The South Africa’s government has moved to tighten controls on the employment of foreign nationals in the public service after figures showed that thousands of non-citizens are filling critical skills gaps, particularly in education and health.
The Department of Public Service and Administration said foreign nationals make up about 0.44 percent of South Africa’s public servants. Out of an estimated 1,390,216 public servants, 6,333 were foreign nationals employed at the end of April 2025.
Most foreign workers were found in education and health, with 3,305 employed in education and 2,625 in the health sector at combined national and provincial levels.
Acting deputy director general, Anusha Naidoo, said these sectors have the highest concentration of foreign nationals because many South Africans are unwilling to work in remote and underserved areas.
Naidoo said government often faces a choice between leaving posts vacant or appointing qualified foreign nationals when local candidates are unavailable. She said recruitment processes are followed strictly and include checks to ensure full compliance with immigration laws.
She said undocumented foreign nationals are not employed and that recruitment systems always prioritise South Africans, with foreign nationals only considered where verified skills shortages exist.
Basic Education Minister, Siviwe Gwarube, told parliament that more than 30,000 teachers have resigned or been dismissed from public schools over the past five years. Gauteng recorded the highest number of resignations at 8,333, followed by KwaZulu Natal with 5,994 and the Western Cape with 4,700. Reasons cited included retirement, career changes, workload pressure and burnout.
Naidoo was speaking on the sidelines of a media briefing in Pretoria on Tuesday, where Public Service and Administration Minister, Mzamo Buthelezi, and his deputy, Pinky Kekana, launched International Anti-Corruption Day, a United Nations programme focused on preventing and fighting corruption worldwide.
The cabinet has approved the white paper on the national labour migration policy and the Employment Services Amendment Bill. These introduce quotas for foreign workers in key sectors such as agriculture, hospitality, tourism and construction, while reinforcing limits on foreign owned small businesses and business visas.
Opposition parties including the Patriotic Alliance and ActionSA, along with groups such as Operation Dudula, have repeatedly raised concerns about illegal immigration, citing porous borders and corruption at border posts.
At the briefing, Buthelezi said corruption remains deeply entrenched in South African society and continues to undermine service delivery through misappropriation of funds, nepotism and weak accountability. He said these failures contribute to economic stagnation and reduce opportunities for citizens.
The minister said government is rolling out a national framework for the professionalisation of the public service, approved by cabinet in October 2022. The framework is built around merit, competence, impartiality and accountability, with the aim of improving performance, retention and ethical standards across government.
Kekana said a strategy is also in place to deal with crime and corruption in the civil service, including the removal of ghost workers. All government departments are expected to complete employee verification processes by the end of the 2025/26 financial year.
