The Federal Government has begun the process of evacuating Nigerians stranded in Sudan, following the outbreak of conflict.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama and his counterpart the Minister of State, Ambassador Zubairu Dada confirmed the development after the matter was deliberated upon at the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday.
Onyeama who briefed the State House Correspondents on the plans, confirmed that 40 luxury buses were already on the ground in Sudan to pick up Nigerian citizens in the country to Egypt.
He said once they are safely moved to Egypt, other arrangements would be effected to airlift them back to Nigeria.
Onyeama also revealed that the evacuation efforts is being coordinated by the Nigerian embassy in Sudan as well as authorities of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FERMA) whose Director General has been on the ground in Egypt to receive the evacuees.
According to the Ministers, the buses conveying our citizens were hired at a cost of $ 1.2 million dollars, citing the risks associated with moving the people.
They noted that the hired buses also included the cost of providing security while conveying the victims to the Egyptian territory.
Both Ministers also noted that women and children will be given priority, before diplomats who are equally involved in the evacuation logistics.
They noted that the Nigerian government was leveraging on the 72 hours cease fire window given by the Sudanese government to evacuate as many Nigerians as possible.
Amb Dada noted that the Saudi Arabia government had already evacuated some Nigerians through the Sea, a development he noted was highly appreciated by the Federal Government.
