New deal between the US and Uganda
ABI staff member Franzisca Zanker and Ronald Kalyango Sebba (Kyambogo University) analyze the new migration agreement between Uganda and the US for The Conversation. They ask: What does it mean for the broader context of the externalization of the US border regime?
In August 2025, Uganda signed a new deal with the US: The East African country agreed to take in asylum seekers from the US, especially those who can't go back to their home countries due to safety concerns. Officially, Uganda emphasizes its humanitarian tradition, but complex political and economic interests lie behind the deal. At the same time, global asymmetries and aid dependencies have a large part in Global North outsourcing of migration management to African countries.
While Uganda has a long tradition of protecting refugees, many of the 1.8 million refugees and asylum seekers that are currently in Uganda live under precarious conditions. At the same time, the Ugandan population's attitude towards migrants is slowly changing on both a social and political level. The agreement doesn't include any details on temporary housing for people deported from the US or on the refugee status determination process.
The article is available on the The Conversation website.