The Democratic Republic of Congo has received its first group of deportees from the United States, marking the start of a new deportation agreement between the two countries.
Fifteen people including seven women and eight men originally from Peru and Ecuador arrived in Kinshasa according to the Congolese government.
The U.S. under President Donald Trump’s administration, is stepping up its crackdown on illegal immigration.
DR Congo has agreed to temporarily accept migrants who are not Congolese nationals known as “third-country deportees” as part of this policy.
The government in Kinshasa stressed that the deportees’ stay is short-term only, and the US is fully funding their reception, support, and care.
In a statement on Friday, Congolese authorities said the decision aligns with the country’s commitment to “human dignity, the protection of the rights of migrants and international solidarity.” They made it clear the arrangement is not a permanent relocation programme or an outsourcing of U.S. migration policies.
The U.S. has already deported people to other African nations including Ghana, South Sudan and Eswatini under similar deals.
The Trump administration has described the policy as essential to “end illegal and mass immigration and bolster America’s border security.”
This latest development comes as the U.S. is also negotiating a minerals deal with DR Congo to gain access to the country’s vast reserves of cobalt, tantalum, lithium and copper.
At the same time, Washington has helped facilitate peace talks between DR Congo and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in eastern Congo.
