The Federal Government has evacuated another 282 Nigerians from South Africa as it continues its repatriation programme in response to the recent wave of xenophobic attacks targeting foreign nationals.
The latest batch of returnees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, aboard an Air Peace flight on Thursday night, raising the total number of Nigerians brought home since the exercise began on June 11 to 1,141.
The evacuation was initiated following heightened concerns over the safety of Nigerians living in South Africa amid escalating anti-immigrant violence in several communities.
The government had earlier disclosed that more than 1,000 Nigerians indicated interest in returning home through the voluntary evacuation programme.
Ahead of the latest airlift, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, urged stranded Nigerians to take advantage of the initiative, assuring them that the Federal Government would not abandon any citizen who had registered for evacuation.
She reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring that every registered Nigerian willing to return home is safely repatriated.
The minister’s appeal came amid reports confirming the deaths of two additional Nigerians during the recent attacks, bringing the official death toll from the xenophobic violence to four, although some returnees have claimed the number of casualties could be higher.
Despite an unofficial June 30 deadline reportedly issued by some South African rights groups for undocumented migrants to leave the country, Nigeria has continued its evacuation efforts for citizens seeking to return home.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also disclosed that the repatriation exercise is approaching its final phase.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, said the fifth and final evacuation flight is expected to arrive in Nigeria next week, signalling the conclusion of the airlift operation.
He added that the Federal Government would continue engaging South African authorities through diplomatic channels to protect the interests of Nigerians abroad while providing necessary support for citizens affected by the unrest.
