By Ollus Ndomu| Regional Bureau
Rwanda has agreed to receive up to 250 deportees from the United States, under a new agreement that expands Washington’s efforts to resettle undocumented migrants and criminal offenders deemed to have entered the U.S. illegally.
According to officials familiar with the deal, each deportee will undergo vetting prior to resettlement, after which they will be provided with housing, healthcare access, and skills training in Rwanda. Individuals who wish to leave Rwanda voluntarily after resettlement will be allowed to do so under the terms of the agreement.
A preliminary list of 10 individuals has already been sent to Kigali for screening, with U.S. officials describing some of the deportees as “the worst of the worst.”
Though the financial grant attached to the deal remains undisclosed, the U.S. government is expected to shoulder the cost of relocation and reintegration. Rwanda, which has previously signed similar agreements with other Western nations, has positioned itself as a willing partner in handling deportation logistics in exchange for development assistance.
The new Rwanda deal is part of a broader U.S. campaign to offload non-citizens with criminal records or failed asylum claims, following similar deportations to South Sudan and Eswatini.
Analysts say the move could spark human rights concerns, depending on how the deportees are selected and reintegrated, especially as some may have spent most of their lives in the U.S. and have limited ties to Africa.
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