Xenophobia: FG to Evacuate 83 More Nigerians from South Africa

The Federal Government has announced plans to bring another 83 Nigerians back home from South Africa as concerns over xenophobic attacks and hostility towards African migrants continue to affect Nigerians living in the country.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the returnees are expected to arrive in Nigeria on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, following arrangements made for their voluntary evacuation from South Africa.

According to the ministry, the Nigerians will depart Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg at about 3:35 p.m. local time aboard a South African Airways flight.

They are expected to land at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos at about 8:45 p.m. the same day.

The latest evacuation is coming weeks after the Federal Government completed its major voluntary repatriation exercise, which brought 1,490 Nigerians back from South Africa between June and July.

The new batch is being evacuated through a separate arrangement after private individuals stepped in to provide financial support for their air tickets.

“The Ministry wishes to note that this latest cohort of returnees is facilitated through the kind intervention and sponsorship of tickets by public-spirited private individuals, whose generosity the Federal Government acknowledges with profound gratitude,” the ministry said.

Nigeria had earlier raised concerns over what it described as persistent Afrophobic attacks against its citizens and other Africans in South Africa.

The Federal Government has also maintained that criminality by any Nigerian should be handled through lawful means and should not be used as justification for attacks against Nigerians living legally in the country.

The latest evacuation also adds to a series of efforts by the Nigerian government to protect citizens affected by the recent wave of violence.

Between June 10 and July 15, the government coordinated several flights that returned Nigerians from South Africa.

The exercise involved Air Peace and South African Airways, with the returnees transported through a combination of scheduled evacuation flights and emergency arrangements.

The fifth phase alone brought 305 Nigerians home on an Air Peace flight, taking the total number evacuated during the exercise to 1,490.

The earlier operation followed sustained diplomatic engagement between Abuja and Pretoria over attacks against foreign nationals.

Nigerian agencies involved in the exercise included the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, National Emergency Management Agency, Nigeria Immigration Service, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and Port Health Services.

The Federal Government has said its decision to facilitate the return of affected Nigerians is part of its Citizens’ Diplomacy policy, which places the protection, welfare and dignity of citizens abroad among its priorities.

The ministry has also continued to urge Nigerians living outside the country to remain law-abiding, maintain contact with Nigerian diplomatic missions and seek consular assistance whenever they face serious threats or emergencies.

President Bola Tinubu’s administration has repeatedly maintained that Nigerians abroad remain important to the country and should receive appropriate diplomatic support whenever their safety or welfare is threatened.

The government has also called for stronger cooperation between Nigeria and South Africa to address the factors behind repeated attacks on African migrants.

In a related development, Nigeria and South Africa recently held diplomatic discussions in Abuja over the renewed attacks against Nigerians and other African migrants.

The talks came after Nigeria expressed concern about the repeated incidents and their possible impact on relations between both countries.

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sola Enikanolaiye, had raised concerns over the continued attacks during a meeting with a South African delegation led by International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola.

Enikanolaiye said Nigeria was concerned that the violence was affecting not only undocumented migrants but also Nigerians who were legally resident in South Africa.

He also stressed that Nigeria does not support criminal activities by its citizens abroad but insisted that suspected offenders should face arrest and prosecution instead of mob attacks.

The South African government, for its part, has said it does not support xenophobia, racism or discrimination against foreigners.

Pretoria has also pledged to improve protection for foreign nationals and pursue those responsible for violent attacks.

Nigerians have been among the foreign communities affected by the xenophobic tensions in South Africa.

The Federal Government said it would continue diplomatic engagement with South Africa while working to protect Nigerians who remain in the country.

“The government remains committed to deepening strategic partnerships with host nations, including South Africa, to address the root causes of Afrophobia and ensure that such acts of violence and discrimination against Nigerians are prevented and are strongly condemned when they occur, including holding perpetrators of such violence to account,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.

The ministry also appealed to private organisations, state governments, corporate bodies, philanthropists and Nigerians in the diaspora to support citizens facing emergencies abroad.

It said assistance from members of the public could complement government intervention during consular emergencies and help citizens return home when immediate evacuation becomes necessary.

For the 83 Nigerians scheduled to leave South Africa on Wednesday, the evacuation provides another route out of an increasingly difficult situation for those who have chosen to return home.

Their arrival will also bring the number of Nigerians repatriated from South Africa beyond the 1,490 citizens previously evacuated under the Federal Government’s main voluntary evacuation programme.