By Okwe Obi, Abuja
Following the wave of deportations of foreigners in the United States, the federal government says it has set up a committee to receive deported Nigerians.
Since the inauguration of President Donald Trump, the United States has implemented stringent measures to restrict foreigners from staying in the country beyond the expiration of their visas.
The Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCRMI), Aliyu Tijani, who spoke at an event marking World Refugee Day 2025, yesterday in Abuja, said the government had put measures in place to receive Nigerians and provide them with a form of livelihood and support.
Also speaking on the new visa policy of the United States, he said Nigeria has not received any formal letter to that effect.
“We have not received any written letter from the US Government. So, as far as we are concerned, it is a policy statement.
“However, Nigeria has been very proactive. We have already constituted a committee to look into this in case it becomes a reality, and we are ready to receive our people and provide them with a form of livelihood and support.
“The Nigerian government is ready for that. The Nigerian government has already constituted a committee and is awaiting any action that might come from the United States of America. There is no cause for alarm at all,” he assured Nigerians.
While speaking on migration, he disclosed that Nigeria currently hosts 135,000 refugees, and not less than 250,000 of them are Nigerian refugees living in other parts of the world.
“Particularly, I said we have not less than about 125,000 of them that are living in Cameroon. We have them in Chad, and we also have them in Niger. Of course, in South Sudan, Libya, and the rest of the world.”
He commended the President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, for supporting the Commission “because the Commission is the one in charge of or has a responsibility in assisting and helping the migrants, the refugees, and the IDPs.
“Mr. President, we want to thank you very sincerely for the cooperation and the support that we are receiving from the Government of Nigeria, and not only that, we also want to appreciate His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Borno State, Professor Babagana Zulum, who has always been there for us, particularly in the area of the repatriation of refugees from other countries of the world and back to Nigeria.
“I remember a few months ago, His Excellency, the Governor of Borno State, collaborated with the Commission and returned not less than 7,000 Nigerians that are staying as refugees in Chad.”
Also, a senior humanitarian officer at the ECOWAS Commission, Alozi Amaechi Godfrey, revealed that last year, the Commission assisted refugees in ECOWAS’ 15 member states and persons of concern with $9 million, and Nigeria received about $1.7 million of this money.
Godfrey said this year, “we are also working to assist refugees and internally displaced persons all around West Africa and particularly here in Nigeria, where we have our headquarters.
“We have other activities also. For instance, we have what we call the work we do in order to assist refugees. That work we do is policy-oriented, and what we do is to create policies that will help resettle refugees and help them provide assistance and protection.”
