AFRICA A LONG WAY FROM INTEGRATION

How is Africa supposed to grow and develop when it remains largely disconnected, its people alien to each other? 

According to the Africa Visa Openness Index of 2024, more than half of the countries require entry visas. African countries have chosen to retain borders that colonialists imposed even though those colonialists do not let their borders affect trade and movement. 

Despite the African Union adopting Agenda 2063 in 2015, an initiative to create an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa with a stronger continental identity, little has changed nine years later. 

As South African entrepreneur @VusiThembekwayo argues in this video, ‘You only lock the vault where there is money.’

However, a ray of hope exists in the Sahel, where the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) announced a shared passport for citizens of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, a significant step toward deeper regional integration. The alliance started with a mutual-defence security pact in September 2023, becoming a confederation with shared defence, economic and foreign policies on 6 July. It aims to unify Africa eventually.

Video credit: Wake Up BlaQ (YouTube) @wakeupblaq_ (TikTok)

Sources
https://www.visaopenness.org/visa-openness-in-africa-2024-findings-2/visa-openness-by-ranking/

https://sahellibertynews.com/2024/09/16/sahel-aes-strengthen-with-imminent-launch-of-joint-biometric-passports/