A Nigerian man deported from the United States has told the BBC that he is now stranded in a hotel in Lomé, Togo, after Ghanaian immigration officers allegedly smuggled him and five others across the border.
He was among a group of 14 deportees (13 Nigerians and one Gambian) flown from the US to Ghana in September 2025 under President Donald Trump’s deportation program.
Speaking to the BBC, he complained of being abandoned without support after enduring detention in America and a chaotic transfer in West Africa.
The deportee, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, said they were told they would be moved from a military camp in Ghana to a hotel for better living conditions.
Instead, they were “dumped” in Togo through an unofficial route after Ghanaian officials allegedly bribed local police.
“We’re struggling to survive in Togo without any documentation. None of us has family here, we’re just stuck in a hotel,” he said.
The man added that while in Ghana he and his group complained of “deplorable” conditions at the camp, where they lacked proper food, healthcare, and water. He also revealed that he had been under U.S. court-ordered protection and should not have been deported.
He fears returning to Nigeria because of his role in the Yoruba Self-Determination Movement, an activist group advocating for a breakaway state in southwestern Nigeria.
Although not officially banned, the movement has faced heavy crackdowns, with at least 27 members arrested last year.
Trump’s third-country deportation policy under fire
The case highlights growing controversy over President Donald Trump’s third-country deportation policy, which allows the U.S. to expel migrants and asylum seekers to countries other than their homelands.
The strategy, presented as a way to target “violent criminals” and ease deportation bottlenecks, has been criticized for violating human rights and international legal norms.
In July, Washington sent five foreign nationals to Eswatini under the scheme, sparking outrage from local opposition groups who called it “human trafficking disguised as deportation.”
Human rights organizations argue the program operates with little transparency, with deportees often transported in shackles, denied access to lawyers, and left in legal limbo in host countries.
Lawyers for several deported men have accused the program of stripping individuals of due process and violating the principle of non-refoulement, the ban on returning people to places where they may face persecution.
Rising African pushback
African governments and civil society groups are increasingly voicing concern over the policy. Critics warn that smaller states are being pressured into accepting deportees without the legal frameworks or resources to handle them, while the deportees themselves are left stateless and vulnerable.
For the Nigerian activist now stranded in Lomé, the ordeal illustrates both the personal toll of the U.S. policy and the wider diplomatic strain it has created.
“I have a house in the U.S. where my kids live. I don’t know how they’ll manage while I’m gone,” he said. “If I go back to Nigeria, I fear I will be arrested. Right now, I’m just trying to survive.” he added.
The deportation saga is unfolding against a backdrop of shifting U.S.-Africa relations under Trump. His administration has adopted a hardline stance, repeatedly warning that trade and aid frameworks would be reassessed if Washington did not see “clear benefits.”
With the deadline for the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) now passed, the program is widely seen as having been effectively scrapped, stripping many African economies of a key preferential trade arrangement with the U.S.
The third-country deportation program mirrors this transactional logic. African states are being asked to absorb U.S. migration challenges in exchange for maintaining diplomatic favor or securing new bilateral deals.
For many Africans, the policy not only raises human rights concerns but also signals a broader recalibration of U.S. engagement with the continent, one where security and migration take precedence over development and long-term partnership.
