LAGOS — Eighty-three Nigerians have returned to the country from South Africa after private individuals funded the purchase of flight tickets for their repatriation, the Federal Government has said.
The returnees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Wednesday aboard a South African Airways flight from Johannesburg, accompanied by two officials of the Consulate-General of Nigeria in Johannesburg.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs disclosed this in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, on Wednesday.
The ministry said the latest repatriation was facilitated through the procurement of flight tickets by “good-spirited private individuals”, whose financial support enabled the returnees to travel safely to Nigeria.
Upon arrival, the 83 returnees were received by the Director of the African Affairs Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Haruna Ali-Gombe, who welcomed them on behalf of the Federal Government.
They were subsequently handed over to relevant government agencies for documentation and profiling ahead of their reunification with their families.
The Federal Government expressed appreciation to the private individuals who sponsored the exercise, as well as the Nigerian Mission in South Africa and government agencies involved in the reception and reintegration process.
The ministry said the government remained committed to the welfare and safe return of Nigerian citizens abroad.
The repatriation comes amid heightened diplomatic concerns over the safety and treatment of Nigerians and other African nationals in South Africa.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, said about 90 Nigerians had been killed in Afrophobic violence in South Africa since June 2022.
Enikanolaiye made the disclosure during a virtual roundtable on “South Africa’s Xenophobia in Comparative Perspective”, convened by the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs.
He called for urgent measures to end Afrophobic attacks, stronger migration governance and the activation of mechanisms to prevent tensions from escalating into violence.
However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not state that the 83 Nigerians who arrived in Lagos were victims of Afrophobic attacks or that their repatriation was directly linked to the reported violence.
The latest returnees will undergo documentation and profiling before being reunited with their families, according to the ministry.
The Federal Government also commended all stakeholders who contributed to what it described as a smooth reception and reintegration process.
