Liberia has agreed to receive up to 1,200 people deported from the United States who are not Liberian citizens, with the first group expected to arrive this week, according to the government.
An initial group of 20 deportees is scheduled to arrive in the West African country on Thursday, the Liberian government said in a statement on Tuesday.
The agreement is the latest arrangement between the administration of US President Donald Trump and an African government to receive migrants whom Washington says it cannot legally deport directly to their countries of origin.
Many of those transferred under such agreements have been granted protection from repatriation by US immigration judges after establishing that they could face torture, persecution or other serious abuses if returned home.
The US government has defended the third-country deportation programme as lawful. Rights groups and immigration advocates, however, have criticised the lack of transparency surrounding the deals and raised concerns that some deportees could eventually be sent back to countries where they face danger.
Liberia said those it receives will include nationals of African and Western Hemisphere countries who have been medically cleared for travel.
The government added that some deportees may choose to apply for asylum in Liberia.
The agreement could see Liberia receive as many as 1,200 third-country deportees over the next year.
Several other African countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Ghana and Sierra Leone, have also agreed to accept third-country deportees from the United States as Washington expands its immigration enforcement strategy abroad.