The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigeria Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, in a press briefing on Thursday, at the State House in Abuja. Advised Nigerians especially students not to travel to Northern Cyprus.
Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus.
Recognised only by Turkey, Northern Cyprus is considered by the international community to be part of the Republic of Cyprus.
She said, Northern Cyprus is not recognized by the international community (the United Nations) as a country except by Turkey. Therefore there was little that could be done diplomatically to resolve the predicament of Nigerians.
The Minister explained,
“Honestly, it’s been a lot of problems in Northern Cyprus. So, we had youths come and tell us, ‘Please tell everybody to stop going to Northern Cyprus. We did that some time ago and some people said, ‘how can you tell people not to go?’ And I’ve said it again, if you’re going to Northern Cyprus, think twice about it.
Over 20 students have been killed over the years, and nothing happened. So, some of these students came themselves and said, they have to embark on an awareness campaign. Don’t go to these places. Northern Cyprus is recognised only by Turkey. It’s not a UN-recognised nation.
“So, we can’t do much. Our students are being killed on a daily basis, and nothing is happening. So again, I’m going to appeal that we need to take a strong position, about places like Northern Cyprus.”
She noted that despite the security issue, the country recorded $20 billion in remittances in 2021.
“This was an increase from the $17 billion recorded in 2020″.
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