The federal government of Nigeria has evacuated 258 Nigerian voluntary returnees from South Africa, an official statement confirmed.
The emergency repatriation was carried out following reports of growing safety concerns affecting Nigerian nationals in parts of the country.
In a statement issued on Friday and signed by the Service Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Akinsola Akinlabi, said the NIS, alongside other federal government agencies, on Thursday, 11 June, received the first batch of 258 evacuated Nigerian voluntary returnees, including children, from South Africa under the federal government’s emergency evacuation initiative for distressed citizens abroad.
Mr Akinlabi said the returnees, accompanied by four officials of the Nigerian Mission in South Africa, arrived aboard an Air Peace flight from Johannesburg, South Africa, at the Cargo Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, at approximately 10:23 a.m.
READ ALSO: 42 Nigerians arrested in Mozambique without any offence – NiDCOM
Upon arrival, the statement said, officers of the NIS facilitated the immigration clearance and afterwards handed the returnees to the National Commission for Refugees, Migrant and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) for further documentation.
“The reception was led by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Bernard M. Doro, and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sola Enikanolaiye, with the participation of key stakeholders including the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), and other relevant government agencies.
“The orderly, dignified and seamless handling of the return and clearance process underscores the commitment of the Nigeria Immigration Service to effective Migration Management, and in accordance with the principles of Citizen Diplomacy and the Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR,” the statement said.
