Rwanda has agreed to receive up to 250 migrants deported from the United States under a new bilateral agreement signed in Kigali, according to a Reuters report.
The arrangement, first disclosed by Reuters, was confirmed by Yolande Makolo, the spokesperson for the Rwandan government, who said the country accepted the proposal as part of its long-standing values rooted in reintegration and rehabilitation.
“Nearly every Rwandan family has experienced the hardships of displacement. Our societal values are founded on reintegration and rehabilitation,” Makolo said. “Under this agreement, Rwanda will review and approve each individual case, and those accepted will be supported with accommodation, healthcare, and workforce training to help them integrate and contribute to our economy.”
A Rwandan official who spoke on condition of anonymity told Reuters that an initial list of 10 individuals had already been shared by Washington for vetting. The official added that the U.S. government would provide Rwanda with a grant to support the initiative, though the amount remains undisclosed. The agreement could be extended beyond the 250 individuals by mutual consent.
Only individuals without pending criminal cases or completed prison sentences will be eligible. Rwanda has made it clear that it will not accept child sex offenders, and there is no agreement in place to allow individuals to serve U.S. prison sentences on Rwandan soil.
This development is part of a broader U.S. immigration strategy under President Donald Trump’s administration, which has pushed for third-country deportations of individuals deemed removable, including those with criminal records. Other countries reportedly approached for similar deals include South Sudan and Eswatini.
Critics of the policy argue that such deportations can be dangerous and traumatic, especially for migrants with no ties to the receiving country.
Rwanda’s willingness to accept deported migrants is not new. In 2022, Kigali signed a now-defunct agreement with the United Kingdom to host asylum seekers, a deal that was later scrapped by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer before any transfers took place.
Rwanda has also played a role in recent peace efforts in the region, including U.S.-backed talks aimed at ending conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
