Abdelhadi Al-Hwaij, Libya’s Foreign Minister of the eastern-based government appointed by the House of Representatives, announced that 117,350 migrants have been repatriated under the voluntary return programme in cooperation with international organisations, describing the initiative as part of broader humanitarian efforts to address irregular migration in line with national and international standards.
Al-Hwaij made the announcement while chairing the ministry’s 19th periodic meeting of technical departments and offices for 2026, held in Benghazi. The meeting brought together directors of the ministry’s technical departments, the Advisory Office, the Political Planning Office, and the Coordination and Follow-up Office.
According to the minister, the repatriated migrants included 84,927 men, 19,949 women, and 12,474 children. He said the programme is being implemented with international partners to provide sustainable solutions to irregular migration while respecting human rights and humanitarian principles.
The meeting also reviewed plans to improve the performance of the ministry’s technical departments. Al-Hwaij stressed the importance of strengthening the roles of the Political Planning Office and the Coordination and Follow-up Office in developing strategic frameworks for Libyan diplomacy, enhancing knowledge management, and promoting best practices across the ministry.
He also called for improvements in the preparation of diplomatic meetings, ensuring political and technical files are fully prepared, adopting clear performance indicators for ministry departments, and expanding coordination with regional and international organisations in support of the government’s foreign policy priorities.
Al-Hwaij described the ministry’s technical departments as the backbone of Libya’s diplomatic work, stressing the need to improve institutional efficiency and strengthen coordination with political departments to facilitate the rapid exchange of information, reports, and data.
During the meeting, officials also agreed to grant foreign schools that have not yet met legal requirements until the end of the 2025-2026 academic year to regularise their status. Schools failing to complete the required legal procedures will not be permitted to operate during the next academic year.
The ministry further announced that a broad coordination meeting involving international cooperation departments across government ministries and institutions will be held on 30 July 2026, hosted by the Investment Promotion Authority, to strengthen coordination and unify efforts in implementing Libya’s international cooperation policy.