Exploring the effects of social networks and remittances on Zimbabweans' immigration into Mafikeng Local Municipality of North West Province, South Africa

Abstract

The fundamental aim of this study was to explore the effects of social networks and remittances on Zimbabweans’ immigration into the Mafikeng Local Municipality (MLM) of North West Province, South Africa. This is a qualitative research study, because the study required a significant insight and empirical material that is qualitative in nature, as well as a method that offers in-depth explanations, in that case in-depth interviews were utilized in soliciting data that provided in-depth insight on the effects that social networks and remittances produce on immigration of Zimbabweans into Mafikeng Local Municipality of North West in South Africa. Moreover, this study adopted an exploratory research design, due to dearth of literature relating to social networks in facilitating remittances and immigration of Zimbabweans into deep rural localities of South Africa, such as the MLM. In addition, the study also employed developmental psychological and sociological longitudinal analysis research design to analyze changing trends in remittance corridors using both existing scholarly documents and responses from interviews. The study established that social networks have the capacity to facilitate immigration of Zimbabweans into South Africa and again facilitate emigration back to Zimbabwe. As such, social networks can facilitate cyclical migration. Furthermore, the study uncovered that these social networks also facilitate remittances. Through social networks, migrants can send remittances to their country of origin and again use the same networks to remit goods from their country of origin to their destination country and in this regard, there is cyclical remitting. Finally, the study concludes that remittances are some of the major migration push factors, as result of awareness of relative deprivation in country of origin. In this regard, awareness of relative deprivation of remittances pushes families to send some of their members abroad to work and be able to remit. The study then proposes channels which limit informal methods of remitting in order for remittances to contribute to tax revenue in both sending and receiving states.