Nigeria's Federal Government has assured all citizens living in South Africa who have indicated willingness to return home amid ongoing anti-migrant attacks in the country that they will be evacuated before the June 30 deadline.

The assurance was given by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, in a press statement issued on Thursday, signed by the Special Assistant on Communication and New Media, Magnus Eze.

The minister said the Tinubu administration remains committed to the safety and welfare of Nigerians abroad and would ensure that no citizen willing to return from South Africa is left behind.

According to her, the evacuation exercise is already underway, with the first batch of 258 Nigerians successfully airlifted from South Africa and received by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, on June 11.

She disclosed that about 1,000 Nigerians had registered for evacuation from South Africa, adding that arrangements were being concluded to bring home the remaining citizens before the deadline.

This means that over 742 Nigerians are expected to be evacuated in the coming days.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed that Nigerians exposed to danger and harassment in South Africa and who have voluntarily indicated interest in returning home should be assisted to do so without delay.

She said the president remains concerned about reports of discrimination and attacks against Nigerians and other African migrants living in South Africa.

The minister explained that Nigeria was continuing to engage South African authorities through diplomatic channels while exploring other lawful options to address the situation.

She noted that any further action by Nigeria would be taken in line with constitutional provisions and due legislative process.

She said, “When it comes to situations like this, of course, it is necessary to be temperate and exercise caution. But when your citizens are being harassed, when your citizens are people who have spent years there, and mind you, some of them are married to South Africans and have children who have known no other home but South Africa, then it becomes a serious concern.

“Now, under these circumstances, they are asking not just Nigerians, but also their South African spouses and their children, to leave South Africa,” the minister said.

She also expressed concern over what she described as the unequal treatment of Nigerians despite the significant presence of South African businesses operating in Nigeria.

“As I indicated before, there are these huge conglomerates. By the way, there are over 120 South African companies operating in Nigeria.

“Nobody is asking them to provide proof of identity. Nobody is asking South African staff working there whether they are South Africans or Nigerians, and nobody is taking over their shops or businesses.

“But this is happening to Nigerians in South Africa. So, I think that at some point, we really have to review the options available to us.

“We have MTN, MultiChoice, Stanbic, Protea and many other South African brands spanning multiple sectors,” she said.

The minister said the activities of anti-migrant vigilante groups have not only endangered lives and businesses but have also damaged South Africa’s image across Africa and the international community.

“This is causing reputational damage, and that is quite sad because the late Madiba, Nelson Mandela – God rest his soul – worked so hard to project South Africa as the bastion of pan-Africanism.

“And in one fell swoop, these anti-migrant vigilante groups have destroyed what this man sacrificed 28 years in prison for. So, it is causing reputational damage.

“Even within South Africa itself, people are cancelling concerts, and conferences are being called off.

“South Africa has been stained with the stigma of being a xenophobic country. This is not something I think they will be comfortable with in the long run,” she said.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu further revealed that South African authorities had declined to activate a Memorandum of Understanding signed with Nigeria in October 2025 on an early warning mechanism intended to protect the lives and property of citizens of both countries during periods of tension.

She said South Africa later argued that those who signed the agreement on its behalf lacked the authority to make it binding and that additional procedures were required before it could take effect.

The minister added that countries including Ghana, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique have also begun evacuating their nationals from South Africa as concerns over the attacks continue to grow.