Okoduwa urges FG to settle, empower returning Nigerian youths

By Noble Sunday (Benin City) 

Human rights activist and advocate for returnee migrants, Comrade Solomon Okoduwa, has called on the Federal and State Governments to urgently provide resettlement packages and empowerment schemes for Nigerian youths being deported from Europe. He warned that abandoning them will worsen unemployment, poverty and social instability across the country.

Speaking to journalists on Monday, Okoduwa said many of the returnees are stranded after abandoning thriving businesses and years of hard work in the countries they were forced to leave.

“Starting life all over again in Nigeria is not easy,” he said. “These young men and women need immediate support from well-meaning Nigerians, especially the government. They need settlement grants, skills acquisition, and soft loans to restart their lives with dignity. We cannot watch them become a burden on society.”

*137 Deported in Five Months*

His appeal comes on the heels of fresh data showing that Germany deported at least 137 Nigerian citizens between February and June 2026 through five documented chartered operations.

According to figures monitored by the _DERS Team_ and _Refugees4refugees.org_, Germany has intensified the use of charter flights to return Nigerians whose migration cases have been determined.

The breakdown is as follows:  

– *February:* 27  

– *March:* 37  

– *April:* 24  

– *May:* 23  

– *June:* 26  

The March 10 operation was the largest, with 50 Nigerians deported in a joint EU exercise involving Germany, Spain, Austria and Belgium. Germany accounted for 37 of them.

On February 18, 2026, a World2fly-operated charter flight departed Stuttgart and landed at the Lagos Cargo Airport with 27 Nigerians on board.

Baden-Württemberg was identified as a major hub for the deportations, serving as the departure point for both the December 2025 and February 2026 flights.

*Due Process Concerns Raised*

The report also raised serious concerns about due process. Advocates alleged that some returnees had serious health conditions, while others had lived and worked in Germany for years.

In one case, a single mother and her three children were reportedly deported from Sindelfingen, Stuttgart, despite allegedly having valid residence documents. Following intervention by volunteers and local authorities, the deportation was later admitted to be an error and the family was allowed to return to Germany.

The DERS Team further alleged that no Nigerian government officials were present to receive deportees at the Lagos airport during the February operation. As a result, returnees were left to make their way out without counseling, medical screening, or reintegration support.

“Deportation without reception, rehabilitation and reintegration is a recipe for disaster,” Okoduwa stated. “Government must treat this as a humanitarian and economic issue, not just an immigration matter.”

*Root Causes and Policy Recommendations*

Migration rights advocates say the rising deportations underscore deeper push factors — conflict, exploitation, climate pressures, and economic inequality — that continue to drive irregular migration from Nigeria.

They are calling for stronger bilateral agreements with European nations to ensure humane treatment, proper notification, and safeguards against wrongful deportations.

As Nigeria prepares for the 2026 International Migration Review Forum in New York, Okoduwa insists the government must shift from reaction to action.

“We need a National Returnee Empowerment Fund,” he said. “If we empower these youths, they can become job creators instead of statistics. If we ignore them, we risk losing a generation.”

*About the Advocate*

Solomon Okoduwa is the Executive Director of the Initiative for Youth Awareness on Migration, Immigration, Development and Reintegration — IYAMIDR Nigeria. He is also a former Senior Special Assistant to the Edo State Government on Anti-Human Trafficking and Irregular Migration.