Social networks and undocumented Mozambican migration to South Africa Ramos Cardoso Muanamoha a , Brij Maharaj c, * , Eleanor Preston-Whyte b a University of Eduardo Mondlane, Mozambique b School of Development, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa c Geography Discipline, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa article info Article history: Received 27 November 2007 Received in revised form 19 May 2010 Keywords: Social networks Migrant labour Undocumented migration Mozambique South Africa Xenophobia abstract This paper analyses the social networks which facilitate and sustain undocumented migration from Mozambique to South Africa. A key contention is that the migrant social networks are not limited to a spatially bounded area; transcend geography, location and territory; can be considered as spatial convey- ors of social capital; and operate transnationally at three different locations: in the sending communities, on borders and in the destination areas. In the sending communities, interpersonal relationships are based on bonds of kinship, and friendship through which the migrants get moral and material support for the movement. At the borders migrants establish connections with border agents, guides, and convey- ors who support them in entering South Africa and provide transportation to their preferred destinations. At the destination areas the newcomers have also counted on the bonds of kinship and friendship among former immigrants, who assist them on their arrival with accommodation and food as well as in the pro- cess of getting jobs and documentation. In South Africa undocumented migrants were subjected to high levels of xenophobia, exploitation and deportation, structural, sociopolitical forces against which social networks are largely ineffective. However, through the social networks the undocumented Mozambican labour migration to South Africa has become a self-sustained circular process that is difficult to control. Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction One consequence of the economic disparities between South Africa and neighbouring countries is the exacerbation of immigra- tion, both legal and illegal, into South Africa. This is part of a global trend in which the world’s more developed countries are experi- encing a greater influx of illegal migrants from less developed countries (Cornelius et al., 2004; Human Development Report, 2009). The migration of workers from other parts of Africa to South Africa has a long history (Davies and Head, 1995). Historically, the mining and agriculture sectors in South Africa have been dependent on migrant labour from southern African countries. In fact much of South Africa’s mineral wealth has been produced on the backs of migrant mine workers (Jeeves, 1985; Murray, 1995). Migrant la- bour from Southern African states has always been a thorny issue in South Africa’s already troubled relationship with its neighbours, during the apartheid years and afterwards. In the post-apartheid era there have been long delays in developing a new progressive immigration policy in South Africa, and this has been attributed to ‘‘national politics, bureaucratic bungling, and the very real dilem- ma of formulating democratic, rights-based migration in what is a highly xenophobic society” (Dodson, 2002, p. 1). Since the early 1990s Mozambican labour migration to South Africa has been assuming new contours (Crush and Williams, 2001a). In spite of a decrease in Mozambican contract labour migration to South Africa (SAMP, 2005a) there was an increase in undocumented labour migration. In 2003, it was estimated that 75,000 Mozambicans were working legally in South Africa, while those working illegally in Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces alone were estimated to be more than 145,000 (SAMP, 2003). How- ever, the actual number of undocumented migrants (including the Mozambicans) in South Africa is still unknown. Given its current magnitude, the undocumented Mozambican labour migration to South Africa has given cause for concern for both governments. In South Africa undocumented migrants are seen to be taking jobs from locals, and this has influenced the development of xenopho- bia (Crush et al. 2000a; Landau, 2004; Maharaj, 2004). In the international literature (and in contrast to other kinds of irregular migration like refugees and asylum seekers), undocu- mented labour migration has been portrayed as being primarily motivated by economic factors (Chiswick, 2001; Clark, 2002). The supply and demand for low wage illegal migrant workers was con- sidered the main reason for the increase in undocumented migra- tion flows, which was fuelled through social networks (Singer and Massey, 1998). Once the social networks grow and the migrant- supporting institutions develop, the migration tends to sustain it- self in ways that make additional movement progressively more likely over time (Massey et al., 1993, 1994, 1998). 0016-7185/$ - see front matter Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.geoforum.2010.06.001 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +27 31 260 1027; fax: +27 31 260 1391. E-mail address: maharajb@ukzn.ac.za (B. Maharaj). Geoforum 41 (2010) 885–896 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Geoforum journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/geoforum