The Politics of Scarcity: Migrati...
The Politics of Scarcity: Migration, Jobs and the Fight for South Africa
Context with Sebenzile Nkambule by Sebenzile Nkambule
S1 · E21
Aug 25, 2026
01:14:56
Episode notes

What happens when millions of people feel that there simply isn't enough to go around?

Not enough jobs. Not enough houses. Not enough places in schools. Not enough functioning healthcare. Not enough opportunity.

Eventually, somebody gets blamed.

In this episode of Context, Sebenzile Nkambule sits down with lawyer, trade unionist and activist Mametlwe Sebei for a challenging conversation about South Africa's migration crisis and the economic conditions underneath it.

Sebei argues that migrants have become convenient targets for anger created by unemployment, deindustrialisation, poverty and state failure. Sebenzile challenges him on the questions that cannot simply be dismissed: undocumented migration, pressure on services, crime, and the legitimate frustration of South Africans who feel abandoned in their own coun ... 

Keywords
healing
African Unity
Afrophobia
South Africans
Economy
human rights
migration
immigration
Belonging
African Leadership
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