The Democratic Republic of Congo will begin receiving third-country nationals deported by the United States starting this April, the Congolese government announced Sunday. The arrangement makes Congo the latest African nation to join Washington's expanding network of deportation agreements under the Trump administration's migration policy.
Congo's Ministry of Communication described the scheme as a "temporary reception mechanism" for migrants who will be housed in designated facilities around Kinshasa under administrative, security, and humanitarian supervision. The government emphasized that the United States will cover all logistical and technical costs through specialized agencies, with no burden on Congo's public treasury.
The agreement creates a stark paradox. Congo currently hosts over 7 million internally displaced people fleeing conflicts between government forces and the M23 militia, backed by Rwanda. Nearly 25 million Congolese faced severe food insecurity as of November 2025, according to the World Food Programme. Now Kinshasa prepares to receive people expelled from the US who have no connection to the country.
Congo is not a dumping ground to receive individuals or people who are rejected or not accepted in other countries. Our country does not have sufficient infrastructure to accommodate this kind of people.
Timothée Mbuya, Justicia ASBL — RFI
Civil society groups have criticized the agreement's opacity, noting that neither the Congolese population nor parliamentarians were consulted. Each deportee case will undergo individual review according to Congolese law and national security requirements, with no automatic transfers authorized, the government stated.