TheCable

The British high commission says  900 British travellers stranded in Nigeria are set to return home on three flights chartered by the government of the United Kingdom.

In a statement on Friday, the commission said the three additional flights would bring the total number of people flown back to the UK from Nigeria on government charter flights to around 2,000.

According to the statement, the new flights are scheduled to take off on April 28: Abuja – London, May 1: Lagos – London and May 5: Lagos – London.

It said the additional flights had been arranged for British travellers and their dependents whose primary residence is the UK.

The commission added that priority would be given to most vulnerable travellers such as people with health conditions.

“Our next phase of UK Government charter flights will mean another 900 British travellers are able to return home from Nigeria,” James Duddridge, British minister of state for Africa, said.

“We appreciate the country’s effort as this has been a difficult time and we will continue to work closely with the Nigerian authorities to support those wishing to return to the UK.”

Catriona Laing, British high commissioner to Nigeria, advised the travellers to visit the Nigeria travel advice pages for further information.

She noted that the UK government was working with the airline industry and host governments across the world to help bring back British travellers to the UK.

She said up to £75 million was made available for special charter flights to priority countries focused on helping the most vulnerable travellers.

She said so far, flights had returned British travellers from India, the Philippines, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nepal, Ghana, Tunisia, Algeria and Peru.

“I want to say a big thank you to everyone who has helped us put this together. First of all to the Government of Nigeria for their sterling support throughout the process,” Laing said.