2019 Findings: Top 10/20 scoring countries
A closer look at visa openness by category in the top 10 and 20 scoring countries: no visa, visa on arrival, visa required*
The top 10 and top 20 countries continued to improve their average visa openness scores in 2019, as more countries adopted liberal access policies for other Africans. At the same time, 85% of the top 20 countries are also the most open African countries to global visitors. Over half of the top 20 countries hold the most favourable passports for African travel, suggesting that more liberal policies can promote their own citizens’ ease to travel.
Close to half or over half of the top 20 countries in the Index are champions of the continent’s regional integration milestones, including the African Continental Free Trade Area, the Single African Air Transport Market and the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons in Africa.
Average Visa Openness scores , 2019
Highlights
- Seychelles and Benin are the top performing countries, offering visa-free access to all Africans.
- One new country from East Africa, Ethiopia, entered the top 20 most visa-open countries.
- Average score for the top 10 countries is 0.882 (up from 0.878 in 2018, 0.853 in 2017, and 0.861 in 2016).
- Average score for the top 20 countries is 0.824 (up from 0.807 in 2018, 0.768 in 2017, and 0.734 in 2016).
- 17 out of the top 20 most open African countries for African travellers are also in the top 20 least restrictive African destinations for global travellers.23
- 11 out of the top 20 countries hold the most favourable passports to travel across Africa.
