The Federal Government has continued its evacuation of Nigerians from South Africa, with a fourth repatriation flight arriving in Lagos late Thursday carrying 282 returnees.
The Air Peace aircraft landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, increasing the total number of Nigerians evacuated under the programme to 1,141 since the exercise began on June 11.
Authorities said more than 1,000 Nigerians had initially indicated interest in returning home amid growing concerns over xenophobic attacks and the safety of foreign nationals in South Africa.
The latest batch arrived as the government reiterated its commitment to ensuring that all Nigerians who wish to leave South Africa are assisted to do so.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, had last week encouraged affected Nigerians to take advantage of the evacuation arrangement, assuring them that the government would not abandon any citizen seeking to return home.
“We will ensure that no Nigerian who has indicated interest in returning home is left behind,” the minister said.
The repatriation exercise comes against the backdrop of renewed concerns over attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa. Reports of two additional Nigerian deaths in recent days have raised the official number of fatalities linked to the latest wave of xenophobic violence to four.
However, some of the Nigerians already evacuated have claimed that the actual number of victims may be higher than the figures officially documented.
The evacuation flights have continued despite an unofficial June 30 deadline reportedly announced by some South African advocacy groups calling on undocumented migrants to leave the country.
Speaking on the next phase of the exercise, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, confirmed that another flight is expected next week.
According to him, the fifth flight will be the final evacuation operation under the current government programme.
The returnees are expected to receive necessary support and reintegration assistance as they reunite with their families and begin rebuilding their lives in Nigeria.
The ongoing evacuation reflects the Federal Government’s efforts to respond to the concerns of Nigerians abroad and provide assistance to citizens affected by insecurity and social unrest in foreign countries.
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