Nigeria’s government has announced plans to evacuate another 270 citizens from South Africa as renewed xenophobic attacks and worsening security conditions prompt fresh concerns over the safety of migrants in Africa’s most industrialised economy.
The evacuation, the latest in a series of government-sponsored repatriation flights, will be carried out by the airline Air Peace, with the aircraft scheduled to depart Lagos for Johannesburg on Tuesday before returning to Nigeria with registered evacuees.
According to the ministry of foreign affairs, the flight will leave Lagos at 3.30pm and is expected to depart Johannesburg shortly after midnight, arriving at Lagos’s Murtala Muhammed International Airport early on Wednesday morning, subject to operational conditions.
The operation marks the fourth special evacuation flight organised by Abuja as it seeks to facilitate the voluntary return of Nigerians who say they no longer feel safe in South Africa.
The government has also issued what it described as a final call for Nigerian nationals still in the country to complete their documentation and take advantage of the repatriation programme before the operation concludes.
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said the government remained deeply concerned by the deteriorating situation, particularly following the deaths of two Nigerians, identified as Musa Yunana Joe and Charles Iroegbu.
“Nigeria remains concerned about the safety of its citizens in South Africa as a result of the ongoing xenophobic protests and attacks on migrants,” she said in a statement posted on social media.
She called on South African authorities to investigate the killings and prosecute those responsible.
“We demand that South African authorities urgently investigate the incidents and bring those responsible to justice,” she said, adding that Nigerians who believed their lives were at risk should take advantage of the government-sponsored flights home.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said there was little evidence that the security situation in South Africa was improving and warned that Nigerians still in the country should carefully consider whether it was safe to remain.
Following three earlier evacuation operations, President Bola Tinubu approved an extension of the repatriation programme beyond its original 30 June deadline in an effort to accommodate more citizens seeking to leave.
Another evacuation aircraft is expected to travel to Johannesburg on Tuesday, while what is being described as the final flight in the programme is scheduled to arrive in South Africa on 10 July.
“Our nationals are again advised to weigh the risks regarding whether to remain or return,” the minister said.
She urged those who had not yet made a decision to prioritise their personal safety over material considerations.
“Properties and investments lost can be replaced, but not lives lost,” she said.
The latest evacuations come against the backdrop of recurring tensions over immigration in South Africa, where periodic outbreaks of anti-foreigner violence have repeatedly targeted migrants from other African countries, including Nigerians, Zimbabweans and Mozambicans. The unrest has long strained diplomatic relations between Abuja and Pretoria and renewed scrutiny of South Africa’s ability to protect foreign nationals living within its borders.
