Mauritius, Benin, Rwanda, Guinea Bissau, and Togo are the five most open countries in Africa, in terms of mobility and free movement. This was disclosed in a report recently released by e-commerce platform Jumia.

The pan-African startup bases its ranking on the visa openness index published by the World Tourism Organization (WTO) in its third Hospitality Report Africa.

Here Is All You Need To Know

• The index is calculated by assessing the percentage of people affected by the absence of visa requirement, visa on arrival, e-visa and traditional visa.
• Togo’s openness index is 71.4 which enables the country to rapidly increase the number of international tourist arrivals.

UNWTO

Jumia, looking at the various figures, urges African governments to suppress visa requirement for fellow African citizens. Also, these governments should, according to the startup, work with the private sector to “launch campaigns to promote their local travel destinations and touristic offers to attract more regional tourists,” said Estelle Verdier, Jumia’s Travel Manager.

• In 2018, travel and tourism were among the main forces that drove the growth of African economies. 
• They contributed to 8.5% of their GDP, generating $194.2 billion. According to the 2019 Hospitality Africa Report, Africa is the second most dynamic continent, in terms of hospitality. 
• The sector recorded, according to the document, a growth of 5.6% (against a global average increase of 3.9%). It comes behind the Asia-Pacific region. 
• The number of international tourists who flocked to the African continent over the period reviewed was 67 million (+7%), spending there $58.5 billion (9.6%) of total exports.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world