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Today in Africa — August 12, 2026: South Africa Seeks Deportation Cost Refunds, Zimbabwe Ferry Disaster Kills 44

OkayAfrica has scoured the Internet for today’s major news stories, so you don't have to. On Aug. 12, coverage includes: rising tensions over migration crackdowns between South Africa and its neighbors; Zimbabwe declaring a state of disaster after an overloaded ferry capsized; and more.

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Lihle Z. Mtshali Today in Africa & Newsletter Editor
Protesters carry placards during a protest march against undocumented migrants in the town of Estcourt on April 24, 2026.
South Africa wants Malawi, Nigeria, and Ethiopia to reimburse the costs of deporting their citizens.

Every day, OkayAfrica shares a roundup of news we’re following but haven’t published as full articles. These short updates cover what’s happening on the continent — in culture, politics, and beyond. For more on stories like these, be sure to check out our News page, with stories from across the regions.

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South Africa Wants Other African Nations to Pay Back Deportation Costs

South Africa is asking Malawi, Ethiopia, and Nigeria to reimburse it for the cost of sending their citizens home, after spending nearly $18 million on repatriations amid rising anti-immigration tensions. The country's Home Affairs department says it has deported or helped repatriate more than 80,000 immigrants, covering expenses like buses, temporary repatriation centers, and staff overtime that officials describe as "unforeseen and unavoidable." The requests come as protests and attacks on foreign nationals strain South Africa's relations with neighboring countries, some of which accuse Pretoria of failing to protect their citizens abroad.

By the Numbers

  • South African government figures put the total at 82,875 people voluntarily repatriated or deported so far, though home countries' own figures suggest the real number is closer to 178,000.

  • Between April and July, 16,078 people — mostly from Lesotho, Malawi, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique — were deported through the Lindela Repatriation Center.

  • Law enforcement has arrested nearly 60,000 people in the country illegally, including 16,208 in July alone.

  • Ghana recently pushed to add South Africa's migration crackdown to the African Union's agenda, but the AU rejected the request.

At Least 44 Dead After Overloaded Ferry Capsizes on Zimbabwe's Lake Kariba

At least 44 people died yesterday, Tuesday, August 11, when an overloaded ferry capsized on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, with survivors saying passengers begged the captain to turn back as waves grew dangerous, only to be ignored. Crew member Anyway Chambati said he counted 153 people on board — far more than the ferry's official capacity of 90 — and that water poured into the engine room before it sank; the captain was among the dead. President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared a state of disaster to free up resources for victims.

What We Know

  • Survivors said the captain dismissed repeated warnings, at one point saying, "My boat has never sunk anyone," and refused to call for help as goods began falling overboard.

  • Zimbabwe's disaster management agency says the ferry carried at least 114 adult passengers and five crew members, with 77 rescued so far, though ticketing figures may not account for children on board.

  • The ferry, which runs between rural lakeside communities and the town of Kariba, sank on the world's largest man-made lake by volume, formed by a dam built on the Zambezi River in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

  • Some bystanders on shore reportedly questioned whether the aging vessel could handle rough waters before it even departed.

WHO Warns DR Congo's Ebola Outbreak Could Surpass Deadliest in History

The Democratic Republic of Congo's ongoing Ebola outbreak is on pace to overtake the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic as the deadliest ever, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said today, Wednesday, August 12. That earlier outbreak killed over 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases, while DR Congo's current outbreak — already the fastest-growing in history — has killed more than 2,000 people out of over 4,300 cases since it was declared on May 15, though sequencing shows it actually began in February. Tedros said the response is still playing catch-up, with WHO's Dr. Abdirahman Mahamud projecting the outbreak could peak within six months, or stretch on for nine to 12 months in a worst-case scenario.

Why It's Spreading So Fast

  • The virus responsible, the rare Bundibugyo strain, has no approved vaccines or treatments, though efforts to develop them are underway.

  • Most new cases are emerging in remote communities outside health workers' reach, in a conflict-affected part of eastern DR Congo near the borders of South Sudan, Uganda, and Rwanda.

  • Some health workers have gone on strike over unpaid wages, while misinformation about the virus is keeping some people from seeking care at clinics.

In Brief: More Stories Today

U.S. Senate Approves Two-Year Extension of AGOA Trade Deal

The U.S. Senate has approved a two-year extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, keeping duty-free access on more than 1,800 products from 32 sub-Saharan African nations in place until December 2028. The extension, which also covers similar trade programs for Haiti, comes as a relief for African businesses ahead of the current deal's expiration at the end of September.

West Africa Pushes to Create Its Own Fuel Pricing Benchmark

West Africa is working to build its own petroleum pricing benchmark as Nigeria's Dangote refinery reshapes the region's fuel market, which has long relied on imports and pricing from Europe and beyond. The 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery helped cut the region's clean petroleum product imports by roughly 23% between April and May, but officials say a credible benchmark still needs deeper infrastructure, market liquidity, and consistent transactions to succeed.

Spain Rejects Morocco's Renewed Sovereignty Claims Over Ceuta and Melilla

Spanish officials said today, Wednesday, August 12, that Ceuta and Melilla's status as Spanish territory isn't up for discussion, after Morocco's justice minister publicly reasserted Rabat's sovereignty claims over the enclaves for the first time since July's border crisis, which killed at least 96 people. Morocco has also stepped up security near the two territories over online calls for another mass crossing attempt on August 15, warning it will prosecute organizers.

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