Wamkele Mene, secretary-general of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) secretariat, has condemned attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa, saying the violence is at odds with the objectives of the continent’s flagship trade agreement.
The AfCFTA is intended to facilitate the movement of goods, capital and people across the continent and depends on confidence among governments and businesses that citizens can live, work and trade safely across borders.
Mene said the attacks are inconsistent with the principles of Pan-Africanism and run counter to the vision of an integrated African market.
“This behaviour is inconsistent with the values of Pan-Africanism and it is abhorrent to the very idea of the single market we are trying to build. The displacement of foreign nationals in South Africa is antithetical to that project. I reject xenophobia in all its forms,” Mene said in a statement.
“I am deeply embarrassed by the xenophobic vigilantism being carried out in South Africa by a loud minority of xenophobes. I am heartened by the government’s response and its determination to prosecute individuals who are causing havoc, harassing and attacking foreign nationals in South Africa, whether they are documented or undocumented.”
