More than 3,000 Malawian nationals have been deported from South Africa as authorities intensify a repatriation drive following a wave of anti-immigrant protests and rising tensions between locals and foreign nationals.

Malawi’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Stella Ndau, confirmed that thousands of Malawians have either already returned home or are in transit. Since the operation began, 1,549 Malawians have arrived back in Malawi, about 1,260 are currently en route, and a further 700 have been deported with logistical assistance from the South African government, bringing the total to 3,509 people.

The mass removals follow protests in Johannesburg and other urban centers, where demonstrators accused undocumented migrants of taking jobs and straining public services. Rights groups have warned that such rhetoric risks fueling xenophobic violence, echoing previous outbreaks that left scores dead and displaced thousands of foreign nationals.

To cope with the surge in people awaiting removal, South African authorities have begun constructing a second temporary deportation center. The new facility is intended to ease pressure on an existing site in Durban’s Sherwood area, where an estimated 10,000 Malawians and other foreign nationals have been camping for more than a week, many in overcrowded and precarious conditions.

At Sherwood, families sleep in makeshift shelters as they wait for buses to take them north. Among them is Pearson Kaunda, a Malawian who has lived in South Africa for more than a decade. He described a climate of fear and hostility that pushed him to leave. “South Africa is so bad just now. We’re supposed to go home, you can’t live here like that,” he said.

Officials say the deportation process has been slowed by legal and logistical hurdles. Because many Malawians were in the country without proper documentation, they are required to appear in court before removal orders can be finalized. South African authorities also point to a shortage of buses provided by the Malawian government, which has appealed for donations to help transport its citizens back home.

Malawi is one of several African countries now organizing large-scale returns of their nationals from South Africa, as frustration over irregular migration deepens and foreign communities report growing fears of harassment and potential violence.