The United Kingdom (UK) has deported 43 individuals to Nigeria and Ghana, according to a joint announcement from the UK Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
The statement, released on Friday, did not specify the exact date when these deportations took place.
According to the official announcement, “Those removed had no right to be in the UK and included 15 failed asylum seekers and 11 foreign national offenders who had served their sentences. Seven people returned voluntarily.”
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The statement lacked clarity regarding the citizenship status of those deported and did not provide information about how many individuals were sent to each country.
Since Prime Minister Keir Starmer assumed office last year, his administration has conducted two charter flights transporting 87 people to Nigeria and Ghana. The previous deportation operation in October saw 44 Nigerian and Ghanaian asylum seekers being returned, marking the largest single-flight deportation from the UK.
This focus on deportations to Nigeria and Ghana follows the collapse of the UK-Rwanda migration agreement. That plan, which was signed in 2022, intended to send certain asylum seekers who arrived in the UK through illegal channels to Rwanda for processing and potential resettlement.
However, the initiative encountered legal obstacles and was eventually declared unlawful by the UK Supreme Court in 2023.
Reports suggest that Nigeria subsequently entered into a deportation agreement with the UK that would allow for the return of illegal immigrants to the country.
Following the recent deportation operation, Angela Eagle, the United Kingdom secretary for Border Security and Asylum, expressed gratitude to the governments of Ghana and Nigeria for their cooperation.
The statement emphasized that this operation demonstrated the strength of partnership between the UK, Nigeria, and Ghana on this “critical issue.”
The government also highlighted that over 24,000 people have been returned overall, representing an 11 percent increase compared to the same period in the previous year.
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