…Ghanaian President, Mahama said the first batch of 14 deportees including Nigerians, Gambian had arrived Accra.
ACCRA, GHANA – The iNews Times | Ghana has confirmed it has begun receiving West African nationals deported from the United States, including Nigerians, as part of a controversial third-country arrangement initiated under U.S. President Donald Trump’s intensified deportation policy.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said the first batch of 14 deportees including Nigerians, a Gambian, and other West Africans had arrived in Accra. Ghanaian authorities, he added, are facilitating their return to their home countries, including Nigeria.
“We were approached by the U.S. to accept third-party nationals who were being removed from the U.S., and we agreed that West African nationals were acceptable,” Mahama said, citing ECOWAS visa-free protocols. “All our fellow West Africans don’t need a visa to come to our country.”
Mahama defended the policy, stating that the deportees were not being resettled permanently in Ghana but would only be transiting through the country en route to their nations of origin.
This cooperation with Washington comes amid a broader U.S. policy of removing African migrants to so-called “third countries,” a practice that has drawn criticism from rights organizations. Under President Trump, similar deportations have already occurred to Eswatini, South Sudan, and Rwanda, despite ongoing concerns about safety, documentation, and international law compliance.
Nigeria Rejects U.S. Pressure
Nigeria, however, has flatly rejected the idea of accepting deportees from other countries through third-party arrangements.
In July, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, declared that the Nigerian government would not be pressured into hosting non-Nigerian deportees, even if they are of West African origin.
“Nigeria will not accept deportees from outside our jurisdiction, especially if they are not documented Nigerians,” Tuggar said. “Our national security and economic stability are our priority.”
His comments followed a July 9 White House meeting hosted by Trump, where five West African leaders from Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal were reportedly lobbied to support the deportation scheme.
While most governments have remained silent, Ghana’s public acceptance of the arrangement has stirred quiet diplomatic debate across the region.
Analysts say the issue reveals the growing pressure African governments face in balancing diplomatic relations with global powers and their obligations to citizens and migrants.
“It’s a moral, legal, and logistical dilemma,” said immigration analyst Dr. Aisha Balogun. “Ghana sees it as a regional responsibility under ECOWAS, but Nigeria sees it as an unnecessary risk.”
As of now, the fate of the 14 deportees remains unclear. Ghana has not specified how long the repatriation process will take or which countries will accept the individuals once processed.
A Regional Split in the Making?
While ECOWAS policy supports free movement of persons across West Africa, the U.S. deporłation arrangement appears to test the limits of that principle raising questions about sovereignty, identity verification, and regional coordination.
Civil society groups in Ghana have called for more transparency and safeguards to ensure deportees are treated with dignity and not abandoned or detained indefinitely.
As the U.S. continues to pursue deportation deals across Africa, the reactions from countries like Nigeria and Ghana may set the tone for how the continent responds to increasing external pressure on migration.
