By George OPARA
About 1,100 Nigerian migrants have arrived in Kano by road from Agadez, Niger Republic.
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) affirmed that officials from various federal and state bodies are currently coordinating efforts to process the returnees, provide counselling, and support their reintegration with families.
The Commandant of the Immigration Training School, Kano, Anthony Akuneme who disclosed this on Friday said the migrants are undergoing documentation using the Migration Information and Data Analysis System at the Migrants Arrival, Knowledge and Information Area before moving to the International Transit and Stay of Knowledge centre for final profiling and psychosocial support.
He explained that personnel from the Kano Nationality Sortation Centre, MAKIA, and ITSK, alongside other agencies, are on ground to ensure a smooth and safe process.
The centres serve as key processing points where returnees are received, profiled, and linked to reintegration services.
Spear News Nigeria gathered that the reintegration programme is jointly implemented by the NIS, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, the International Organization for Migration, and state authorities.
The latest arrivals reflect ongoing assisted and voluntary returns from Agadez, a major transit hub in northern Niger that has long served as a key route for West African migrants attempting to reach Europe through Libya and the Mediterranean.
But Niger’s anti-smuggling laws significantly reduced migration flows after 2015, irregular movements along the corridor have persisted.
Recent instability in the region, following the 2023 coup that removed former President Mohamed Bazoum, has further affected migration control systems.
Also IOM data revealed that movement along the route has picked up again in recent months, with Nigerians forming a significant proportion of returnees.
Meanwhile, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees also reported in April 2026 that over 269,000 Nigerians displaced by insurgency in the Northeast are currently taking refuge in Niger’s Diffa region.
IOM said since 2017, its operations in Niger have supported the voluntary return of thousands of stranded Nigerians—many of them young men who had attempted to migrate to Europe but were unable to continue due to financial constraints, detention, or disruptions in smuggling networks.
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