Burkina Faso has rejected a proposal from the Trump administration to accept deportees from the United States, calling the offer “indecent.” Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean‑Marie Traoré said the West African country was asked to take in non‑citizens expelled by the U.S., in addition to its own nationals. The proposal was deemed contrary to the nation’s values of dignity, as outlined by its military ruler, Capt. Ibrahim Traoré.
The U.S. Embassy in Ouagadougou recently suspended most visa services for Burkina Faso residents, redirecting applications to its embassy in neighboring Togo. While the embassy gave no reason for the change, Traoré suggested it could be a “pressure tactic” in response to Burkina Faso’s refusal to accept deportees. A U.S. diplomatic note accused Burkinabe nationals of not complying with visa‑usage rules, prompting Traoré to emphasize that “Burkina Faso is a land of dignity, not deportation.”
The Trump administration has been striking agreements with several African nations to take in migrants under a new third‑country deportation program. Since July, more than 40 deportees have been sent to Africa, with Eswatini, South Sudan, Rwanda and Ghana receiving individuals. The United States has also agreed to send deportees to Uganda, although no deportations have been announced there yet.
Human Rights Watch reported that the administration offered financial incentives to some African countries to accept deportees, including $5.1 million to Eswatini and $7.5 million to Rwanda for migration and border management. Rights groups have protested the program, raising concerns about the treatment of deportees. In Ghana, 11 deportees sued the government over poor conditions at a military camp, and six deportees remain detained in an unspecified facility in South Sudan.
The situation underscores the ongoing debate about migration policies and the treatment of deportees, with Burkina Faso’s refusal to accept deportees representing the latest development. The U.S. Embassy in Ouagadougou and the Department of Homeland Security have not commented on the matter.
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