A Nigerian woman has been executed by the Saudi Arabian government after she was convicted of drug trafficking by the ultra-conservative state.

Saudi's interior ministry disclosed that the woman was executed on Monday, April 1, 2019 alongside two Pakistani men and one Yemeni man.

Their executions in Mecca bring the total number of people killed this year to 53, according to official data released by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

Saudi operates a very strict form of Islamic law and regularly dishes out death sentences for crimes such as homicide, rape, and armed robbery, facing backlash from many human rights organisations.

Nigerian government unhappy over execution

The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has condemned the execution as tragic.

She said it's regrettable that, in spite of wise counsel for Nigerians travelling to Saudi Arabia by relevant government agencies to obey the country's laws, some Nigerians still engage in criminal acts.

She said eight Nigerians have been killed in the past few years over the same issue in Saudi Arabia and no fewer than 20 Nigerians are currently on death row.

She expressed concern that some of the trials of Nigerians in Saudi Arabia are not open and fair.

"We are not saying our citizens in Saudi Arabia should be committing crimes, but we want Saudi Arabia to temper justice with mercy especially on offences that carry capital punishment," she said in a statement.