1,317 Nigerians return from Libya in 10 days – NEMA

The National Emergency Management Agency ( NEMA ) said on Friday that a total of 1,317 Nigerians had voluntarily returned from Libya in the last 10 days having been stranded in the volatile North African country.

The Director-General of NEMA, Mustapha Maihajja, disclosed this while receiving a fresh batch of 116 Nigerians who arrived the country on Friday morning.

The latest returnees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, aboard a Buraq Airlines with Registration Number 5A-WAC at 5:39 a.m.

At least 3,000 Nigerians have voluntarily returned from Libya through the International Organization for Migration (IOM) supported programme in the last few months.

Maihajja, who was represented by Suleiman Yakubu, the South-West Zonal Coordinator of NEMA, said the Nigerians returned in various batches between December 5 and December 15 with the assistance of the IOM and the European Union (EU).

According to him, the figure has already surpassed the 1, 295 Nigerians who voluntarily returned from Libya in November.

Maihajja said the Federal Government would continue to work with the international organisations to ensure the return of more Nigerians from Libya where they had been facing severe hardships and rights violations.

The returnees comprised 46 adult females, 60 adult males and 10 children and infants respectively.