The Ministry, of Foreign Affairs and that of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development have confirmed that the first batch of 13 buses conveying six hundred and thirty seven (637) stranded Nigerian students, had arrived the identified safe borders at Aswan, Egypt.
The necessary documentation and clearance before admission into the Egyptian territory for their eventual evacuation to Nigeria is ongoing.
A joint statement by the Permanent Secretaries of the ministries indicates that the movement of the second batch of 29 buses will commence this Saturday, 29th April, 2023.
They urged evacuees to be at the designated locations with only one luggage.
The statement added that contrary to insinuations on social media, the Nigerian embassy staff are very much on ground in Khartoum to coordinate the evacuation exercise to the very end.
The students and other Nigerians awaiting evacuation from Khartoum, Sudan are therefore advised to cooperate with them in order to ensure orderliness and proper documentation while embarking on the buses
The statement expalins that the outcry over the negotiated sum of $1.2 million for the buses hired for the exercise is uncalled for.
It says the amount in question was negotiated in a condition of war, and there are competing demands for the same bus services by other countries also trying to evacuate their citizens.
The first batch of Nigerian evacuees who have arrived Aswan are expected to be airlifted to Nigeria in the coming hours by the Nigerian Air Force and Air Peace airline, who have been on standby for the operations.
