No visas for Namibians

The Herald, August 31, 1990

ZIMBABWE was the first country to react positively to a government request to abolish visa control measures for Namibian citizens, the Namibian foreign ministry announced yesterday.

The ministry said Namibians would no longer need visas to enter Zimbabwe.

The concession followed a Namibian government request to 23 countries to exempt its citizens from visa control. – Sapa-Ziana.

LESSONS FOR TODAY

• There is a growing number of people travelling between Zimbabwe and Namibia as the two countries continue to work on deepening their political and economic ties. This has largely been facilitated by the removal of visa requirements, which came soon after Namibia gained independence.
• The Zimbabwean passport ranks 134th in the world as of July 2023 according to VisaGuide Passport Index. This means that Zimbabwean citizens can travel visa-free to 40 countries in the world.
• In 2021 Zimbabwe became the first country to exempt all SADC Member States from visa requirements, taking the lead in the region to accelerate efforts to operationalise the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on trade.
• Zimbabwe is progressively reviewing visa requirements especially for countries with which it has strong ties.