A Nigerian delegation led by National Commission for Refugees and Migrants and IDP met on Friday 20.03.2026 with actors and intending facilitators of the German so-called voluntary returns ARRIVES projects in Munchen.
The convener of the confidential and strictly selective meeting was the Social Impact Lab. Quoting the selectively distributed invitation with tittle “High level expert Dialogue on voluntary returns to Nigeria”, the meeting was meant to bring actors from administration, politic, counselling, reintegration, psycho-social support and international cooperation to jointly analyse enabling factors and obstacles along the deportation/return chain, exchange perspectives, and develop concrete approaches for sustainable cooperation.
In actual reality, the meeting intention was to lobby migrant support organisation and manipulatively engage them in the effective execution of the German deportation agenda disguised as voluntary returns “ARRIVES”.
With the NCFRMI (National commission for Refugees Migrants and IDP) delegation consisting of SMEDEN (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria) and the Nigerian partners of the „Social Impact – ARRIVES project“ – IRARA (International Returns and Reintegration Assistance) and ITC (International Trade Centre), participants from Germany included representatives of the colonial deportation machinery “Bayerisches Landesamt für Asyl und Rückführungen (LfAR)” and its affiliate structures, representatives of migrants support/social welfare Projects and established Nigerian community networks.
The event kicked off with an opening speech from the project coordinator of the Social Impact “ARRIVES” project and then followed by presentations from NCFRMI and SMEDEN on their assumed responsibilities, activities and available infrastructures for Return-Readmission and Reintegration to compliment the massive deportation plan of Germany and Europe at large. While NCFRMI claimed to have adequate support available for returning migrants irrespective of the conditions of return. SMEDEN lauded governments offer of free business registration for Returnees and the allocation of 200billion for SME palliatives to boost Manufacturing sector and many more. The interventions mentioned are far from the realities on ground.
What was very clear in this meeting was NCFRMI acknowledging its membership in the project “ARRIVES” steering committee. This automatically insinuates an already established MOU between the duo on behalf of the Nigerian and German Government in extension. By this development with the recent deportation agreement with UK and MOU on Returns with the German “ARRIVES” project, the position of the Nigerian government on the EU deportation agenda is quite clear.
Imagine what that could mean if routine deportation has always been enforced even without an official agreement or MOU, the new development with officially endorse MOUs would mean an underestimation of Germanys desperation to deport thus exposing Nigeria as a deportation dumping ground for deportable black Migrants in Europe – a deal that Germany has lobbied for the past 10 years.
We were also informed that the Nigerian delegation and the hosting Social Impact “ARRIVES” crew had in the previous day visited the Nigerian embassy in Berlin. Little will the Nigerian delegation understand that the interest from the German counterpart was to lobby more effective collaboration in the issuance of deportation certificates for assumed Nigerian migrants who are obligated to leave Germany. Such loophole would mean an underestimation of the dubious German deportation regime and expose Nigeria as dumping ground for deportatable black migrants from Germany. The future of deportation
Critically reflecting on the recently concluded Nigerian chairmanship of the Rabat Process, the current development on deportation MOUs does reflect the likely expectation with the so-called „Abuja Knowledge paper on Reintegration“ and its claim for ownership in the RRR as corrupt and ill-conceived at the expense of the targeted migrants and other vulnerable persons or groups. The fact that the Nigerian government does not meet its obligation to contribute substantially in the re-integration of Nigerian returnees, re-affirms an habitual lack of credibility and failure of Government to Nigerians.
This report should be a call for Nigerians to wake up and confront the current situation with the continued deportation of fellow Nigerians especially in this time of serious economic upheaval. For Nigerians to still exist at this level of tolerance with massive corruption and failure of government is strongly dependent on the support from the diaspora. One fact that has always been silenced in the reporting of migrants contributions to economic sustainability in their home country is that the major bulk of these remittances comes from Europe`s deportable.
We call on the Nigerian government to desist from further attempt to collaborate in any form of deportation dealings with the colonial and Imperialist States. No form of deportation can be ascertained to be dignified. Migrants irrespective of their status are contributing immensely to development in their various destination countries. Countries like Germany must take the lead in abolishing the continued racist exclusion, Isolation and criminalisation of Migrants.
Freedom of movement cannot be compromised for any form of authoritarian restrictions or control in the name of migration governance. Asylum is human rights and No one is illegal !
Email: info@refugees4refugees.org
This post is also available in Deutsch.