The National Emergency Management Agency of Nigeria (NEMA) announced the reception of a total of 95 Nigerians, who voluntarily returned to home after being stranded in Libya.
The migrants arrived at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) on Tuesday, 16 November. Their flight was organised by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
NEMA said that among the returnees were 60 men, 29 women, three children, and one woman and her two infants.
The Voluntary Return Program (VRP), sponsored by the IOM continues to provide opportunities for migrants wishing to return to their home country’s from Libya. It has previously organised trips to Sudan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Niger.
Earlier in November, Libya’s Anti-Illegal Migration Agency repatriated 163 Nigerian migrants, including women and children through Tripoli’s Mitiga International Airport.
The agency said in a statement that the repatriation was carried out by the Interior Ministry and the Office of the Attorney General, in coordination with the IOM. A medical examination and COVID-19 tests were conducted for the travellers.
NEMA confirmed that the migrants arrived at MMIA in Ikeja, Lagos. The NEMA coordinator said five of the returnees were found to have health issues after screening by Port Health officials, according to Nigeria’s news website ‘The Nation’.
Notably, the Sahara Reporters news agency stated that a number of Nigerians in Libya have requested help after government officials raided their homes during an immigration crackdown.
In a video shared by Igbere TV, a Nigerian woman who claimed she lives in Tripoli accused the Libyan government of sending security operatives to break into the houses of migrants and arrest them. She pleaded with the Nigerian government to provide aid.