Newly released documents have revealed that the European Union is strengthening its migration management partnership with Côte d’Ivoire, drawing sharp criticism from rights groups who accuse Brussels of outsourcing its border control policies to African governments. The documents, obtained by civil liberties organisation Statewatch and published on Thursday, detail ongoing negotiations and implementation steps under a project that observers say blends development aid with migration enforcement.
At the centre of this cooperation is MIGRET, a Belgian-funded initiative launched in 2024 to support what the EU describes as the “sustainable integration of returnees” — a term referring to migrants who have been deported from Europe. The project, which is expected to run until 2028, aims to reintegrate Ivorians expelled from EU member states by providing livelihood support, vocational training, and counselling services. However, its total budget and detailed funding structure remain undisclosed, fuelling calls for transparency and parliamentary scrutiny.
According to the documents, officials from the EU and Côte d’Ivoire met in Brussels in April to finalise operational arrangements for deportations carried out under their bilateral readmission agreement. The deal, signed as part of the EU’s broader migration cooperation framework, commits Abidjan to accept Ivorians deemed to be residing irregularly in European countries. As part of the arrangement, Ivorian security attachés are stationed in several EU member states to help identify their nationals — a process that rights advocates warn risks racial profiling and wrongful identification.
Human rights organisations have criticised the arrangement as part of a growing European trend to externalise migration control to third countries, often in exchange for financial or development incentives. They argue that such agreements allow the EU to curb irregular migration without directly addressing the root causes of displacement or ensuring the safety of those returned. Critics also say the partnerships risk legitimising governments with poor human rights records while exposing migrants to abuse and social exclusion upon their return.
The revelations come amid wider debate over the EU’s reliance on what it calls “migration partnerships” — cooperative frameworks that blend aid, trade, and security cooperation with migration management. Under this model, European funding for development or governance reform is often tied to a country’s willingness to curb migration flows and readmit its citizens deported from the EU.
Côte d’Ivoire, one of West Africa’s most stable economies and a key regional partner for the EU, has in recent years received substantial European support for border management, job creation, and reintegration programmes aimed at discouraging irregular migration. The country is considered strategically important because of its role as both a point of origin and transit for West African migrants attempting to reach Europe via North Africa.
However, campaigners argue that the approach effectively shifts Europe’s migration problem onto African governments while overlooking the socio-economic and political dynamics driving migration. They warn that deportees often return to precarious conditions, facing unemployment, social stigma, or renewed attempts to migrate. Many also express concern that the partnership allows European authorities to sidestep accountability for the human rights implications of their migration policies.
Statewatch, which monitors EU internal security and justice policies, noted that the documents highlight an increasing convergence between European border control and development cooperation. “This growing linkage risks transforming aid into a tool of migration deterrence rather than poverty reduction,” the group said, calling for democratic oversight of such agreements.
Migration experts say the EU’s deals with African states — including similar frameworks with Niger, Tunisia, and Mauritania — reflect a broader geopolitical strategy to manage migration beyond European borders. Yet, they also expose the contradictions in Europe’s human rights rhetoric, especially as Brussels continues to criticise countries for poor governance while engaging them in restrictive migration enforcement.
While the EU argues that projects like MIGRET promote “dignified returns” and sustainable reintegration, rights groups maintain that the approach remains heavily security-oriented. They stress that without adequate safeguards, independent monitoring, and community-based reintegration efforts, such initiatives risk deepening marginalisation and fuelling resentment among returnees.
The controversy surrounding the EU–Côte d’Ivoire partnership underscores the ongoing tension between Europe’s domestic political pressures to curb migration and its international obligations to uphold human rights. As Europe prepares for upcoming migration policy reviews and funding cycles, campaigners are urging the European Parliament and national legislatures to scrutinise the growing use of development aid as leverage for deportation cooperation.
For now, the MIGRET project continues quietly, framed by officials as a model for “mutually beneficial cooperation.” But for many in the human rights community, it symbolises a troubling shift — one in which Europe’s migration management increasingly takes place far from its own borders, with consequences borne most heavily by those it seeks to send back.
