SOCIAL INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR SADC MIGRANT WORKERS IN SOUTH AFRICA: A REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL FRAMEWORK COMPLIANCE ANALYSIS

Abstract

South Africa is a migrant destination country, attracting migrant workers from SADC countries and other regions. SADC migrant workers are vulnerable to many social security risks and need deliberate social security protection through legislation and practice. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 enshrines the right to social security and extends it to “everyone”. This article singles out social insurance as one of the pillars of social security and examines the legislation enabling this right. It also discusses supra-national instruments that promote access to this right and evaluates compliance with relevant legislation and implementation. It posits that South Africa needs to adopt relevant and key international instruments, and to comply with the current ones. This is aimed at achieving universal access to social insurance benefits for those who are entitled, thereby progressively realising this right as envisaged in the Constitution.