The gridlock affecting work-permit applications in South Africa is limiting expansion by German companies in the country and threatening operations that support 100 000 jobs, an industry association said.

While South Africa is taking steps to improve an approval system and make it easier and quicker to get permits, the snarl-up that was exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic has limited the entry of skilled workers into a country that has a dire shortage of them. Between 2014 and 2021 only 25 298 skilled-worker permits were approved by the country, which has a population of 60 million.

`The visa matter spans the entire hierarchy of German business in South Africa` ranging from chief executive officers to technicians, the Southern African-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Thursday in a response to questions. `This is of course not only a concern to German business but also to the country itself` as German companies operating in South Africa provide jobs for 100 000 people along their supply chains, the chamber said.

Companies operating in South Africa struggle to find skilled workers, a result of a dysfunctional education system and exacerbated by emigration. Volkswagen AG and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG operate factories in the country and the chamber has over 600 member companies. Andreas Peschke, Germany’s ambassador to South Africa,

has previously estimated that German companies account for 10% of South Africa’s export income.

Germany is South Africa’s third-biggest single-country trade partner after China and the US, with two-way movement exceeding $20 billion last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Companies not being able to get permits for executives at local subsidiaries is endangering investment and `the same goes for technicians not being able to enter the country, while at the same time there are no skilled workers available in South Africa to service machinery,` the chamber said.

The group said that while there have been improvements this year, its members had more than 100 open work permit applications in the second half of last year. In one case it took about 18 months to get a permit for a managing director and the owners of one company sold up after their visa was rejected despite 30 years of doing business in the nation.

The visa-approval process remains opaque and offers from the chamber to help improve the process and digitize it have not been responded to, the German chamber said.

Siyabulela Qoza, a spokesman for the Department of Home Affairs, didn’t answer a call to his mobile phone or respond to a text message. V.4893

Germany`s Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) and Kenya`s President William Ruto signed the deal in Berlin Germany has agreed to open the doors to 250,000 skilled and semi-skilled Kenyan workers in a controlled and targeted labour migration deal. Kenya is struggling with increasing difficulties in providing work and sufficient income for its young professionals, while Germany is facing a shortage of skilled labour. V.5609
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BEIJING - China said it would gradually raise its statutory retirement age, as the country grapples with a looming demographic crisis and an older population. Hundreds of millions of people in China are set to enter old age in the coming decades while the birth rate dwindles dramatically. V.5610
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A surprise inspection at a Pretoria restaurant resulted in the arrest of two foreign national employees who allegedly did not have documentation to be in the country. (Alex Mitchley/News24) • The Department of Labour has conducted a `blitz` inspection at a restaurant in Menlyn. • The surprise inspection came after a complaint alleging the flouting of labour practices by a former employee that started making the rounds on social media. • One of the restaurant owners dismissed the allegations. V.5611
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The Western Cape High Court has temporarily stopped the initiation of any process to deport a foreign national who has indicated an intent to apply for asylum, until their application has been finalised. • The Western Cape High Court has temporarily halted the initiation of any process to deport a foreign national who has indicated an intent to apply for asylum, until their application has been finalised. • The interim interdict will remain in place pending the outcome of the main court application brought by the Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town. • The court is expected to hear that main challenge in February 2025. V.5612
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South Africa’s plan to attract more professionals to its skills-starved economy through the introduction of a so-called nomad visa for remote workers has been slowed by the need to amend tax regulations. The impediment comes after an initial delay when changes to the visa regime had to be temporarily withdrawn because mandatory public consultation procedures hadn’t been followed. V.5613
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Illegal land occupation has been a very big problem in Pretoria east for decades now, with the evolution of more than two informal settlements, with dwellers being illegal immigrants. Tshwane metro will look to work with Home Affairs to combat illegal land occupation, illegal immigration and theft, according to FF Plus councillor and MMC for community safety in Tshwane, Grandi Theunissen. V.5607
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The City of Tshwane’s fight against hijacking of inner-city buildings could soon take a new turn aimed at deporting illegal immigrants likely to be found guilty of invading those properties. This comes after MMC for Community Safety, Grandi Theunissen, also FF Plus councillor, indicated that the municipality and the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, agreed to join hands in addressing the problem. V.5608
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The departments of Home Affairs and Basic Education deployed mobile units to 1 625 school nationwide to assist young people in rural areas. The Department of Home Affairs is on a drive to assist young people get their IDs. In partnership with the Department of Basic Education, mobile units have scoured the nation’s schools to provide DHA services. V.5603
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South Africa is set to simplify travel for Indian tourists by introducing a 90-day visa waiver starting in January 2025. Along with the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme, these initiatives aim to streamline the visa process and boost tourism significantly. Great news for travelers from India and China! South Africa is taking significant steps to attract more Indian tourists by introducing a 90-day visa waiver starting in January 2025. The new policy aims to simplify travel for Indian visitors and is expected to increase the number of tourists from India. V.5604
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Kuwait’s Central Agency for Remedying Illegal Residents’ Status (CARIRS) has revoked the citizenship of more than 10,000 people with dual nationality between 2011 and last month, the KUNA news agency has reported. According to the agency, the step is the result of a full decade of Kuwaiti efforts to address the dual nationality file, and comes as a culmination of a campaign that began last year to confront those who obtain Kuwaiti citizenship illegally. V.5605
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