The Ghana Embassy in Washington, DC, has conducted a working visit to Ghanaian detainees at the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centre in Pennsylvania to assess their wellbeing.

The visit, which took place on December 24, 2025, aimed to monitor how the detainees were being treated.

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"Ambassador Victor Emmanuel Smith has led a team from the Ghana Embassy to visit Ghanaians detained in one of the ICE detention facilities in Philadelphia", a post by the Embassy read.

It said,"The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, is actively collaborating with private prison companies, primarily the GEO Group, to operate detention centers."

Ghana's Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, received a briefing of the center housing eleven Ghanaian detainees, including one female, for various lengths of time, the longest being ten months and and the shortest, two weeks.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, is actively collaborating with private prison companies, primarily the GEO Group, to operate detention centers.
GEO Group serves as a critical, large-scale partner for ICE, expanding detention capacity to support immigration enforcement efforts.

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Detainees in ICE facilities, often referred to as “camps,” are non-citizens held pending immigration proceedings.

Conditions in these facilities are highly contested. Reports from detainees and advocacy groups highlight issues including inadequate hygiene, poor medical care, physical and sexual abuse, solitary confinement, and food shortages.

Some detainees, including asylum seekers and long-term residents with minor offences, have reported severe neglect and, in some cases, deaths in custody.

ICE, however, maintains that detention is non-punitive and aims to ensure individuals appear for removal proceedings.

See the post below:


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