Scores of Nigerian migrants have arrived back in the country's largest city of Lagos, the latest batch to have been assisted home from Libya by the International Organisation for Migration. Most of them had been trapped in the troubled North African country for months, after failing to make it across the Mediterranean sea into Europe. CGTN's Deji Badmus has more on that story.

It's is the 65th flight to arrive Lagos since the International Organisation for Migration began its assisted repatriation programme for Nigerian migrants trapped in Libya in April 2017. As the door of the aircraft is opened, the returnee migrants make their way out. With funding from the EU, IOM says it has so far been able to assist 12,974 Nigerian migrants stranded in Libya voluntarily return home. These latest 132 new returnees are part of that number.

KETIL KARLSEN HEAD OF EU DELEGATION TO NIGERIA AND ECOWAS "On the 11th of April, in just a few days time, it would have been two years since we started this extremely important endeavor and an endeavor, of course, that only is possible if we work closely with Nigerian partners."

Most of the Returnees had either left Nigeria on their own or trafficked in the hope of making a better life in Europe. But after the tortuous journey through the desert, most end up in Libya unable to make the final crossing through the Mediterranean into Europe.

NGOZI UKAEGBU NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR REFUGEES "Everyone is involved. This is a job that we have to stop people from migrating irregularly. And show them that yes you can go to wherever you want to go to, but do it the right way."

DANIEL ATOKOLO SOUTHWEST ZONAL COMMANDER "Behind me now we are profiling them. Those who volunteer information to us, we go after their traffickers."

DEJI BADMUS LAGOS, NIGERIA "Well, the Returnees are now back home. No question that most of them would be happy that they are back. But then, they still face another challenge and that is the challenge of reintegration."

Through the IOM reintegration programme, returnees are assisted to resettle back into life and also given entrepreneurship training and small grant to start a small enterprise of their choice.

ABRHAM TAMRAT PROGRAMME MANAGER, IOM NIGERIA "Throughout the implementation of the programme, more than 26 actors, including government and civil society organisations, are actually participating."

The IOM estimates that over 50, 000 Nigerian migrants are still stranded in Libya. With its Assisted Voluntary Repatriation programme due to end next year, it's very unlikely it would be able to assist half of that number to return home before the end of programme. But the irony is that as some are been brought back from Libya, many more at home are still making the journey to the North African country in the hope of ultimately making it to Europe from there. It's obviously a vicious cycle. DB,CGTN,L,N.