Ghana has ranked 5th on the latest Africa Visa Openness Index (AVOI).

According to the document released by the African Union Commission in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB), visa openness refers to the ease with which travelers can obtain authorization to travel to and enter a country, subject to final determination by the destination country’s immigration officials.

“The more visa-open a country, the easier it is for a traveller to visit that country” the report indicated.

However, there are different degrees of visa openness. A more visa-open country on the index Implies that the country in question has a generally more liberal or relaxed visa policy for visitors, meaning that visitors either do not need a visa to enter.

Also its territory, or can obtain a visa upon arrival as opposed to a visa-restrictive country requires visitors to obtain a visa before they travel. In such instances, visitors may be required to obtain a visa from an embassy, a consulate, or another source.

With a score of 0.868, Ghana has been ranked number 5 following closely behind a unique rank of four other countries including Benin, Seychelles, Gambia and Rwanda who are all ranked number 1 on the 2024 Visa Openness Index.

The report notes that the year 2024 witnessed important changes in AVOI scores. Of 54 countries on the continent, 17 have improved their AVOI score over the past year, building on the 15 countries that showed an improvement in the last edition. Twenty-nine (29) countries’ scores remain unchanged while eight countries score lower in this edition.

“Today, visa openness across Africa stands at its highest level since we began tracking it nine years ago in 2016. So far, 39 African countries have improved their scores, a testament to Africa’s shared commitment to ease travel and foster collaboration across borders”. Nnenna Lily Nwabufo - Vice President, Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery at the African Development Bank Group noted in her remarks about the latest index.

Despite the progress this year, the African Union says 2024 AVOI equally reveals some challenges. According to the Index, Many Africans still face significant visa hurdles when crossing into neighbouring countries, not only restricting access to opportunities for curious travellers, but also constraining the dreams of young entrepreneurs, and professionals.

According to the AU Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development Minata Samate Cessouma political will be needed to ease the cross-border movement of persons. “However, several countries remain reluctant, and the emerging success stories will hopefully contribute to further positive momentum overall. There remains a long way to go, and much room for progress on visa openness to translate into deeper and more progressive commitments on facilitating the movement of businesspersons and service providers across Africa’s borders”.

This year’s report also provided updates on the status Africa’s experience with e-visas.it noted that even though the number of e-visa portals has grown from 24 to 263 over the past year, there are several shortcomings.

“While most of the sites offer a relatively straightforward process involving the uploading of biometric information of the prospective traveller, submission of a passport- type or self-taken photograph, and certain other travel information (such as details of the travel itinerary or confirmation of air tickets and accommodation), others are more akin to an ETA and advise that the e-visa should first be obtained before making final travel arrangements” the report stated.

It further explained that this situation includes confirmed air tickets and accommodation, as the process sometimes requires the collection of an e-visa at the port of entry. This is done using proof of the travel authorization or entry letter previously obtained through the destination country’s e-visa process.

In some systems, the e-visa is issued for self-printing or storage on an electronic device, while others issue a quick response (QR) code that facilitates the collection of the e-visa at the port of entry—effectively merging an electronic travel authorization (ETA) with a visa-on-arrival process.

Director of the Regional Integration Coordination Office at the African Development Bank Group, Joy Kategekwa, expressed her view that Africa will not achieve its development aspirations without regimes that promote mobility across the continent. Highlighting the continent’s wealth of historic attractions, she emphasized that visa restrictions should not hinder Africans from contributing to each other’s tourism revenues.

“Or industrialisation, as the continent looks to build the production houses to benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),it is imperative that people can move – not only to bring skills into managing such operations but also to take advantage of the jobs that will be created.

The African Union is hopeful of the coming into force of the AU protocol on the free movement of people which was signed In March 2018, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with a vast majority of African countries— thirty (30)—signing the Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons. The Protocol adopts a progressive approach to free movement, in that it seeks to liberalize movement in three primary phases: the right of entry, the right of residence, and the right of establishment