responsibility for safe upkeep and closure of non-operational mines, assess contamination in affected areas, expedite a legal framework for artisanal and small-scale mining, and enact legislation criminalising illegal mining with a focus on its organisers. It also called for protection of environmental defenders against violence and SLAPP litigation brought by big businesses.
On migration, the Commission commended South Africa’s non-encampment model, which allows refugees, asylum seekers and even undocumented migrants to live within communities and engage in some business activity. It observed that this arrangement, in informal settlements and marginalised neighbourhoods, leads to concentration of nationals of other African states, leaving them most exposed when tensions flare. The mission recorded the recurrence in 2026 of xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks, including anti-immigrant protests, violence, intimidation and discrimination resulting in loss of lives, destruction of property and livelihoods, family separation and displacement. It criticised the politicisation of grievances over services, employment and small business operation that scapegoats non-nationals, and the emergence of seemingly financed and politicised vigilantism, including unauthorised documentation checks and blocking of access to health and education services. It welcomed government condemnation of vigilante activity and proactive law enforcement ahead of a 30 June deadline set by vigilante actors, as well as the President’s Five-Point Plan on migration and the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration, which it recommended should add a stand-alone pillar on human rights and include the South African Human Rights Commission.
The delegation met the Executive and Parliament, including Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Andreas Nel, Acting Minister of International Relations and Cooperation H.E. Thembisile Simelane, ministerial representatives of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration spanning the Presidency, Home Affairs, Police, Basic Education, Employment and Labour, and other portfolios, as well as the Public Protector, the South African Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality, the Information Regulator, Legal Aid South Africa, UN agencies and civil society. It visited the Emthonjeni Youth Centre and the Lindela Refugee Reception Facility.
On governance and service delivery, the Commission cited pervasive corruption across State structures, including Home Affairs and Border Management, and poor local governance undermining health care, sanitation, education and employment-enhancing projects. It welcomed the Zondo and Mandlama inquiries into State capture but warned that slow implementation of their recommendations erodes confidence in the rule of law. It urged financial and political support for Chapter 9 Institutions and full implementation of remedial actions.
Meanwhile, the Commission commended South Africa’s funding contribution to Africa CDC’s response to the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and urged the African Union to appoint a special envoy for the free movement of persons as a critical element of regional integration and implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area. It recommended ratification of ten instruments, including the African Union convention on internally displaced persons, the migrant workers convention, the statelessness conventions and ILO Convention 169, and called for submission of overdue periodic reports, due since June 2018, by early 2027.
A full report will be tabled for adoption at an upcoming session and transmitted to the government, which the Commission thanked for its hospitality and frank dialogue.