In a bold move to tighten Nigeria’s borders and curb irregular migration, the Federal Government has deported 828 illegal immigrants in 2024 alone, Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo announced in Abuja on Tuesday.
The deportations are part of a broader security push aimed at tackling human trafficking, streamlining immigration processes, and modernising border control infrastructure.
Tunji-Ojo revealed that in the past year, 137 victims of human trafficking had been rescued, while authorities intensified efforts to clamp down on illegal migration networks.
“We are not just securing our borders; we are protecting lives and ensuring that only those with legitimate reasons enter our country,” he said.
Beyond deportations, the government has embarked on an ambitious overhaul of Nigeria’s immigration systems, leveraging technology to tighten surveillance and improve efficiency.
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Key reforms include:
- A Centralised Visa Approval Centre in Abuja – ensuring faster and more secure visa processing.
- Integration of Nigerian passports into the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Public Key Directory, allowing seamless verification across the globe.
- A new 8.3-petabyte data centre – Nigeria’s largest – designed to support border security operations.
- Solar-powered infrastructure to maintain uninterrupted immigration services.
- A Command and Control Centre for real-time monitoring of all land and air entry points.
Recognising public frustration over passport delays, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) made sweeping changes, clearing a backlog of 200,000 applications within three weeks in 2023 and issuing 1,836,533 passports in 2024.
Tunji-Ojo assured Nigerians that passport delays would soon become a thing of the past. “We are determined to make the system seamless, eliminating delays and bottlenecks,” he said.
These sweeping reforms reflect the government’s commitment to enhancing national security while improving the ease of travel for legitimate migrants.
