By the FlashInfoNG Editorial Desk
Since June, Nigeria has flown 2,037 of its citizens out of South Africa on 15 evacuation flights. The latest, on October 8, carried 44 children. Watching families get off a plane in Lagos with only what they could carry, it’s hard not to feel relief. It’s also hard not to ask why this keeps happening.
The flights deserve credit. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NiDCOM and the agencies that receive returnees have done serious work. So has the Redeemed Christian Church of God, which donated more than $265,000 to buy tickets home. When a citizen is in danger, getting them out is the first duty of any government.
But the first duty is not the only one. An evacuation is an emergency response, not a policy. Xenophobic violence in South Africa did not start this year. It has flared again and again for years, and each time Nigeria responds the same way: flights, statements and appeals for calm. Then the cycle repeats.
What would a real policy look like?
First, Accountability in Every Case
When Nigerians like Emeka Charles Iroegbu and Musa Yunana Joe are killed, Nigeria’s mission should follow each case through the South African courts and publish regular updates. Families deserve to know that their government is watching until there is a verdict, not just until the news cycle moves on.
Second, Support Beyond the Airport
Many returnees left behind businesses, jobs and property. Bringing them home with nothing and then forgetting them only moves the crisis from Johannesburg to Lagos. NiDCOM has rightly called for compensation for people forced to abandon everything. That call should be backed by a proper resettlement plan: small-business grants, job placement and counselling, especially for the children who have had their lives turned upside down.
Third, Sustained Diplomacy
Raising the issue at the African Union in Luanda was the right move, but one speech is not a strategy. Nigeria and South Africa have deep trade ties and a shared history from the fight against apartheid. That gives Abuja real leverage, and it should use it through regular, structured talks on protecting migrants, not only after a crisis has already happened.
Fourth, Look at Home
The uncomfortable truth is that many Nigerians are in South Africa because opportunities at home are scarce. Every person who goes abroad out of desperation rather than choice reflects a domestic failure. Fixing that is the longest-term answer of all.
South Africa Has a Point Too
To be fair, South Africa’s government says it condemns xenophobia and that crimes by individuals must be dealt with by the courts, not by mobs. The country faces mass unemployment, and its citizens’ frustrations are real even when they are aimed at the wrong people. Nigeria’s diplomacy will be more effective if it recognises those pressures instead of only condemning.
Still, the core principle stands. No Nigerian should be attacked for their nationality, and no government should treat repeated evacuations as a success story. Flights save lives today. Only policy will make them unnecessary tomorrow.
Views expressed in this article are those of the FlashInfoNG Editorial Desk.