DRC agrees to take deportees from US

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has agreed to accept migrants deported from the United States (US) who are not Congolese under a deal effective from this month, officials say.

The DRC’s communication ministry says a temporary reception system has been set up, while facilities to accommodate arrivals have been selected in the capital, Kinshasa.

“Logistical and technical support” will be provided by the US, the statement on Sunday says, adding that the Congolese government would bear no financial cost for the scheme.

The government did not say how many deportees they would accept. The US has already sent deportees to several other countries in Africa as part of Washington’s crackdown on immigration.

Amid concerns that migrants could be returned to their home countries – where some fear persecution – Congolese officials said no such transfers are being planned.

The decision to receive what are known as third-country migrants – that is those who come from neither the sending nor receiving nation – aligns with the DRC’s commitment to human dignity, international solidarity and to protect the rights of migrants, the statement reads.

The Congolese authorities also say the scheme is not a “permanent relocation mechanism or an outsourcing of migration policies”.

The BBC has contacted the State Department and Department of Homeland Security in Washington for comment, but has so far not received a response.

President Donald Trump’s administration has deported dozens of people to third countries since coming into power last January as part of its hard-line approach towards immigration.

Human rights campaigners have condemned the policy, with some questioning its legality.

The DRC is joining other continental states, including Eswatini, Ghana and South Sudan, in receiving deportees from the US.

Last week, eight people from different African countries were deported to Uganda.
According to a minority report from the US senate’s committee on foreign relations, the Trump administration has “likely” spent more than US$40 million in third-country deportations up to January 2026, although the total cost is “unknown”.

The US has provided more than US$32 million “directly” to five countries – Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini and Palau – it says.

The US is also negotiating a minerals deal with the DRC to help gain access to the central African country’s vast reserves of key metals such as cobalt, tantalum, lithium and copper.

Under Trump, the US has facilitated a peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda, although implementation remains a challenge. – BBC

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