The United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to implement a sweeping freeze on immigration from third-world countries, a move that is expected to impact several African countries.
Trump, on Friday, November 28, linked immigration to a wide range of social and economic challenges that he claimed immensely affected the lives of US citizens.
He said that soon, he would approve changes to the country's immigration policy, stopping unnecessary travel by foreigners, particularly those from underdeveloped nations, to the US.
"I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden admissions," Trump said.
"I will remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our country, and end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our country," he added.
Africa is considered the only continent in the world with the largest number of countries categorised as underdeveloped or developing nations, all consolidated under the term, 'Third-World.'
In East Africa, Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Somalia are considered third world while Kenya is considered a developing nation, with immense potential of becoming a second world nation.
Thus, Kenya cannot be explicitly considered a third-world nation because it is not a low-income country. It is, however, not clear whether it will be affected by Trump's latest declaration.
While the move is yet to be enacted, Trump’s proposed immigration measures would require prior approval from Congress before they are formally implemented.
In his statement, the US President also took a swipe at Somalians living in the US, accusing them of causing widespread disorder in the country.
He specifically directed his criticism towards Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Representative Ilhan Omar, who he claimed were behind what he described as 'Somalia gangs' in the US.
"As an example, hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia are completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota. Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for “prey” as our wonderful people," Trump stated.
