DR Congo agrees to take deportees from the US

The Democratic Republic of Congo has agreed to accept migrants deported from the US who are not themselves Congolese under a deal effective from this month, officials said.

The Ministry of Communication said a temporary reception system had been set up, while facilities to accommodate arrivals had been selected in the capital, Kinshasa.

"Logistical and technical support" will be provided by the US, the statement on Sunday said, adding that the Congolese government would bear no financial cost for the scheme.

The government did not say how many deportees they would accept. The US has already sent deportees to several other countries in Africa as part of Washington's crackdown on immigration.

Amid concerns that migrants could be returned to their home countries - where some fear persecution - Congolese officials said no such transfers are being planned.

The decision to receive what are known as third-country migrants - that is those who come from neither the sending nor receiving nation - aligns with DR Congo's commitment to human dignity, international solidarity and to protect the rights of migrants, the statement read.

The Congolese authorities also said that the scheme is not a "permanent relocation mechanism or an outsourcing of migration policies".

The BBC has contacted the State Department and Department of Homeland Security in Washington for comment but has so far not received a response.

President Donald Trump's administration has deported dozens of people to third countries since coming into power last January as part of its hard-line approach towards immigration.

Human rights campaigners have condemned the policy, with some questioning its legality.

DR Congo is joining other continental states, including Eswatini, Ghana and South Sudan, in receiving deportees from the US.

The US has provided more than $32m "directly" to five countries - Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini and Palau - it added.

The US is also negotiating a minerals deal with DR Congo to help gain access to the central African country's vast reserves of key metals such as cobalt, tantalum, lithium and copper.

Under Trump, the US has also facilitated a peace deal between DR Congo and Rwanda, although implementation remains a challenge.