Citizens from 15 African countries will now have to pay a visa bond ranging between $5,000 to $15,000 in addition to visa fees to travel to the US, the Trump administration announced on November 23.
To justify this highly criticized decision, the US Department of State says it is only imposed on countries whose outstay rate exceeds 10% of travelers. As a reminder, the US administration has, over the past four years, strived to keep an eye on immigration, mainly from Africa. Last September, the US Department of Homeland Security proposed a draft bill to limit to two years the possibility of stay for some students from 59 countries worldwide, including 36 in Africa.
When the outgoing President came to power, he decided to limit travel for nationals of certain African countries; the decision was later extended to Nigeria, the continent's largest economy by GDP.
The new visa bond decision is imposed on Angola, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Libya, Burundi, Eritrea, Mauritania, Cape Verde, Gambia, Sao Tome and Principe, Guinea-Bissau and Sudan.
Considering the reason given by the administration for this decision, the likelihood that President-elect Joe Biden will remove it when he takes office is quite low. Let’s note that the decision is a 6-month pilot program that may be renewable.
Idriss Linge
MTN Innovation Lab hosts Africa HealthTech Export 2025 Bootcamp in Cotonou Event targets s...
Public Eye claims over 90% of Cerelac samples in Africa contain added sugar, averaging 6 g per por...
China says Premier Li Qiang will attend instead of President Xi Jinping The U.S. and Russia also ...
Carlyle is assessing whether it can buy Lukoil’s foreign assets worth about $22 billion. The...
Niger installs 1,031 km of fiber across five national corridors Project aims to connect with Beni...
Transnet unveils 200th Traxx 23E locomotive in freight fleet renewal 240-unit order with Alstom aims to modernize rail and boost capacity Project...
Notes appear atop chats, support replies, and customizable duration Meta says update improves visibility and ease of use via profile “About”...
Togo’s President meets Putin to deepen bilateral ties in Moscow Talks focus on security, diplomacy, and opening embassies Russia, Togo advance...
ACBF assesses Togo’s progress in implementing AfCFTA commitments Study highlights national strategy, awareness campaigns, and technical committee...
Orange Egypt and Qatar’s Qilaa International Group have partnered to develop WTOUR, a digital platform offering trip planning, hotel bookings, local...
Singita will invest $60m to build a 60-bed lodge on Santa Carolina Island and $42m in projects across the Bazaruto Archipelago. The...