Sierra Leone Agrees to Receive West African Migrants Deported from U.S.

Reuters – Sierra Leone has agreed to receive hundreds of West African migrants being deported by the United States, according to the country’s foreign minister, in the latest agreement under the Trump administration aimed at speeding up removals.

Foreign Minister Timothy Kabba said the first flight carrying third-country deportees will arrive in Sierra Leone on May 20. The group will include 25 nationals from Senegal, Ghana, Guinea, and Nigeria.

Deportees Sent to Africa Forced Back HomeSierra Leone’s agreement to accept deportees only from ECOWAS member states mirrors a similar arrangement with Ghana. Reuters previously reported that some deportees sent to countries such as Ghana and Equatorial Guinea were later forced to return to their home countries despite having U.S. court protections meant to stop such deportations.

It remains unclear whether the migrants sent to Sierra Leone will be allowed to stay there permanently. A government spokesperson did not immediately comment on the matter, while Kabba also did not reveal what Sierra Leone would receive in exchange for accepting the deportees.

The U.S. State Department has not yet commented on the new agreement, although both the White House and State Department have previously defended the deportations as lawful.