Ghana’s
President John Dramani Mahama on Sunday March 6 announced that the
country will begin to offer visas on arrival to citizens of all 54
African Union (AU) member states starting in July.
Mr. Mahama made the declaration while delivering his State of the Nation address two weeks ago.
Ghana’s
new visa policy is big news in Africa where, according to the African
Development Bank, only 25% of the countries offer visas on arrival to
nationals of other African nations. Put another way, it is easier for
North Americans to travel within the continent than it is for Africans.
Only the Seychelles is known to have an open access visa policy
applicable to citizens of all AU member states. (Ghana currently offers
visa free entry for citizens of 15 countries within the Economic
Community of West African States.)
As
part of his independence day speech, Mahama also advocated more unity
across the continent by urging his countrymen to learn French, the
official language of more than half of the countries in Africa. English
is the official language of Ghana, but it is bordered by francophone
countries like Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, and Togo.
Opening
its doors to other African nations could be crucial for Ghana. The
travel and tourism industry accounts for 5.9% of its GDP. Mahama did not
say whether the new policy would include business visas, but at a time
when foreign direct investment on the continent is falling, the country
could benefit from opening its doors.
http://www.rootsafrikiko.com/m/stories/view/Ghana-removes-visa-requirements-for-all-African-citizens
President Mahama