South Africa’s latest attempt to defuse mounting diplomatic tensions with Nigeria over renewed xenophobic attacks has suffered a setback after President Bola Tinubu reportedly declined to receive a special delegation sent by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
South Africa’s bid to ease tensions with Nigeria faces setback as Tinubu reportedly declines meeting
- Nigerian President Tinubu declined to meet directly with a South African delegation sent to address tensions over renewed xenophobic attacks.
- Tinubu instead directed the delegation, led by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations, to meet with Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.
- The diplomatic snub comes amid strained relations and recent evacuations of Nigerians from South Africa following violent incidents.
- South Africa is conducting a broader diplomatic push across Africa to mitigate criticism and address the root causes of migration and xenophobia.
Nigeria’s president Tinubu turned down a request to meet the delegation, led by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, directing instead that the envoys hold talks with Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye.
Citing multiple Presidencyn Friday seeking an audience with Tinubu but was informed that the President would only decide on Monday whether to receive them. When Monday came, the meeting was reportedly declined
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“They actually came here on Friday wanting to see the President. But there was no prior notice,” one Presidency
“And we said we can’t just allow you to see the President without first asking him if he is available. So we asked, and the President said they could come on Monday.“
“But when Monday came, he simply said they should go and meet the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Enikanolaiye, and whatever they discuss, the Minister would come and brief him.”
Another Presidency official quoted by The Punch said, “I just confirmed it. He is not seeing them. The meeting is not happening.”
The reported snub comes as relations between Africa’s two largest economies have come under strain following a fresh wave of xenophobic violence targeting Nigerians and other African nationals in South Africa, prompting the evacuation of hundreds of Nigerians.
While neither the Nigerian Presidency nor the South African government has officially commented on Tinubu’s reported decision, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Enikanolaiye received the delegation on the President’s directive.
The Abuja visit is part of a broader diplomatic campaign by Pretoria to contain growing criticism across the continent over xenophobic violence.
South Africa has argued that discussions on migration should focus on the structural drivers of migration while affirming every country’s sovereign right to enforce its immigration lawsAllAfrica,SMS
In recent weeks, South Africa has intensified diplomatic efforts to ease tensions with African countries following renewed xenophobic attacks.
As part of that push, International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola visited Ghana as President Cyril Ramaphosa’s special envoy before leading a delegation to Nigeria.
In Abuja, the South African team defended Pretoria’s right to enforce its immigration laws, saying it has a duty to tackle criminality, including offences allegedly involving some immigrants.
Nigeria rejected that position, with Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye describing the attacks as unacceptable and warning they reflected a pattern of Afrophobic violence.
He reminded the delegation of Nigeria’s role in the anti-apartheid struggle and said about 98 Nigerians have been killed in previous xenophobic attacks in South Africa.
Lamola has also urged African countries to focus on the root causes of migration—including unemployment, conflict and climate change—rather than what he called “finger-pointing” at South Africa.
The issue is also climbing the African Union’s agenda.
Migration is expected to feature prominently during the African Union Executive Council meeting in Addis Ababa this week, following calls for a broader continental discussion on the treatment of African migrants and the underlying causes of irregular migration.
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South Africa has said it welcomes such discussions, provided they examine migration across the continent rather than focusing solely on Pretoria.
Lamola has also said his government would welcome an AU fact-finding mission and supports a continental approach based on the AU Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons and the Southern African Development Community’s migration framework.
For Nigeria, however, the reported decision by Tinubu to decline a direct meeting with Ramaphosa’s envoys signals that expressions of concern alone may no longer be enough.
With attacks on African migrants continuing to reverberate across the continent, many governments are likely to be looking for concrete action rather than diplomatic assurances.
