No fewer than 708 stranded Nigerians on Monday arrived in Kano from Niamey, Niger Republic, as part of a voluntary repatriation exercise coordinated by the federal government.
The returnees, conveyed in over 10 buses operated by Rimbo Transport Voyageurs, were received and profiled at the international wing of the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, amid tight coordination by relevant agencies.
Spokesperson of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Nura Abdullahi, who addressed journalists at the venue, said the returnees were undergoing physical verification with all stakeholders on ground to receive them.
Abdullahi disclosed that the returnees were being provided with immediate humanitarian assistance, including food and temporary shelter, while further arrangements would be made for their onward movement to various states.
According to figures released by officials, Kano State accounts for 303 returnees, comprising 98 males and 205 females, followed by Jigawa with 208, Katsina 67, Borno 35, Kaduna 39, Yobe 19, Zamfara 16, Benue 11, and others from Kogi and Niger states.
He added that medical teams, including personnel from the Red Cross, were on ground to attend to returnees with health concerns, noting that severe cases would be referred to appropriate state health institutions.
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Also speaking, Kano Field Coordinator of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), Luba Liman, described the exercise as a whole-of-government intervention.
She explained that the migrants were evacuated from Niamey through a joint effort involving the Nigerian Embassy in Niger and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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“It is a voluntary return. Many of them could not afford to come back on their own, so the government facilitated their movement back to Nigeria,” Liman said.
She noted that arrangements had been made for their accommodation, feeding, and distribution of relief materials, including dignity kits for women.
Liman added that after the completion of profiling and documentation, the returnees would be handed over to relevant authorities for reintegration, in line with government policy.
