How Migrant Women are transforming the Southern African Economy
- Tshepy Matloga-Malope
- Jun 25
- 9 min read
All over the world, migration is often depicted through the lens of crisis and displacement. For decades, migration across Southern Africa was a forced journey marred by the loss of cultural ties and economic instability. These days, voluntary migration is more common, motivated by the quest for better livelihood, education, and entrepreneurial opportunities. Beneath the headlines are stories of women travelling from country to country, shaping economies and redefining social norms.
This blog is produced as part of the Move Africa 2025 project, commissioned by the African Union Commission and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Move Africa repositions migration, reporting away from trauma and towards stories of innovation, trade, and cultural exchange told through the lived experiences of African women. These stories span regions from Congo to Kenya, Malawi to Zambia, Nigeria to Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal to Morocco, Madagascar and beyond. The author interviewed the following women on their voluntary migration experiences as part of the Move Africa project. Here are their stories:
Nyasha Melissa Chisoko remembers the moment her first sale came through. She was in her small apartment in Johannesburg, nursing her newborn and watching online pre-orders trickle in for the very first time.
“I cried,” she says. “Not because it was a huge amount of money, but because someone believed in me.”
That belief planted the seed for MAZH Babies, her premium baby and maternity brand that now sits on the shelves of major retailers. This business wasn’t born from a business school plan. It began with migration and motherhood.
Melissa, a 32-year-old Zimbabwean entrepreneur, moved to South Africa in 2010 at the age of 17 to further her studies after completing her A-levels. Her two older siblings were already studying in the country. After graduating from the University of South Africa with a BCom Accounting degree, Melissa found herself facing a common predicament among international graduates: Limited job prospects and local networks.
Drawing from her journey into motherhood, she envisioned a brand that could fill that void. “It was when I fell pregnant with my first baby years later, that I saw a gap in the baby products market. New parents in South Africa, especially those balancing style, practicality, and affordability, lacked access to curated essentials that were both functional and fashionable,” says Melissa. That vision would become MAZH Babies, a luxury baby and maternity line that celebrates modern African parenting with premium products, vegan leather diaper bags, minimalist baby bassinets, and elegant maternity wear.
Founded in 2021, MAZH is derived from the Shona word "madzhambe," which means "crying baby," and is a manifestation of what happens when African women are given space to thrive across borders. With no start-up capital and funded solely on pre-orders from social media, Melissa’s brand has grown into a nationally recognised label, partnering with major retailers like Chelino Baby and featuring in British Vogue and Glamour UK. She won the 2024 Zimbabwe Achievers Award for Female Personality of the Year, a symbol of migrant women’s economic contribution and creative potential.
As a foreign-born entrepreneur in South Africa, Melissa has had to navigate bureaucratic red tape, build trust in unfamiliar markets, and face social and legal systems that act against migrants, like licenses and permits, which can be complex to understand and attain without a lawyer. Melissa does not refer to herself as a "migrant entrepreneur." Yet, her journey is deeply shaped by the freedom to move, to access markets, and to reimagine what success looks like for an African woman in business.
According to Statistics South Africa's (Stats SA) 2022 Census, over 2.4 million migrants live in South Africa. Of these, over one million are women, and many of these women come from within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, with Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Lesotho emerging as the top three sending countries. The results further show that of the top three immigrant populations, Zimbabwe males contribute the most, at 25.9%, and females contribute 22.6%; Mozambique constitute 13.0% whilst their female counterparts account for 6.9%; and female immigrants from Lesotho were 6.1% of total immigrants compared to 4.8% for males.
The majority of these migrants settle in urban hubs like Gauteng and the Western Cape, provinces that continue to attract the highest influx of migrants due to rising GDP, lower unemployment, and improved living standards. Migrant women are not only participating in the South African economy, but they are also reshaping it.
Angela Ngano (age withheld) left Zimbabwe for South Africa in 2016, after completing her Honours degree in Risk Management and Insurance at the National University of Science and Technology. Migration, for her, wasn’t about escape or survival.
