By Silas Nkala
Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe is emerging as a critical transit corridor in a vast and increasingly sophisticated migrant smuggling network stretching from the Horn of Africa to South Africa — and onwards to Europe and Asia, a new report shows.
The findings highlight how Zimbabwe’s geographic position, porous borders and growing migration pressures have placed the country at the centre of regional mobility networks — creating opportunities for organised crime syndicates while exposing thousands of migrants to exploitation, violence and abuse along some of Africa’s busiest migration corridors.
A report by the Global Initiative against Transnational Organised Crime, published in Switzerland recently, paints a troubling picture of Zimbabwe’s position at the crossroads of regional and global migration flows, where human smuggling increasingly intersects with organised crime, corruption and violence.
The findings from the report, Mapping Organised Criminal Economies in East and Southern Africa, are reinforced by the latest strategy document from the International Organisation for Migration, Strategy for Zimbabwe 2026-27, which also identifies Zimbabwe as an emerging migration hub in southern Africa.
Major border posts such as Beitbridge, Chirundu, Forbes and Plumtree anchor key migration corridors linking Zimbabwe to South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique and Botswana, facilitating both formal and irregular cross-border movements.
Zimbabwe hosted an estimated 429 000 international migrants in 2024, while also experiencing significant outwards migration. With between two million and four million Zimbabweans living abroad, the country ranks among those with the highest per capita emigration rates globally.
“Zimbabwe is simultaneously a country of origin, transit and destination within southern Africa,” the report said, underscoring the country’s central role in regional mobility dynamics.
South Africa remains the primary destination for Zimbabwean migrants, largely driven by economic opportunities. Outside the continent, the United Kingdom is identified as the leading destination for African migrants leaving the region.
The GI-TOC report highlights the southern migration route, which runs from the Horn of Africa through eastern and southern Africa before ending in South Africa.
“The southern route starts in the Horn of Africa and runs through Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, before ending in South Africa,” it said.
Within this network, the Beitbridge Border Post has emerged as one of the most critical choke points.
“Considerable numbers of migrants pass through the border between Zimbabwe and South Africa. It represents the final crossing along the southern route and thus a key choke point where many illicit trades converge,” the report said.
The report identifies Beitbridge as both a major transit hub and a hotspot for criminal activity, where formal border crossings coexist with informal routes.
“Migrants are smuggled both through the border post, often with official complicity and on informal points along the Limpopo River, where movement is eased during the dry season,” it said.
“Local gangs, known as guma-gumas, act as brokers… They play both a facilitatory and at times predatory role; reports of migrants being raped, assaulted and even murdered are common.”
Indications are that this dual role underscores the blurred line between smuggling and trafficking — a theme that runs throughout the report.
The report exposes that Africa’s internal flows feed global routes. Zimbabwe plays a dual role—as both a source country and transit State — reflecting broader southern Africa migration realities.
Beyond southern Africa, the report draws a direct connection between African migration systems and Europe.
Migrants who do not remain in Africa often shift towards the northern route, which channels people through Sudan, Libya and the Mediterranean.
The report adds that in conflict zones, human smuggling corridors are also used to transport illicit arms, further fuelling regional instability.
Despite the dangers, migrant smuggling continues to expand due to limited legal migration pathways and persistent economic inequality.
“Virtually all migrants from outside the Sadc region use smugglers,” the report read.
“Even within southern Africa, smugglers are used substantially, despite relatively fewer migration barriers.”
For Zimbabwe, the findings raise concerns about border security, corruption, organised crime networks and human rights abuses along key migration corridors.
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