“We Know Each Other”: Analyzing Interactions Between African International and Local Students in South African Universities

Abstract

Much of the literature on the relationship between South Africans and African migrants in South Africa is awash with discourses of xenophobia and afrophobia. This is notwithstanding significant evidence which suggests that interactions between these groups transcend the notoriety of conflictual relationships. For example, statistics show that despite pervasive xenophobic violence against African migrants in South Africa, the population of international students from African continues to increase significantly in South African universities. This chapter is based on a survey of 79 African international students across two universities in KwaZulu-Natal that aimed to determine levels of acceptance within their university communities and South African society in general. Based on the findings, it calls for deeper appreciation of South Africa’s contribution to internationalization and regional integration in Africa, not only for building a stronger global reputation for the Republic but also in providing a recipe for the socio-economic transformation of Africa in the face of challenging political-economic realities.KeywordsXenophobiaSouth AfricaInteractionInternational African studentsSouth African students