Nigeria summons South African ambassador over violent attacks against its citizens
South Africa's ambassador to Nigeria summoned
Written by Ziad Abdel Fattah:
The Nigerian government has decided to summon South Africa's ambassador over xenophobic attacks in his country that have targeted Nigerians, the Foreign Ministry recently reported.
It is scheduled to meet Nigerian officials The Nigerian Foreign Ministry said it will meet with the South African ambassador in Abuja on Monday to discuss documented cases of mistreatment of Nigerian citizens and attacks on their businesses.
South Africa is a destination for African workers.
South Africa is a destination for African workers, both registered and unregistered, given that its economy is the most manufacturing-dependent on the African continent.
But with the country’s unemployment rate soaring to 30%, South Africa is experiencing waves of anti-foreigner and anti-immigrant protests, leading to an escalation of violence against foreigners in recent weeks.
Hostile incidents targeting Ghanaians
It is worth noting that a week ago, the Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also summoned the South African ambassador to Accra over xenophobic incidents targeting Ghanaians.
Ghana's Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzieto Ablakwa, said at the time that a Ghanaian citizen living in South Africa had been asked to leave and work in his own country, instead of working for another country.
The situation is rapidly evolving, with the minister warning of the tension surrounding the issue in South Africa, where foreigners, including Ghanaians, are being advised to stay in their homes for their own safety.
The number of foreigners in South Africa is more than 3 million, equivalent to 5.11 TP3T of the population, according to the country's statistics agency. More than 631 TP3T of them come from the 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Meanwhile, South Africa’s police minister last week condemned the violence against migrants, describing the attacks on foreigners as illegal and violating the country’s constitutional values of dignity and equality.
Firoz Kashalia said in a statement that acts of xenophobia, violence, looting, or intimidation will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa.
Nigeria greater An oil producer in Africa, with proven reserves of approximately 37.3-38 billion barrels, producing more than 1.4 million barrels per day during March 2026, its economy is heavily dependent on oil, and it is currently moving towards refining oil locally through the Dangote refinery, and is also moving towards boosting its revenues through gas projects.
In another context, terrorist attacks are escalating in Nigeria, which have resulted in the killing and abduction of more than 900 people across Nigeria during April, while the Borno State region in the east of the country has remained a major center of Boko Haram terrorist operations since 2014, which it has declared the headquarters of its caliphate.
