Nigerian officials have confirmed that more than 1,000 citizens have registered for evacuation from South Africa and will no longer have to pay for their return flights to Nigeria. This development follows recent xenophobic attacks in South Africa targeting citizens of several African countries, including Nigerians.
The Nigerian government had earlier disclosed that at least 300 Nigerians had indicated interest in returning home from South Africa, with plans for the returnees to fund their own flights. However, on Saturday, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, announced that evacuees would no longer bear the cost of transportation.
Mr Ebienfa told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in a telephone interview that the Federal Government would deploy aircraft to bring the returnees home at no cost to them. According to him, the screening of Nigerians in South Africa who registered for evacuation was expected to conclude on Saturday.
“The process, which commenced on June 4, is a joint exercise involving the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation, as well as the South African Police and immigration authorities,” NAN quoted Mr Ebienfa as saying. “At the end of the screening, we will have a definite number of persons cleared for evacuation. Thereafter, we will finalise arrangements for the deployment of aircraft to bring them home,” he added.
In a separate interview with NAN, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said more than 1,000 Nigerians in South Africa had undergone screening for the voluntary repatriation exercise. Mrs Dabiri-Erewa said the screening was being conducted jointly by the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria and South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs.
According to her, Saturday marked the third day of the exercise for Nigerians intending to voluntarily return home. “The turnout at the High Commission of Nigeria in Pretoria has been truly impressive. The screening started early on Saturday, and Nigerians came out in large numbers to participate in the process. In spite of the emotional atmosphere surrounding the prevailing tensions and uncertainty, the exercise has been smooth, peaceful, organised, and highly professional under the supervision of Nigeria’s Acting High Commissioner, Ambassador Olatunde Ajayi. More than 1,000 Nigerians have registered for the voluntary evacuation, and many more are still registering,” she said.
Mrs Dabiri-Erewa also disclosed that President Bola Tinubu had approved funding for the evacuation flights. “All things being equal, the flights are expected to commence next week through Air Peace, as President Bola Tinubu has approved funds for that purpose,” she said. She added that five flights were expected to be deployed for the repatriation, with the first batch of evacuees scheduled to depart for Nigeria next week.
Nigeria is not the only African country evacuating its citizens from South Africa. Ghana has reportedly evacuated more than 300 of its citizens since the latest wave of xenophobic attacks began over a month ago.
