Bishop says U.S. aid cuts, not migrants, crippling South Africa’s health system
Bishop Joseph Mary Kizito, the Liaison Bishop for the SACBC Migrants and Refugees Office. / Credit: SACBC
ACI Africa, Jul 17, 2025 / 14:28 pm (CNA).
Bishop Joseph Mary Kizito of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) said on July 15 that South Africa’s health sector has been brought to its knees not by foreign nationals, but by the recent suspension of most U.S. foreign aid.
In an interview with ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa, the bishop said that many locals protesting against migrants “do not understand world politics” and are unaware of the effects of directives from the U.S. government. That is the reason they have turned against migrants and refugees, he said.
Kizito, the liaison for the SACBC's Migrants and Refugees Department, denounced ongoing xenophobic attacks against foreign nationals in some parts of the country, noting that they are not to blame for the shortage of medication in the country’s health facilities.
“It is true that there is a lack of medication in the hospitals. But it's not because the foreigners have caused that; it is the economic situation we have found ourselves in. That is why we do not have a lot of money in the clinics,” Kizito said.
He added: “I think this situation has also been caused by the current international withdrawal of funding by President Trump of America. It has affected many economic changes in the departments, especially health and education.”
“I have seen HIV and TB projects here closing down. A lot of Trump money for HIV and TB is no longer there,” he said. “People are going to get a shortage of medication. And now, they are turning on foreigners, saying that it is they who are taking all their medications; but they don't know the causes of the shortage. They don't know the politics of the world.”
The Ugandan bishop, who leads South Africa’s Diocese of Aliwal, said he finds it hard to believe that foreigners are causing a strain on the country’s health system: “It is not true that all over the country, foreigners are more than the local people. That's not true.”
Recent protests, notably in Johannesburg’s Rosettenville suburb, have seen locals establish barricades demanding that undocumented migrants seek private medical care.
For weeks, residents of Rosettenville have also been reportedly calling for the deportation of illegal immigrants in South Africa, saying that they want South Africans to be prioritized for state services.
SACBC members have denounced the attacks, describing the move to exclude foreign nationals in South Africa from health care as “a morally reprehensible” behavior that they say risks undermining the country’s attempts to strengthen social cohesion.
Kizito told ACI Africa that “the situation in Zimbabwe is not improving, DRC is not improving. Same with Lesotho and many other countries whose nationals are here in South Africa. We do not see the issue of migrants and refugees stopping. They are only going to increase.”
“We are still addressing this issue because the systems are very difficult to penetrate. There is a lot of miscommunication between the government and the agents on the ground,” he said.
Kizito challenged authorities in South Africa to start probing the reasons that there are so many undocumented migrants in the country. He highlighted poor border management as one of the biggest contributors to the increase, faulting law enforcement for failing to control the country’s borders.
“Our borders are either too big or the resources are not enough. And so, a lot of people come into the country illegally,” he explained, adding that corrupt officials at the borders do not help the situation.
He bemoaned the growing woes of migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and those labelled “stateless” in South Africa, noting that delays in documentation are forcing foreign priests to leave the country.
He said that he had interacted with priests who were forced to go back to their home countries after attempts to renew their visas are delayed.
“Many priests have left the country because they have failed to secure their documents that show that they are not living here illegally,” the bishop said.
“These are clergy, men of God who want to renew their visas but they have failed. I know about three who have left. One left this week. They say that they cannot be here illegally. They have tried everything possible to complete their applications but nothing is working.”
Kizito said that the growing trend of priests leaving South Africa is not good for the country, which already has a shortage of priests.
He pleaded with South Africa’s department of Home Affairs and other authorities “to get their systems working” to reduce delays in documentation processes.
“The system is stuck. They always say they have a huge backlog. But for how long?" he asked, adding, “We appeal to the government. We appeal to the department of Home Affairs to make the system work. People genuinely want to renew their papers. But the office bureaucracies turn them down. People don't want to be in this country illegally.”
This article was originally published by ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa, and has been adapted by CNA.