Uganda Denies Agreement with U.S. on Hosting Deported Migrants

Edited By : Widad WAHBI

 A senior Ugandan official on Wednesday denied reports that the country had reached an agreement with the United States to host individuals deported from American territory, stressing that Uganda lacks the facilities to accommodate them.

The denial came after CBS News, citing internal U.S. government documents, reported on Tuesday that Washington had reached deportation arrangements with both Uganda and Honduras as part of its policy to expand the return of migrants to third countries where they do not hold citizenship.

“To my knowledge, we have not concluded any such agreement,” Uganda’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Okello Oryem told Reuters in a text message. “We do not have the facilities and infrastructure to host such illegal immigrants in Uganda,” he added.

The Honduran government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The report comes as U.S. President Donald Trump pushes forward with efforts to deport millions of people living in the United States without legal status. His administration has sought to increase transfers to third countries, including sending convicted criminals to South Sudan and Eswatini.

According to CBS, the supposed agreements with Uganda and Honduras would rely on a U.S. immigration law provision allowing asylum seekers to be redirected to third countries, provided Washington determines those states are capable of fairly processing their claims.

Uganda, a close U.S. ally in East Africa, already hosts nearly two million refugees and asylum seekers, mostly from neighboring countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, and Sudan.