271 More Nigerians To Land From South Africa Friday
A third evacuation flight carrying 271 Nigerians voluntarily returning from South Africa is scheduled to depart Johannesburg at midnight on Thursday, deepening a repatriation exercise triggered by rising anti-immigrant tension in the Southern African nation.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs disclosed the movement in a statement issued on Thursday by its spokesperson, Mr Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa. The Air Peace operated flight is expected to touch down at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at about 5:30 a.m. on Friday, July 3, 2026.
“The third evacuation flight operated by Air Peace will depart Johannesburg today by 12 midnight with 271 returnees. The estimated time of arrival in Lagos is 5:30 a.m. on Friday, July 3, 2026,” the statement read. The ministry described the operation as part of the Federal Government’s ongoing voluntary repatriation programme.
The latest batch follows earlier flights that have already brought hundreds home. The Foreign Affairs Ministry has said the first batch of about 258 returnees arrived on June 11, followed by 66 others flown in via South African Airways on June 24 through the support of a private Nigerian sponsor. A further 269 returnees landed on Tuesday, June 30, lifting the total evacuated so far to roughly 593. The exercise draws on five Air Peace flights approved in early June after more than 500 Nigerians were screened and cleared for return.
The repatriation is unfolding against a backdrop of hardening immigration politics in South Africa. Citizen led campaign groups had set June 30 as an unofficial deadline for undocumented foreign nationals to leave, and thousands marched in Johannesburg, Durban and other cities to press the demand. South African authorities have said about 50,000 undocumented migrants have been arrested since January, with roughly 25,000 already repatriated, most of them from other African countries. The unrest has pushed several governments, including Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, to begin moving their own citizens out.
Nigeria’s decision to act carries heavy historical weight. Relations between Abuja and Pretoria have been strained for years by recurring waves of xenophobic violence. Deadly attacks in 2015, 2019 and the 2008 riots that killed dozens of foreign nationals forced earlier Nigerian evacuations, and the 2019 crisis saw Air Peace airlift hundreds home free of charge while Nigeria recalled its envoy in protest. The current programme revives that pattern, though officials stress this round is voluntary rather than a response to mass attacks.
President Bola Tinubu approved the airlift and has directed that evacuations continue beyond the June 30 deadline so that no willing citizen is stranded. The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, through Minister Bernard Doro, has praised the returnees, noting that they left of their own accord and “were not deported for crime.”
Reintegration is now the pressing concern. Returnees have reported steep losses, with many forced to abandon or sell homes, vehicles and businesses at cut prices. Acting High Commissioner Alexander Ajayi has said Nigerian authorities are documenting abandoned assets to pursue possible compensation claims. Imo State gave returnees from the state N1 million each, while MTN Nigeria offered SIM packs and airtime support.
Officials at the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons say more batches are expected in the coming weeks, with skills acquisition and empowerment programmes planned to help returnees rebuild.