The Nigerian High Commission in South Africa has opened an online portal for nationals seeking voluntary return to Nigeria, in a move that could pave the way for a second repatriation exercise.
In a memo released on Tuesday, the high commission said the registration portal would remain open until August 12 but noted that completing the registration does not automatically guarantee placement on a repatriation flight.
The move comes weeks after the federal government repatriated 1,490 Nigerians from South Africa in seven batches following xenophobic violence targeting foreign nationals. The government paid for five flights, while two additional batches returned to Nigeria under emergency arrangements.
Alexander Ajayi, Nigeria’s acting high commissioner to South Africa, told newsmen on Wednesday that the high commission was compiling the data for future use once partners indicate their willingness to sponsor the return tickets.
“We are now at a crucial stage of mounting a whole-of-society approach to getting the remnants back home,” Ajayi said.
The acting high commissioner said the move followed renewed interest from Nigerians who came forward to express their desire to return after the previous repatriation exercise ended.
Following the end of the last repatriation exercise, reports of continued violence against Nigerians emerged. The Nigerian Consulate-General in Johannesburg reported the death of a citizen during a police operation in Cape Town, while another Nigerian was shot and seriously injured.
Nigeria has condemned the xenophobic violence in the former apartheid country and criticised South Africa’s “inadequate” response to the situation.
The West African country, alongside Ghana, has called for “Afrophobia” to be included on the agenda of the next African Union (AU) summit.
