UK’s Unraveling of Deportation Deal with Rwanda: The Fallout and Future of Asylum Policies

The initial deportation flights to Rwanda from the UK have been scrapped following the defeat of the party in the recent election, which has disrupted the plans of former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The 2022 Rwanda agreement stipulated that asylum requests from migrants who cross the English Channel to reach Britain would be handled in Rwanda. The Conservatives promoted the pact as a noteworthy deterrent to individuals attempting to cross the Channel to enter the UK.

The deal’s controversy also revolved around its price, with the UK government’s fiscal oversight body, the National Audit Office, indicating that up to $190,000 per individual would be allocated for those relocated to Rwanda over a five-year span.

Rwandan consultant Gatete Ruhumuliza expresses regret over the abandonment of the plan, noting that as refugees themselves, they refuse to mistreat other refugees. If the asylum requests of deported migrants had been rejected in Rwanda, they could have remained in the East African country. In 2023, an estimated 29,000 migrants crossed the English Channel. Kigali has not responded yet to the shelving of the plan.