Africa's wealthiest individual requires 35 visas for venturing across Africa, surpassing the number needed by a European tourist.
Although conducting business in various countries, Aliko Dangote, a Nigerian, alleges he encounters more obstacles navigating Africa than European passport holders ever face.
"As an investor and someone striving to make Africa great, I must obtain 35 visas for my passport," Dangote declared during the recent Africa CEO Forum in Kigali.
"I truly don't possess the time to drop off my passport at embassies to secure a visa," he continued with audience laughter.
Dangote's visa struggles coincide with a renewed debate on the inconveniences of intra-African travel for Africans.
It's particularly infuriating for many Africans that European passports from former colonizers have more visa-free access to Africa than those from several African nations. Dangote highlighted this at the conference, remarking to the French executive next to him: "I can assure you that Patrick (Pouyanné, CEO of Total Energies) doesn't require 35 visas on a French passport, hence his more extensive mobility in Africa."
67-year-old entrepreneur Dangote commended Rwanda, which abolished visas for all African citizens in 2023. Benin, The Gambia, and Seychelles also offer visa-free access to all continental travelers.
However, numerous African countries still mandate visas from other African citizens, frequently involving unpleasant, discriminatory, and exorbitant charges.
"Mortifying experience"
Nigerian travel filmmaker Tayo Aina describes being compelled to provide a stool sample in front of an Ethiopian immigration officer upon arriving in Addis Ababa in April 2021.
"It was my most offensive experience while traveling within Africa," he informed CNN from London. He has also been detained at airports in Kenya and South Africa due to his Nigerian passport.
This year, Aina purchased a passport from Saint Kitts and Nevis for $150,000 to alleviate travel restrictions. “Sometimes you visit a country and it is no longer visa-on-arrival. There are instances where people are deported upon landing because of policy changes implemented mid-flight,” the 31-year-old YouTuber stated.
The African Union has outlined a goal of removing "barriers to Africans' ability to travel, work, and live within their own continent by transforming restrictive laws and promoting visa-free travel." However, execution has been sluggish. Free movement within the continent is crucial for the African Continental Free Trade Area, but action has yet to align with the commitment.
The apprehension of permanent migration is one reason why African nations impose visa restrictions on fellow Africans, migration researcher Alan Hirsch informed CNN.
"There's a fear in wealthier African countries that individuals from impoverished nations could be seeking opportunities to permanently relocate there," explains Hirsch. "Many Africans cross borders undocumented, and we don't have a thorough record of that. Certain countries worry about individuals requesting asylum and then evading detection."
The retired University of Cape Town professor leads a migration study program at the New South Institute think tank in Johannesburg. He posits that the integrity of passport and visa systems—especially in poorer African countries—has impeded Africans' mobility. "People have devised illegal means of obtaining passports," he remarked," such as someone pretending to be Burundian without actually hailing from that country."
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Despite being Africa's wealthiest individual, Aliko Dangote still needs to obtain 35 visas for his travels within Africa, highlighting the challenging intra-continental travel for Africans.
This issue extends beyond business elites, as travel filmmaker Tayo Aina had a humiliating experience with visa requirements in Ethiopia and opted to purchase a foreign passport for easier travel.
Source: edition.cnn.com
