The government of Rwanda has announced that it will allow Africans to travel visa-free to the country.
By this, Rwanda has become the latest nation on the African continent to announce such a measure aimed at boosting the free movement of people and trade to rival Europe’s Shengen zone.
The announcement was made by President Paul Kagame on Thursday in the country’s capital, Kigali.
Kagame says Africa has the potential as “a unified tourism destination” for a continent that still relies on 60% of its tourists from outside Africa, according to data from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
“Any African, can get on a plane to Rwanda whenever they wish and they will not pay a thing to enter our country” said Kagame during the 23rd Global Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council.
“We should not lose sight of our own continental market,” he said. “Africans are the future of global tourism as our middle class continues to grow at a fast pace in the decades to come.”
Rwanda joins the list of African countries that have removed travel restrictions for Africans once it implements it.
Other African countries that have waived visas to African nationals are Gambia, Benin, and Seychelles.
