Calls for visa-free Africa gain momentum

Calls for African countries to relax or waive visa requirements grew stronger this week with President Paul Kagame and a host of other high-level African leaders saying that would significantly help fast-track the continent’s socioeconomic development. Speaking during a panel discussion dubbed ‘The Africa We Want’ at the ongoing 49th Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank in Kigali, on Wednesday, the leaders said free movement of African nationals and goods across the continent would boost national and continental growth agendas. President Kagame said that despite Africa’s numerous resources, disunity and conflicts continue to hold the continent back, thus making it impossible for Africa to occupy its rightful place on the world stage. “Why is it that even with all these natural and mineral resources in Africa, we still have poverty? We need to open up our borders more to trade and also invest in education and health, which are the two key areas that have been largely ignored,” Kagame said. Also on the panel was the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and the Nigerian Minister for Finance Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and the AfDB president Dr Donald Kaberuka. “The fragmentation of the regional markets has been a real obstacle to economic development – but in Rwanda, we have opened up our borders and have attracted what we may have lacked,” Kagame said, adding that Rwanda has attracted skills that were previously in short supply as a result of the relaxed migration policy. Since January 2013, all Africans travelling to Rwanda get visas at the point of entry with the government saying that the decision has paid dividends. In recent weeks, Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya have also significantly eased movement of their citizens across their respective borders, with citizens now able to travel using national IDs or voters and students cards. Kagame also called for what he called a dignified Africa, but said concrete actions needed to be taken to make that happen. Dlamini–Zuma said Africans should not dwell much on the continent’s dark history but instead embark on good economic policies that shape a brighter future. “More should be spent on research and innovation to advance ideas developed in Africa, and we should share them throughout the continent. Vision 2063 emphasises that we should not concentrate on boundaries – and this is paramount for massive development throughout Africa.” In the Kigali meetings, the nearly 3000 delegates have deliberated on the best ways through which Africa can achieve its aspirations over the next fifty years – an agenda that comes as the pan-African Bank marks its fifty years of existence. During the panel discussion, Dr Kaberuka praised the East African region as a model for integration on the African continent and urged other regions to take similar steps. “The dream of a prosperous Africa will only be achieved if the integration and creation of a single market for Africa is put in place.” He called for an African passport to ease movement and fast track integration of Africans across the continent. Earlier in the day, Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto had also urged African governments to actively promote regional integration, citing the benefits that come with opening up borders.

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Calls for visa-free Africa gain momentum