Ethiopian Airlines has repatriated over 1,000 Canadian residents and diplomats from various countries, including, Nigeria, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Keyna, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Ghana, Tanzania, Turkey and Mozambique.

In addition, over 200 Canadians  have been evacuated out of Nigeria via Murtala Muhammed International Airport.”We are extremely proud of all the work we are doing with Global Affairs Canada to bring all the Canadians home,” said Samson Arega, Ethiopian Airlines’ Canada country manager.

“We were greeted with positive feedback from all the passengers. All arrived safely and were happy to be home.”

Arega added that additional flights this weekend are being planned to bring home more Canadians.

“I want to share my profound appreciation for the help Mr. Samson Arega has provided in the middle of a crisis. I am the husband of a teacher who chaperoned a group of  eight students to Zimbabwe. When the COVID crisis hit, their tickets out were cancelled and the airlines we had booked with provided no real support. We had no relation with Ethiopian Airlines at this point. Mr. Arega helped secure a flight out of Zimbabwe at a time when this looked impossible. He provided a caring human touch and did not rest until flights were secured all the way back to Toronto,  offering assurances all the way. His assistant Tingert also patiently reassured me and kept me updated. Zimbabwe announced a total lockdown hours after the flight left,” said Jaap ter Haar, a passenger on Ethiopian flight to Canada.