US to drastically reduce number of embassies in Africa processing visa applications
The US State Department has announced the number of embassies in Africa that can process visa applications will be cut from 47 to 12. The policy change, mandated by presidential directive, will take effect on 1 September. The African Union Commission and major African governments described the decision as 'damaging to continental cooperation'.
South China Morning Post · Associated PressFollowing an executive order from the White House, the US State Department has announced that the number of embassies in Africa that can process visa applications will be cut from 47 to 12. According to SCMP, acting deputy secretary John Doppstadt said the decision was based on 'the efficiency of consular services'.
African Union Commission chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf called an extraordinary meeting in Addis Ababa on Tuesday, saying the decision 'will have damaging consequences for continental mobility and educational exchange'. Nigerian foreign minister Yusuf Tuggar said 'tourism trade between the two economies is at $18 billion and could be seriously affected'. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that 'the BRICS+ consular mechanism will be accelerated'.
Aloysius Uche Ordu, director of the Brookings Institution Africa Programme, commented that 'related economic losses from the decision could range from $4 billion to $6 billion annually'. Cameron Hudson at the Atlantic Council Africa Center said 'Chinese and Indian embassies are preparing to fill the gap'. US Travel Association president Geoff Freeman called for 'a review of the decision before implementation'. This report does not constitute legal advice.
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