Travel across Africa remains far more complicated than it should be for African passport holders. While the continent has made significant progress toward economic integration, visa requirements continue to represent one of the biggest barriers to intra-African tourism.

The adoption of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), signed in Kigali, Rwanda, in 2018 and entering into force in 2019, was a historic step toward creating a single African market and facilitating the movement of goods, services, capital, and people across the continent. However, despite these ambitions, the reality is that many African states still require visas from fellow Africans wishing to visit their countries.

The Price of Moving While African

Beyond the administrative burden of visa applications, there is also the financial cost. In many cases, visa fees are equivalent to several days or even weeks of income for ordinary citizens.

To illustrate this reality, below is the amount we spent on visas while travelling across the continent in 2025:

• Botswana: $25
• DR Congo: $50
• Zimbabwe: $45
• Zambia: $50
• South Africa: $126
• Ethiopia: $200 (business visa) / $60 (tourist visa)
• Côte d’Ivoire: €73 (approximately $85)
• Kenya: $0
• Rwanda: $0

In total, we spent $641 in visa fees for a single traveler in one year. This figure does not include additional banking charges, processing fees, or service costs, which can add between $0.50 and $2 per transaction. In practical terms, this amount is equivalent to the cost of a return flight between West Africa and East Africa.

A Tale of Two Passports: The KAZA UNIVISA

One of the most staggering experience we have encountered was our second trip to Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Botswana. Holding a Cameroonian passport, we were shocked to discover that we were not eligible to apply for the KAZA UNIVISA; a combined travel permit that allows visitors to explore all three countries for a flat fee of just $50 USD. Our travel companion, holding a Portuguese passport, faced no such obstacle.

Long story short, this single trip cost us $120 in visa fees alone, nearly three times more than what our travel companion paid for the same journey. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated case, but rather a systemic reality for millions of African travelers moving across the continent.

These barriers are costly, unnecessary, and damaging to Africa’s tourism sector. We can recall countless occasions when, while attending an event or spending a holiday in one country, we considered extending the trip to a neighbouring state. Yet the visa process often discouraged us from doing so. As a result, African countries lose potential visitors, tourism revenue, and opportunities for cultural exchange.

Progress and challenges for integration

To be fair, regional integration is already a reality in several parts of the continent. Communities such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) have made travel easier for their citizens through various free-movement arrangements. However, even road trips across some borders can still involve unexpected costs, delays, and discretionary practices depending on the immigration officials encountered.

What Africa needs now is continental rather than fragmented integration.

Encouragingly, progress is being made. Seychelles has long maintained visa-free access for all Africans, while Ghana implemented visa-free entry for all African passport holders in 2025, joining a growing group of countries embracing open borders within the continent. Uganda has also expanded the list of African countries whose citizens can enter without a visa, demonstrating a commitment to greater regional connectivity.

The future of African tourism depends on Africans being able to travel freely within Africa. A continent that seeks to increase trade, investment, cultural exchange, and regional solidarity cannot continue to maintain barriers between its own people.

We therefore advocate for a continent-wide visa-free policy for African citizens. Such a policy would encourage tourism, stimulate business opportunities, strengthen people-to-people connections, and allow Africans to discover the extraordinary diversity and beauty of their own continent before looking elsewhere.