Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said a plan by the UK government to send asylum seekers to Rwanda was agreement between free nations, seeking to safeguard the safety of people and that it is wrong to call it a deportation, Reuters reports.
As reported, Meloni said this on Friday, April 28, while speaking to reporters at the Italian embassy in London after her visit to Britain, where she met UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
"I think that talking about deportation or suggesting that Rwanda would be a country that does not respect rights and would be an inadequate or unworthy nation is a racist way of interpreting things," she was quoted.
In April 2022, UK and Rwanda signed a migration and economic development partnership that seeks to give a dignified life to people who leave their countries to seek asylum in European countries.
Under the deal, some of these people will be relocated to Rwanda where they will be empowered through different initiatives.
In 2022, the UK received 45,000 migrants which reflected a 60 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
Italy is also facing growing pressure from migrants crossing the Mediterranean, with a surge in arrivals compared to 2022. Almost 41,000 people have landed in Italy so far in 2023, against around 10,200 in the same period last year.
In March, UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, visited Rwanda, where she signed the expansion of the agreement, and visited multiple projects related to the migration partnership.
She also inaugurated a Rwf60 billion housing project that will see up to 1,500 units built for the arriving migrants.
Under the UK-Rwanda migration deal, those who will benefit from the partnership will have the option of applying for asylum, locally, and be facilitated to resettle in Rwanda or to be facilitated to return to their home countries, having received support through the programme.
The UK will fund the programme, initially releasing an upfront investment of £120 million, which will fund invaluable opportunities for the migrants and Rwandans as well.
This includes secondary qualifications, vocational and skills training, language lessons, and higher education.
The UK will also support in terms of accommodation prior to local integration and resettlement.
According to the deal, they will be entitled to full protection under Rwandan law, equal access to employment, and enrollment in healthcare and social care services.
