Burkina Faso Scraps Visa Fees For African Travelers

Burkina Faso says it has removed visa fees for all African travellers in an effort to facilitate the movement of people and goods into the country.

“From now on, any citizen from an African country wishing to go to Burkina Faso will not pay any amount to cover visa fees,” said Mahamadou Sana, the country’s security minister, following a cabinet meeting chaired by military leader Capt Ibrahim Traoré on Thursday.

African visitors will however be required to submit an online visa application, which will be reviewed for approval, the minister clarified.

The West African nation joins countries such as Ghana, Rwanda and Kenya, which have eased travel requirements for African visitors.

Citizens of West African countries can already travel to Burkina Faso without the need for visas, however this may change in the future because the country has pulled out of the regional bloc, Ecowas, along with its neighbours, Mali and Niger which are also under military rule.

Capt Traoré, a young soldier who seized power in a 2022 coup, portrays himself as a champion of Pan-Africanism, while often criticising the West and colonialism.

He is admired in the continent for his charismatic leadership. His popularity has been fuelled through social media, including many misleading posts intended to bolster his revolutionary image.

But Capt Traoré has also faced criticism for his authoritarian style of governance, his handling of dissent and the ongoing Islamist insurgency.