SIERRA LEONE RECEIVES NINE US-DEPORTED WEST AFRICAN MIGRANTS UNDER TRUMP CRACKDOWN
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Agency Report
Sierra Leone on Wednesday received a group of migrants expelled from the United States under President Donald Trump’s ongoing immigration enforcement policy, becoming the latest African country to accept deportees under the arrangement.
An AFP journalist at the international airport outside Freetown reported the arrival of a plane carrying nine West African migrants in the morning.
Foreign Minister Timothy Musa Kabba confirmed the development, initially stating that 25 migrants were expected before later revising the figure.
“We have received nine deportees this morning from the US,” Kabba told AFP.
Authorities said the deportees comprise nationals of Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea, and Senegal. On arrival, police, medical personnel, and government officials were stationed at the airport to receive them.
According to reports, seven men and two women were seen disembarking and boarding a minibus under police escort, with officials describing them as visibly distressed after months in detention in the United States.
“They were traumatised due to the months in chains during detention in the US,” said Doris Bah, a health ministry official present at the airport. She added that most of the deportees expressed a desire to return to their respective home countries.
Bah also noted that some of the migrants were arrested in different circumstances in the United States, including on the streets, at workplaces, and during recreational activities.
Government officials said the deportees would be temporarily accommodated in a hotel before being repatriated to their countries of origin within two weeks.
Sierra Leone has agreed to receive up to 300 deportees annually from the United States, provided they are nationals of West African states within the ECOWAS bloc.
Foreign Minister Kabba said the arrangement applies to individuals with regional ties, adding that some had residency permits linked to Sierra Leone.
He explained that the deportees are permitted to remain in the country for up to 90 days before onward return to their home countries.
The United States is reportedly providing $1.5 million to support the programme, covering humanitarian and operational costs associated with the agreement, according to a foreign ministry document.
Washington has not provided detailed clarification on the criteria for selecting Sierra Leone as a destination for deportations, though a US State Department spokesperson reiterated that migrant removals remain a priority.
Sierra Leone now joins a growing list of African countries—including Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ghana, Rwanda, and South Sudan—that have received deported migrants from the United States under similar arrangements.
Human rights groups have criticised the policy, with Human Rights Watch describing such agreements as “opaque deals” that may raise concerns under international human rights law and urging African governments to reconsider their participation.
AFP
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