The paper argues that there is a growing interconnection between globalisation on the one hand, and migration (both intra- and interstate) on the other. In general migration in Africa is largely informal and undocumented, making accurate data on the phenomenon extremely scant. This notwithstanding, there is evidence of the phenomenal increase in the wave of migration on the continent. The conventional causes of migration, including conflicts, political oppression, economic crisis and environmental factors, have in recent years been reinforced by globalisation which unleashes fresh pressures that either facilitate or compound the already huge and seemingly unmanageable migration problematique on the continent. The paper demonstrates the various ways by which globalisation impacts on migration. Among other things, it notes the unencumbered movement of capital accompanied by capitalists across state borders, the formation of regional trading blocs as a logical response to the imperatives of globalisation, which promote the free movement of people within regions, and the deepening of disparities between countries, which spawns the movement of people from the poor to the more affluent countries. Further, the paper analyses the impact of globalisation on Africa's already fragile environment and argues that there is a growing tendency for diminishing environmental resources to generate conflicts between user constituencies. Such conflicts displace people and exert migratory pressures. It is argued further that, while globalisation promotes greater migration, most African states, especially the relatively affluent, are increasingly closing their borders to immi­ grants because of a variety of reasons, including the fear of emigrants engaging in criminal activities. The paper concludes that the imbalance between increased migration and shrinking immigration opportunities leads to the adoption of informal alternatives by emigrants to get to their destinations.

Population displacements, refugees and migration are not only common phenomena, but are also on the increase in sub-Saharan Africa.

This paper argues that international relations in Africa have changedespecially in content since the abatement of the Cold War. These changeshave been accelerated by the pressures unleashed by the internationalenvironment, including the reality of Africa’s marginalisation and the forcesof globalisation. These, along with domestic factors, including debt, internalconflicts, the impact of the ubiquitous structural adjustment programmes(SAPs), HIV/AIDS and human insecurity in general have combined tounderscore foreign aid and economic assistance as key driving forces ofthe continent’s foreign policies and diplomacy towards the North. Yet, thenew thrust of foreign policies, informed by the need for foreign aid, has notoccurred without a price. Among other things it has elevated technocrats incentral or reserve banks and finance ministries to positions of prominencevis-à-vis officials from foreign ministries and in the process introduced extra-African actors into the foreign policy making process of the continent. Thisin turn has undermined Africa’s increasingly tenuous economic sovereignty.But above all, it has led to the strengthening of ties with the North andinternational creditors in particular at the cost of intra-African relations.The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the AfricanUnion (AU) recently inaugurated, promise to open a new chapter in Africa’sinternational relations. It is argued, however, that against a background of aconfluence of factors, these new continental projects will make only a minimalimpact in terms of mitigating the consequences of the aid-driven foreignpolicies and thus altering the donor-oriented postures of African states

Lesotho, a small sovereign country located within the borders of the Republic of South Africa, displays a paradox as regards immigration. It lacks the attributes of a typical receiving country, but it has been attractive to immigrants, especially from those countries in sub-Saharan Africa which are not members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Lesotho's attraction to immigrants is explained largely by its ability to offer better remuneration for skilled workers than many non-SADC sub-Saharan African countries, and by its strategic location as an easy transit gate into South Africa, widely perceived as the 'Europe' of the continent. However, the influx of immigrants into Lesotho has generated a wave of anti-foreigner feelings among sections of the population and heightened the debate about the relevance of foreigners to national development. The paper reiterates the principal conventional arguments against immigration: that it compromises jobs, raises crime rates, intensifies the spread of diseases, undermines the homogeneity of the state and nation and exerts additional strain on the country's already overstretched resources. Demonstrating the limits of these arguments, the paper argues that for Lesotho, grappling with unemployment and manpower shortages, immigration is an asset rather than a liability because it creates jobs, brings in skills that are otherwise in short supply and raises the country's international profile and competitiveness.

Abstract