FG Repatriates 12 Stranded Nigerians From South Africa

Twelve Nigerians stranded in South Africa following recent xenophobic incidents have returned home after a group of Nigerian professionals in Johannesburg purchased their flight tickets.

The group, identified as the Group of Nigerian Professionals Johannesburg (GNPJ), assisted the stranded and destitute Nigerians who were unable to join the last Federal Government-sponsored evacuation flight from South Africa.

In a statement via social media on Friday, September 11, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said the group purchased tickets for the 12 Nigerians who were “stranded and desperate to return home to Nigeria following the Xenophobic incidents in South Africa.”

The 12 Nigerians comprised 10 adults and two children from Ogun, Anambra, Ondo, Imo, Edo and Oyo states.

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The returnees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at about 8:30 p.m. on September 9, 2026.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu commended the Nigerian professionals for assisting citizens who were unable to return on the government-sponsored evacuation flight.

“Many thanks to Mr C Darl Uzu and the Group of Nigerian Professionals Johannesburg (GNPJ) for assisting with the repatriation of stranded and destitute nationals in South Africa,” she said.

The minister also praised individuals, groups, associations and religious bodies that had supported Nigerians facing difficulties in South Africa.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria commends the sterling efforts of ordinary citizens, groups, associations and religious bodies who have come to the aid of fellow Nigerians who are imperiled, during this challenging period in South Africa,” she said.

“Every little bit helps. This is what it means to be our brothers’ (and sisters’) keepers,” she added.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu also called on state governments that had yet to support their indigenes in South Africa to do so.

She said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, working with the Nigerian Embassy in Pretoria and Consulate in Johannesburg, remained committed to ensuring the safe return of Nigerians still stranded in the country.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in conjunction with our Embassy in Pretoria and our Consulate in Johannesburg, remains firmly committed to supporting and coordinating the safe, orderly and dignified repatriation of the remaining stranded and destitute Nigerians in South Africa,” the minister said.