The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo has announced that deportees will begin arriving this month under a “temporary” arrangement paid for by the United States.
Published April 5, 2026
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has announced that it will accept “third-country” nationals deported from the United States under a new agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration.
The Democratic Republic of Congo will begin accepting deportees this month, the Congolese Ministry of Communications said in a statement on Sunday, without providing details on the expected number of arrivals.
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It described the arrangement as “temporary”, reflecting Congo’s “commitment to human dignity and international solidarity”.
As part of the agreement, the United States will pay for the deportations and the Congolese government will not cover the costs, the statement said.
The announcement comes as the Trump administration continues its efforts to broker a peace deal between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda and secure U.S. access to Congo’s critical minerals.
Experts criticize third country agreements
The United States sends third-country deportees to African countries such as Ghana, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Eswatini, drawing criticism from legal experts and rights groups over the legal basis for the transfer and treatment of deportees sent to non-national countries.
Last week, Uganda’s legal community announced that more than a dozen deportees were scheduled to arrive in the country following an agreement with President Trump.
Asimwe Anthony, vice president of the Law Society of Uganda, said in a statement that the group had gone to court to challenge the deportation.
“Our perspective on this issue is broader than a single act of deportation. We see this as just one gust of wind of transnational oppression blowing around the world,” Anthony said.
“This development and the illegal activities that accompany it are a reminder of the dark past that the global human family allegedly put behind itself in pursuit of the ideal that all humans are created equal.”
According to the U.S. Refugee and Immigration Board, deportations to third countries are “systematically underway” starting in February 2025.
“Individuals who are subject to forced return to a third country usually do not have a choice of where they are sent, a practice that raises serious due process and human rights concerns, especially when the receiving country cannot guarantee security,” the commission said.
The Trump administration spent at least $40 million to deport about 300 immigrants to countries other than their own, according to a report released by Democratic staff on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
