​A new batch of 83 Nigerian nationals returned safely to the country from South Africa following a privately funded repatriation effort.
​The returnees landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos at approximately 8:45 PM West Africa Time on Wednesday, August 19, 2026. They departed earlier that afternoon from O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg at 3:35 PM local time aboard a scheduled South African Airways flight.
​The intervention was facilitated by public-spirited private individuals and philanthropists who stepped in to purchase flight tickets for the stranded citizens. The initiative follows the official conclusion of the Federal Government’s primary voluntary repatriation exercise, which previously evacuated nearly 1,490 Nigerians from South Africa.
​Speaking on behalf of the government, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed deep gratitude to the donors for demonstrating a “whole-of-society approach” to consular emergencies.
​”The Ministry wishes to acknowledge with profound gratitude the generosity of public-spirited private individuals whose sponsorship made this latest return possible,” Ebienfa stated. “Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Citizen Diplomacy agenda, Nigerians in the diaspora are viewed not as burdens, but as critical assets for national development whose safety and dignity remain paramount.”
​Upon arrival in Lagos, the returnees were formally received by Ambassador Haruna Ali-Gombe, Director of the African Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, alongside officers from the Consulate-General of Nigeria in Johannesburg who accompanied the flight.
​The returnees were immediately handed over to officials from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), and immigration authorities for documentation, profiling, and temporary relief support before being reunited with their respective families.
​This latest repatriation comes amid heightened concerns regarding anti-foreigner sentiments, Afrophobia, and renewed enforcement actions targeting undocumented migrants in South Africa. The Ministry urged state governments, corporate entities, and the organized private sector to emulate the donors’ selflessness to ensure the continued protection and welfare of Nigerian citizens abroad.
