FG Secures Release of Six Nigerians Detained in Côte d’Ivoire
Six Nigerians who had spent roughly eight months in detention in the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire over alleged economic crimes have walked free, ending a quiet diplomatic effort that the Federal Government says vindicates its pledge to shield citizens caught in legal trouble abroad.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the development in a statement on Friday by its spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, who said four of the detainees were released on Monday, June 22, while the remaining two regained their freedom on Tuesday, June 23. The men had been held in Abidjan since October 2025.
According to the ministry, the release followed sustained diplomatic and consular engagements by the Nigerian Embassy in Abidjan with the relevant Ivorian authorities. It commended the Nigerian Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, Nwabiola Ezenwa, and embassy officials for what it called “steadfast commitment, professionalism and tireless diplomatic efforts which culminated in the successful resolution of the matter.”
The statement said the embassy “maintained regular consular access to the detained Nigerians, ensured their welfare throughout their detention, and engaged consistently with the Ivorian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and other relevant institutions to secure their release.” The ministry thanked the Ivorian government for its cooperation, crediting the cordial relationship between Abuja and Abidjan.
The case lands at a moment when consular protection has become one of the most closely watched tests of Nigeria’s foreign policy. Under its “4-D” doctrine of Democracy, Development, Demography and Diaspora, the government has made citizen welfare a stated priority, and through 2025 it pointed to the release of detained Nigerians in Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as the evacuation of African students from Ukraine and other war zones, as evidence of that commitment.
Yet the record remains contested. Civil society groups have accused Abuja of being slow to act in several jurisdictions. NiDCOM estimates that about 7,000 Nigerians are stranded in Libya, while the International Organization for Migration has helped more than 65,500 Nigerians return home over nine years. In Saudi Arabia, labour reforms in 2024 left many Nigerians jobless and homeless, and though 384 were repatriated, others remain trapped. Earlier in June 2026, President Bola Tinubu ordered an urgent diplomatic mission over the plight of more than 300 Nigerians incarcerated in Ethiopia, after a Federal High Court in Abuja directed federal ministries and NiDCOM to secure their return.
The broader pattern matters because economic crime allegations frequently entangle Nigerians abroad. Within the country, anti-graft agencies have themselves intensified enforcement, with the EFCC and ICPC declaring several foreign nationals wanted over fraud offences as recently as June 2026, underscoring how cross-border financial crime cuts both ways.
The ministry reaffirmed that protecting the rights, welfare and dignity of Nigerians abroad “remains a cardinal priority of Nigeria’s foreign policy,” and urged nationals overseas to obey the laws of their host countries and stay in touch with the nearest Nigerian mission. With diaspora cases mounting across multiple continents, the Abidjan release offers Abuja a rare clean win, even as larger backlogs in Libya, Ethiopia and the Gulf continue to test the government’s reach.