“I moved to South Africa in search of better opportunities and a more stable economic environment,” she says. “I saw it as a place where I could grow professionally." While working as a property administrator and rental agent at one of the property firms in Johannesburg, Angela noticed that the housing sector had untapped innovation potential.
“I wanted my slice of the pie, but realized I couldn't get it as an employee. I had to be a business owner.”
The journey began while she was still a rental administrator, learning the ropes in a new country in 2018.
"That role gave me a window into the housing market. I started noticing inefficiencies and gaps in the system, like how migrant families struggle to find stable, well-managed homes to rent. Over time, I worked my way up, built strong relationships, and co-founded a business to offer something better,” she says. Today, Angela co-owns a property management company called Polaris, operating across Gauteng since 2022. Her business is known for tenant-centred service and transparent landlord partnerships and has expanded to manage investment properties for South African homeowners living abroad.
“Being a foreign national in South Africa means I understand what it feels like to be overlooked or underestimated, which motivates me to treat every client and tenant with empathy and respect. That perspective has helped me build a people-first business culture,” says Angela.
Angela’s story is one of grit, vision, and adaptability, qualities that became essential as she navigated the layered experience of being a migrant woman in business. From limited access to networks to the subtle biases of a new culture, she had to earn her place in every room.
“It was hard at first,” she admits. “But I stayed curious, listened deeply, and let professionalism and results speak for me.” While she didn’t receive formal funding, she found support in local property forums, legal workshops, and mentorship.
“Industry peers showed me the ropes, and now, I make sure to do the same for young women entering real estate,” she says. Her company’s impact stretches beyond property portfolios. It creates employment opportunities for women, delivers reliable housing solutions for families, and anchors Angela’s commitment to giving back.
Now, she is pursuing a Master’s in Analytics at American University in Washington, D.C., sharpening her skills in data-driven decision-making to take her business to the next level. “I want to bring advanced insights back home to both my host country and my country of birth, to enhance operations and innovate the way we serve clients,” she says. She also serves as the Vice President of Events for the Kogod Women in Business board, where she helps create platforms for women in leadership to thrive and connect. “It’s about breaking barriers, social, cultural, or professional.”
Angela’s future goals are clear: Expand into new markets, empower more women, and advocate for ethical, people-first practices in real estate. “I want to build a legacy for my family, for my team, and for every woman who’s told her dreams are too big.”
Both Melissa and Angela have succeeded in building thriving businesses that now employ migrants and local employees, reflecting the findings of IOM and Stats SA on the link between cross-border migration and innovation.
However, not every migrant story includes award nominations and MBAs.
In Pretoria, 38-year-old Maria Machava* (not real name), a Mozambican single mother of two, is putting up her stock on a stall she shares with a friend. At first, Maria is wary, her posture tense, her answers clipped. She suspects I might be working with South African immigration authorities, or worse, filming one of those television programs that stage citizen arrests of undocumented migrants. It takes hours of gentle reassurance, repeated clarifications, and a few firm ground rules—chief among them, not revealing her face—before she finally agrees to speak.
Maria has moved from one corner of the country to the other for the past five years, selling vegetables for a living. Unlike Melissa and Angela, Maria came to South Africa on a visitor’s visa in 2019 and never left, a visa that does not allow her to work or operate any business.
“I came here on the invitation of a friend, and honestly, I am making enough money to sustain myself and my children. It’s very dangerous as well. I’ve been robbed, but I cannot even report to the police because I should not be working here anyway. I am also in constant fear of the police officials finding out my immigration status, as I will get arrested and deported, resulting in losing my business and income,” she says. Maria never finished high school. Her husband left after their second child was born. She survived by doing domestic work in her township of Mafalala, Mozambique. But when a friend shared with her an opportunity to go to South Africa, she borrowed money from family members to buy a bus ticket and her first vegetable stock.
Now, she supports the children she left in Mafalala and has built a two-room house back home. Her firstborn will complete high school in 2025 and hopefully go to university. Maria’s business isn’t registered. She doesn’t have a bank account. But she is one of the invisible thousands powering a vital cross-border economy that sustains families, creates incomes, and moves millions in remittances.
