Kenya Drops In Visa Friendly Ranking

Kenya has dropped in the latest Africa visa-friendly ranking, Business Daily reported.

In the 2022 Africa Visa Openness Index (AVOI), Kenya dropped from position 28 the previous year, to position 31.

The drop was attributed to difficulty for businesspeople and holidaymakers from other African countries to visit Kenya.

Currently, Kenya requires visas from visitors of 34 countries in Africa, while those from 19 countries are welcomed visa-free.

Kenya has no visa-on-arrival arrangement with any African country at the moment.

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta had implemented a visa-on-arrival policy for all Africans but it was reversed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was also among factors that resulted to the drop of Kenya’s ranking.

“A striking discovery about Africa’s regional economic communities this year is how most rebounded from the pandemic, often fully reversing recent restrictions that impacted their visa openness

“However, recent changes in scores cannot always be attributed solely to the pandemic,” the report stated.

At the same time, 93 per cent of African countries have maintained or improved their visa process.

Two-thirds of African countries have adopted more liberal visa policies compared to six years ago, indicating that African countries are making progress in their freedom of travel policies.

The annual report is courtesy of the African Development Bank Group in collaboration with the African Union Commission.