MALAWI APPEALS FOR AID AS 10,000 CITIZENS SEEK EVACUATION FROM SOUTH AFRICA

By Masauko Alfred Mzongwe 

The Malawian government has launched an urgent appeal for financial and logistical support to repatriate an estimated 10,000 citizens caught up in vigilante attacks targeting foreign nationals in South Africa .

The Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) said in a statement issued on 15 June that the scale of the operation had created "unprecedented financial, logistical and humanitarian demands" . The first group of returnees arrived in Malawi on 9 June, with 645 more citizens currently in transit from Durban aboard eight buses .

Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs, Wilson Moleni, described the repatriation as a national humanitarian mission requiring collective action. "We believe this is a national humanitarian mission that requires the collective effort, compassion and solidarity of all stakeholders," Moleni said in the statement .

The government has activated a comprehensive response involving the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Malawi High Commission in Pretoria, and humanitarian partners . Reception facilities have been established at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre, where returnees receive temporary shelter, food assistance, psychosocial support, and onward transportation to their home districts .

A government task team has been deployed to South Africa to support registration, verification, protection, and repatriation of affected citizens . Emergency travel documentation is being facilitated for Malawians who have lost or do not possess valid travel documents .

South African authorities have reported that approximately 7,000 Malawians gathered at Sherwood Town Hall in Durban seeking transport home, with 645 departing on Monday . The South African government has pledged 10 additional buses to support the repatriation effort, with 980 Malawians already deported from the Lindela Repatriation Centre on 10 June .

Moleni assured donors that all contributions would be managed transparently and used exclusively for repatriation and support of returning citizens . Donations can be made through designated Reserve Bank of Malawi accounts .

The government expressed gratitude to partners who have already contributed, stating "their generosity and solidarity are making a tangible difference in the lives of affected Malawians" .