A new batch of 83 Nigerian nationals will arrive at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, on Wednesday, 19th August, 2026, from South Africa via South African Airways, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
A statement on Monday by the spokesperson of the Ministry, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, said they are expected to depart the O. R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg at 3.35 pm local time to arrive in Lagos at approximately 08.45 pm the same day.
‘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,’ it said.
This development follows the earlier conclusion of the government’s voluntary repatriation programme, which saw nearly 1,490 Nigerian citizens repatriated from South Africa amidst rising Afrophobic attacks and anti-foreigner sentiments in the host country.
The statement said the Federal Government, under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, remains unwavering in its commitment to safeguard the welfare and dignity of all Nigerians at home and abroad.
While commending the patriotism and selflessness of the sponsors of the flight, the Ministry called upon the organised private sector, corporate organisations, state governments, and other well-meaning Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to emulate them.
The Nigerian government expressed its readiness to deepen 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.