A total of 497 Nigerians stranded in Niger Republic have returned home. They touched down at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport on Friday afternoon.
The group arrived from Agadez around 12:25pm, according to officials at the airport. They came through the Jibia border crossing.
Officers from the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) coordinated the reception. Multiple government agencies also participated in welcoming them back.
Federal Commissioner Dr. Tijjani Aliyu Ahmed explained the details at the event.
He said the Federal Government worked with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to bring them home.
The evacuation happened under IOM's Voluntary Humanitarian Return programme, Ahmed noted. Kano Field Coordinator Lubah Liman represented the commission at the reception.
Nigeria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs had alerted the commission about the planned operation earlier. Officials notified them between May 22 and May 25, 2026.
The evacuation was split into two separate batches, Ahmed explained. "The first batch was supposed to have around 600 returnees," he said.
Instead, 497 people made the journey.
Multiple organisations helped coordinate the reception exercise. These included NAPTIP, NEMA, the Nigeria Immigration Service, NSCDC, NDLEA, DSS, SEMA and the Nigerian Red Cross.
All returnees went through proper documentation upon arrival. Nigeria Immigration Service staff conducted MIDAS registration for each person.
After processing, they were moved to the Immigration Training School in Kano. There they received food, shelter and other support services.
The group consisted of 174 adult men and 97 adult women. Another 137 were boys while 89 were girls.
Some of the returning migrants shared painful stories about their time in Agadez. They described severe hardship while trapped there.
Several returnees asked the federal and state governments for help. They also appealed to NGOs and private citizens to support their reintegration efforts.
