President Donald Trump's administration has reached an agreement with Rwanda to accept up to 250 migrants deported from the United States. This "third-country" scheme, a key part of Trump's sweeping mass deportation plan, has drawn immediate attention and criticism from human rights experts and international organizations.
Under the terms of the deal, as confirmed by Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo to the BBC, the deportees will be given a chance to restart their lives in the East African nation. The package includes "workforce training, health care, and accommodation." However, a crucial condition of the agreement is that Rwanda maintains "the ability to approve each individual proposed for resettlement," a measure designed to give the country control over who it accepts.
The White House has not commented directly on the deal, but a spokesperson told the BBC that the administration is "constantly talking to countries" that are "willing to assist us in removing the illegal aliens that [ex-President] Joe Biden" had allegedly allowed to "infiltrate" the US. This language echoes the core promise of Trump's election campaign to focus on mass deportations. The Trump administration has been actively courting several African countries for similar agreements. Eswatini and South Sudan have already accepted some deportees, including convicted criminals, raising a new level of concern among human rights advocates.
For its part, Rwanda has defended its decision to enter into the agreement by highlighting its own history and values. Ms. Makolo explained that "nearly every Rwandan family has experienced the hardships of displacement," and that the country's society is founded on "reintegration and rehabilitation." This sentiment was previously echoed in May by Rwanda's foreign affairs minister, who stated the nation was guided by the "spirit" of giving "another chance to migrants who have problems across the world." This humanitarian framing is intended to position Rwanda as a safe haven, though its human rights record and alleged backing of the M23 rebel group in neighboring DRC have drawn criticism in the past.
The new deal with the US follows the collapse of a similar agreement Rwanda had with the UK's Conservative government in 2022. That scheme, which was scrapped by the Labour government last year, saw the UK pay Rwanda a substantial sum of £240m ($310m). The fate of the facilities built with that money, which were intended to house asylum seekers, remains unclear. While an unnamed Rwandan official reportedly told Reuters that the US would provide Kigali with an unspecified grant as part of the new deal, this has not yet been officially confirmed. The details of the agreement are expected to be worked out in the coming weeks.
