Representatives of five EU countries visited Rwanda this week to discuss setting up return hubs for rejected African asylum seekers, the Rwandan government has confirmed.
German magazine Der Spiegel reported last week that Germany, Austria, Denmark, Greece and the Netherlands were planning to send a delegation to Rwanda for talks on the hubs. Rwanda has now confirmed that the visit took place.
The five EU Member States want to have return hubs in Rwanda in place by the end of the year. Rejected asylum seekers would then be housed there instead of in reception centres within the EU.
An EU regulation agreed in June by member states and the European Parliament gives legal grounds for countries that want to pursue such a plan. Besides Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya and Ghana are also seen as possible locations.
Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said “the visit has taken place and negotiations are ongoing.” He did not disclose further details.
One possible option is the Gashora transit centre, about 60 kilometres from the capital Kigali. Since 2019, it has hosted migrants stranded in Libya while their asylum claims are processed, and many have since been resettled to third countries.
In 2022, Kigali reached an agreement with the United Kingdom under then Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson to take in asylum seekers. However, his successor, Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, did not continue with the plan after the UK Supreme Court ruled the scheme unlawful.
