German Chancellor Angela Merkel | Sean Gallup/Getty Images Angela Merkel: Germany to return Nigerian migrants Chancellor said Berlin will help the country fight Boko Haram.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said authorities will send back most Nigerian asylum seekers.

According a report on Saturday in the Local, an English-language German news website, Merkel said her government will support the African country's fight against Boko Haram. However, Germany is unable to grant all Nigirians, claiming to be fleeing the militant group, international protection because "we presume that most of them came for economic reasons," unlike Syrians or Iraqis who are fleeing war zones.

At a joint press conference with Nigerian President Muhammad Buhari on Friday, when she completed her tour of Mali, Niger and Ethiopia, Merkel said: "I think we will need to take a vastly greater interest in the destiny of Africa," according to The Local.

So far this year more than 10,000 asylum seekers in Germany came from Nigeria and 13,000 came from Eritrea, the paper said. Germany is asylum seekers' top destination in Europe and Merkel's government has come under a lot of pressure following last year's massive influx of migrants to her country.

While in Ethiopia, Merkel warned people against setting off on dangerous journeys with an uncertain outcome. "They risk a life-threatening journey without knowing what's waiting for them or even whether they'll be able to stay [...] often it's the young people who head for Europe with completely wrong ideas," Merkel was quoted as saying in Addis Ababa.