The Federal Government says it has successfully evacuated 1,490 Nigerians from South Africa following a rise in xenophobic attacks in the country.
The evacuation exercise commenced on June 11 and concluded on Wednesday, with a total of seven repatriation flights bringing affected Nigerians back home.
Although the government funded five Air Peace flights, two additional emergency flights were arranged, increasing the total number of evacuation batches to seven.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Kimiebi Ebienfa, spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, outlined the details of the evacuation programme.
According to him, the ministry coordinated the operation in collaboration with the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, the Consulate-General in Johannesburg, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Port Health Services and other relevant agencies to ensure a smooth process from registration to the arrival of returnees in Nigeria.
“The Federal Government expresses profound appreciation to Air Peace Limited for its continued patriotism and partnership and support throughout the evacuation programme,” the statement read.
Ebienfa reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to its longstanding diplomatic relationship with South Africa but stressed that the country remains firmly opposed to xenophobia, racial intolerance and attacks on foreign nationals.
He added that the Federal Government would continue engaging South African authorities through diplomatic channels to promote the safety, security and peaceful coexistence of all residents.
The ministry also advised Nigerians living abroad to remain law-abiding, register with the nearest Nigerian diplomatic mission and maintain regular contact with embassy officials to enable timely assistance whenever necessary.
The evacuation timeline included 258 returnees on June 10, 66 on June 24 through an emergency South African Airways flight, 272 on June 30, 268 on July 2, 282 on July 9, 39 on July 11 via another emergency South African Airways flight, and 305 on July 15, bringing the total number of evacuated Nigerians to 1,490.