The German Mission in Nigeria is planning to evacuate interested nationals from Nigeria, The PUNCH reports.

This is not unconnected to the exploding cases of COVID-19 in the country which hit 111 on Sunday, March 29.

Some countries including France and Israel have evacuated some of their nationals from Nigeria with others such as the US preparing to do the same.

The Federal Government shortly before the closure of all international airports in the country had restricted flights from Germany and some countries identified as high-risk coronavirus spots.

The German Mission in Nigeria said it is in the process of ascertaining the number of compatriots still in the country who intend to return to Germany asking them to fill certain forms on its website for the purpose.

It said, “Due to the extraordinary circumstances with regard to COVID-19, temporary entry restrictions were decided for Germany and international air traffic to and from Nigeria until April 23.

“Some compatriots and their family members were able to leave Nigeria before the above measures were introduced.

“The German embassy in Abuja and the German consulate general in Lagos want to determine as reliably as possible the number of German compatriots and their family members who are still in Nigeria and are interested in returning to Germany.”

According to World Health Organisation statistics as of 09:45am on March 30, there are 52,547 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 389 recorded deaths in Germany.

The novel virus has infected over 700,000 people with over 27,000 deaths across over 190 nations.