04/12/2024
South Africa unveils 5 year visa policies for Nigerians to boost bilateral ties, tourism
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has unveiled streamlined visa procedures to ease travel for Nigerian business people and tourists.
The updated measures include the issuance of five-year multiple-entry visas and an option for Nigerian tourists to apply without submitting their passports physically.
Ramaphosa announced the initiatives on Tuesday, December 3, during the 11th session of the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission (BNC) in Cape Town, which was attended by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.
The South African leader emphasized the importance of these steps in fostering stronger bilateral ties and enhancing economic and cultural exchanges between the two nations.
“Our efforts to create a favourable environment included simplifying the visa process for Nigerian business people travelling to South Africa. Qualifying Nigerian business people were granted a five-year multiple-entry visa,” he said.
He reaffirmed South Africa’s commitment to strengthening economic partnerships and resolving barriers that hinder investment opportunities.
“As we marked 30 years of diplomatic relations, we saw a bright future for our relationship. Our strong bonds of friendship provided a solid foundation for more meaningful economic cooperation,” Ramaphosa said.
President Ramaphosa recognized Nigeria’s support in hosting South African companies while highlighting South Africa’s reciprocal openness to Nigerian businesses.
“We needed to remove the remaining constraints to greater investment and address some of the challenges faced by companies,” he said.
The president praised Nigeria’s efforts to improve its business climate, emphasizing the significance of these reforms in attracting investment from South Africa and other international partners.
“Our government continued its efforts to improve the ease of doing business in South Africa. We wanted to enable investors to operate, trade, and pursue opportunities across various sectors,” he added.
“We looked forward to seeing more Nigerian companies invest in South Africa.”
President Ramaphosa addressed broader development challenges across the continent, reaffirming South Africa’s commitment to advancing the African Union’s Agenda 2063 within the framework of the G20.
“It was the first time the G20 Leaders’ Summit would be held on African soil. We sought to galvanise support for the AU’s Agenda 2063 as we pursued an inclusive global agenda,” he said.
