Born in South Africa, strangers in Zimbabwe: Children face uncertain future as families flee xenophobia

By Tichaona Katsvamutima

For Zimbabwean children born and raised in South Africa, fleeing anti-migrant hostility has meant abandoning the only home they have ever known to begin new lives in a country many know only through their parents’ stories.

Unlike their parents, who are returning to familiar communities, these children face the challenge of adjusting to unfamiliar schools, languages and social environments, raising concerns about their education, identity and psychological wellbeing.

Their predicament has been documented by international humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which encountered displaced families arriving at Beitbridge Reception Centre following violence and intimidation in South Africa.

Among them was a mother travelling to Tsholotsho with her three children after their home was burnt down. The family lost everything, including birth certificates, educational records, money and furniture.

Her children had never visited Zimbabwe, while their mother was found to have dangerously high blood pressure at an MSF-supported clinic near the border.

Another mother, identified as Nomalanga*, left South Africa after her 13-year-old daughter experienced xenophobic hostility at school.

Nomalanga moved to South Africa in 2010 and raised her three children there. However, her daughter returned from school distressed after classmates began shouting “Abahambe”, meaning “they must go”, at Zimbabwean pupils.

A longtime friend also stopped speaking to the girl after discovering she was Zimbabwean.

As tensions escalated, Nomalanga kept her family indoors. She later sought treatment for a toothache but said a doctor advised her that it was unsafe for her to remain at the hospital amid the violence.

“With that, I concluded that we were no longer wanted in South Africa,” she told MSF.

Although the family reached Zimbabwe, Nomalanga remained uncertain about how her children would adjust to a country none had previously lived in.

Their experiences highlight the difficulties confronting children whose friendships, education and sense of belonging have been shaped by South African society.

According to reports, some returning children have encountered difficulties enrolling in Zimbabwean schools because of missing birth certificates and other documentation.

Desmond Ntini, a reception centre coordinator in Bulawayo, said parents had approached schools seeking places for their children but were turned away because they lacked the necessary documents.

“There are many parents who came on their own or earlier. They went to schools looking for places for their children but unfortunately they could not enroll them because of documentation,” Ntini said.

He also highlighted differences between the two countries’ school calendars, which have complicated the transition.

“Schools were closed in South Africa while schools here were already open. But children cannot suffer because of the situation. Children have to go to school,” he said.

Beyond documentation, displaced children face the emotional consequences of leaving familiar classrooms, neighbourhoods and friendships, particularly those who have experienced discrimination or threats.

At Beitbridge, MSF personnel observed children playing and communicating in English and South African languages while their parents sat quietly beside the few belongings they had managed to salvage.
Government figures show that 155,264 Zimbabweans had returned through Beitbridge by 16 August 2026, including those assisted by authorities and those who returned independently. Another 86,300 Malawian nationals were recorded as having been repatriated through Zimbabwe.

However, the figures do not establish how many returning Zimbabwean children were born in South Africa or have never previously lived in Zimbabwe.

For families already struggling with unemployment, lost possessions and uncertain accommodation, helping children settle into unfamiliar communities presents an additional challenge.

For Nomalanga’s daughter, leaving South Africa meant abandoning the school where she had grown up after classmates rejected her because of her Zimbabwean identity.

For the three children travelling to Tsholotsho, it meant starting again in a country they had never visited, without the possessions and educational records their family had accumulated.

Their parents have returned home, but for these children, Zimbabwe is a country they must now learn to call home.