ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the implications of the ways that the independent migrant child has been produced through humanitarian interventions and how these are connected to constructions of gender and nation. Emphasising and reflecting on the importance of social context, it unpacks some of the gendered understandings of childhood in Musina and the discursive features of various, at times contradictory, understandings of independent child migrants who are interacting with humanitarian agencies. The chapter presents evidence, which shows that nationality can, despite efforts by the South African state's progressive child protection laws, often wittingly or unwittingly, enhance or limit opportunities for different people. It is the function and consequence of the discourse of nationality in humanitarian work and statecraft that needs to be critically analysed and challenged. The chapter simultaneously shows the complexities around humanitarian work and nationalism that also influence the migration experiences of young migrants who are searching for livelihoods and other things in the host country.