Nigeria's parliament has suspended all official visits to South Africa in protest over continued violence against immigrants, including attacks on Nigerian citizens.
"All official visits to the Republic of South Africa by the National Assembly, its Committees, lawmakers, officials and staff are hereby suspended," Akin Rotimi, spokesman for the lower chamber, said in a statement on Friday.
The ban extends to virtual engagements as well.
"The National Assembly cannot ignore persistent attacks on citizens abroad," Rotimi added.
Kamoru Ogunlana, the clerk to Nigeria's National Assembly, said parliament was "particularly concerned by reports of Nigerians being killed, injured, displaced and forced to abandon their businesses, investments, homes and other properties as a result of recurring violent attacks."
South Africa, one of the continent's most industrialised economies, has long attracted both documented and undocumented immigrants. The country also faces high unemployment, weak social services, and high crime rates, which have increasingly been blamed on migrants despite decades of government failures, analysts say.
Nigeria has become particularly outspoken on the issue, accusing South Africa of not doing enough to stop the violence.
Months of anti-foreigner protests across South Africa have driven tens of thousands of people to leave the country. Tensions escalated after protesters set a June 30 deadline for undocumented immigrants to leave.
In an attack last week in Durban, marchers descended on an encampment of Congolese nationals, triggering violent clashes. In some cases, protesters went door-to-door, dragging people from their homes and handing them over to waiting police vans. Even migrants with legal documents were caught up in the violence.
In June, two Nigerians were killed during anti-migrant violence, just two days before an unofficial deadline set by protesters for foreigners to leave. Nigeria's foreign ministry said one was allegedly killed by police officers and the other by unidentified attackers.
At least four migrants were killed in violence related to the June 30 deadline, according to South African police, though some foreign governments say the toll is higher.
Nigeria's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, hosted South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola in Abuja in July to discuss the recurring attacks. At that meeting, Enikanolaiye said at least 98 Nigerians had been killed since 2022 in mob attacks, hate-related violence, and extrajudicial killings.
South Africa's latest government figures show that almost 90,000 people have either been voluntarily repatriated or deported since the migration tensions began. However, figures released by the governments of migrants' home countries put the total at approximately 178,000.