“I may not wear heels or speak English well,” Maria says with a smile, “But I’m a businesswoman too, and given a chance to get the right visas, I will thrive more than I am doing now.”
The 2022 Census and QLFS provide critical insight into how migration patterns intersect with gender, employment, education, and social development. Migrants are more likely to establish businesses than their non-migrant peers, due to the need to survive and limited access to formal employment.
They end up operating in the informal economy, where regulations are less complex and support is more readily available. These businesses tend to be resilient, innovative, and deeply connected to their communities.
Women from Zimbabwe make up more than 22% of South Africa’s female migrant population, according to the 2022 Census. According to Yvonne Ndege, Spokesperson, East, Horn & Southern Africa, International Organization for Migration/UN Migration (IOM), IOM works closely with governments to streamline documentation processes, recognise foreign qualifications, and facilitate microfinance access.
“Our work acknowledges that integration is not a one-sided process; it requires effort from both migrants and host communities to foster mutual understanding and shared prosperity,” says Ndege.
At the core of this transformation is a supportive policy environment, anchored by frameworks established through SADC, the SADC Labour Migration Action Plan, the SADC Migration Policy Framework, and the Southern African Development Community Qualifications Framework.
Although the SADC Protocol on the Facilitation of Movement of Persons has not yet been ratified by several member states, its principles inform policy initiatives. These include efforts to improve border infrastructure, protect migrant workers in vulnerable sectors like domestic work and agriculture, and foster cross-border educational and economic integration.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has also been instrumental in advancing these goals. Working in close collaboration with the SADC Secretariat, the IOM contributes to formulating policies that align with regional integration and gender equity. In practice, these policies translate into programs that facilitate access to work, protect against exploitation, and promote social inclusion
Migrants tend to contribute more to the government’s fiscal balance than they receive in social services, debunking persistent myths that they are a drain on public resources like free healthcare and education.
“Migrants who are well-integrated into South Africa’s labour market have the potential to increase GDP per capita by up to 5%,” says Ndege.
While policy sets the stage, the real momentum happens at the grassroots. Local NGOs and community groups are driving the integration and empowerment of migrant women in ways that are deeply impactful, while IOM has implemented hands-on programs to support integration. “In Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Western Cape, our projects have helped nearly 400 individuals, more than half of them migrants, formalize their businesses through training in taxation, marketing, business registration, and compliance with local by-laws,” says Ndege.
Migrant women have received skills development in areas ranging from baking and sewing to electrical repairs and welding. These initiatives not only equip women with economic tools but also foster social inclusion. The success of migrant women in Southern Africa cannot be separated from the broader ecosystem that supports them. Regional cooperation, informed policy, grassroots activism, and robust data all converge to make integration possible. It is a story of quiet revolution.
From the policy rooms of SADC to the bustling markets of Johannesburg. From Melissa, who transformed the experience of lack and motherhood into a luxury baby brand, to Angela, who turned a rental job into a real estate company rooted in dignity and data, to Maria, whose stall in Pretoria sustains two children back in Mozambique. These women are rewriting what it means to migrate.
Their journeys are about personal ambition, but they're also about shifting the perception of what cross-border migration can achieve. Together, these women reveal the full spectrum of migrant resilience: women migrating to seek opportunity, and to build it, quietly, insistently, against the odds.
This content is produced as part of the Move Africa project, commissioned by the African Union Commission and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author's and do not reflect those of the GIZ or the African Union.
Author's bio
Tshepy Matloga-Malope is a seasoned media and communications specialist with over 15 years of experience crafting content and PR strategies across Southern Africa. As one of twenty- five women journalists selected for the 2025 Move Africa editorial fellowship from African Women in Media, she produced a human-interest feature reframing gendered migration narratives. Her storytelling spans articles that shift narratives toward human-centred experiences. She is the author of the children’s book Ausome Kganya and the Magical Friendship Garden, which nurtures empathy and inclusivity among young readers, especially those on the autism spectrum.
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