Why is traveling across Africa so difficult for Africans? — Global Issues

Written by Busani Bafana (Bulawayo) January 23, 2025 (Thursday) Inter Press Service

He needs 35 visas to cross the continent he calls home, each one a bureaucratic hurdle and a reminder of Africa's barriers to free movement and trade.

“As someone who wants to make Africa great, I have to apply for 35 different types of visas,” Dangote lamented at the recent Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda. His words reflect the continent's deep frustrations as it grapples with the paradox of consolidating regional integration while battling closed borders.

Nearly a decade after African leaders envisioned a continent without borders, that dream has gone largely unrealized.

visa issues

According to Botswana's recently released Africa Visa Openness Index 2024, only four countries – Benin, Gambia, Rwanda and Seychelles – offer visa-free entry to all Africans. It became clear. Ghana joined the list in January, announcing visa-free travel for all Africans.

The Visa Openness Index, published by the African Development Bank and the African Union, measures how African countries compare to nationals of other African countries based on whether they require a visa before traveling and whether they can issue a visa on arrival. Measure how open you are. Some progress has been made since the first edition of the report, with several African countries implementing reforms to simplify the free movement of people between the continent.

The index shows that around 17 African countries have improved their visa openness and 29 countries are making progress in reforming the way they issue visas to Africans. In 28% of country-to-country travel scenarios within Africa, African nationals do not require a visa to cross borders. This is a marked improvement compared to 20% in 2016.

But the cost of doing nothing is clear. According to a study by the Economic Commission for Africa, intra-African trade accounts for a low 15% of total trade, compared to 60% in Asia and 70% in Europe. Opening up visas could boost intra-African trade and tourism, as well as facilitate labor mobility and skills transfer, boosting Africa's economic growth. For now, closed borders remain a stop sign for free movement in Africa.

Zodwa Mabuza, AFDB's Chief Regional Integration Officer, announced the 2024 Index on the sidelines of the 2024 African Economic Conference, stating that the visa opening was aimed at promoting tourism, trade and investment, not permanent immigration. He said that there is.

“This is the kind of movement that we are promoting, especially as we are promoting the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” Mabuza said.

prevention in the name of crime

Francis Icome, head of regional integration and trade at the Economic Commission for Africa, said borders were closed due to fears of illegal immigration, terrorism and economic disruption, but there was evidence that such fears were often exaggerated. He said that there is.

Mr Ikome warned that Africa's AfCFTA would be “dead on arrival” if Africans were not able to move freely across the continent.

“There is an over-securitization of immigration, and when we talk about immigration, we cannot discuss security concerns again, even though safety is an issue,” Icome said. “When a foreigner goes through immigration, they see problems before they even look at their passport. Immigrants are job creators. There are university presidents, accountants, and many other skills that immigrants bring with them.”

free passage paradox

Since the launch of the AfCFTA, the majority of African countries have not ratified the Free Movement of Persons Protocol, launched by the African Union in 2018 and signed by 33 member states. Only four countries have ratified this protocol.

Immigration researcher Alan Hirsch says some wealthy African countries have more secure borders, and some of the most open countries either don't expect immigration or can more easily control immigration. He emphasized that Japan is an island nation and a poor country. He said there was a need for trust between nations, but that it would take time and effort.

“The reluctance of some countries is due to concerns about the quality of documents and systems in some countries, concerns related to security issues due to the presence of terrorist organizations in some parts of Africa, This is related to concerns that the person is a disguised economic migrant and may continue to engage in illegal activities. Please do not leave,” Hirsch told IPS.

“A lot of progress is being made in African communities. Borders are frequently opened, both bilaterally and multilaterally, as the Visa Openness Index shows,” said Professor Emeritus of the Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance at the University of Cape Town. Professor Hirsch said.

Sabelo Mbokazi, head of employment, labor and migration at the African Union Commission, suggested countries that promote free movement need to be encouraged to do better.

“With these visa restrictions, who are we serving? Are we serving the public or are we serving the politics of the day? ? Are we serving the population or are we serving the popularity? Are we serving people all over the continent? Are they serving people or are they doing it for profit? These are the contradictions we see in Africa,” he said, adding that 80% of migration is within Africa and 20% is from Europe or elsewhere. Heading to America, he said Europeans who came to Africa had an easier time getting around than Africans.

Visa-free travel can be a logistical nightmare for many countries, given that some Africans do not have passports or are nomads. Africa is toying with the concept of the African Passport, which was launched in 2016. This passport is only issued to African heads of state, foreign ministers, and diplomats accredited by the AU.

“Regional passports such as the ECOWAS passport for the large West African community and the EAC passport for the growing East African community have recently been developed and are progressing very well. was probably too early,” Hirsch said.

Analysis shows that blocking the path of African travelers runs counter to regional integration aspirations, argues Joy Kategekwa, head of AfDB's Regional Integration Coordination Department.

“The paradox of integration in Africa is that we are talking about Pan-Africanism. We are passionate about this field, but visas keep Africans out of this field.”

Linked to the free movement of people is the insufficient implementation of the Yamoussoukro decision to liberalize air transport. Air connectivity in Africa is a nightmare.

While Hirsch acknowledges that opening Africa's skies will take time, he is optimistic that Africa can boost development through trade and immigration.

“In addition to the African 'Free Skies' initiative and the Protocol on Freedom of Movement of Persons, we have the AfCFTA,” he said. “All three initiatives were agreed in 2018. AfCFTA has shown some progress and could help pave the way for the other two initiatives.”

The stakes are high. The AfCFTA aims to unite 1.3 billion people under a single market and risks failing. With borders and skies closed, a visa-free Africa is a pipe dream.

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