by nelly.esq
An airport encounter that I had the other day led to the president immediately changing the law in the country. And a historic win for all Africans.
Last Sunday I flew from Paris to Togo for the Biashara Afrika conference, a AfCFTA event to connect African business leaders and politicians. Now, as a Ghanaian ECOWAS passport holder, I should not have needed a visa for Togo. However, when I got to Togo, border control said that even though I was Ghanaian, because I flew from Paris and not Ghana, that I needed a visa.
Which is the most absurd thing ever.
That’s not how ECOWAS passports work. ECOWAS nationals should enjoy freedom of movement in ECOWAS countries. This means you don’t need a visa to travel. And it doesn’t matter where you travel from, it only matters what passport you arrive with.
So I’m arguing with border control. Literally going booth to booth trying to find an officer with some sense to no avail.
I was then questioned as to why my passport didn’t have a stamp from France. To which I explained that I entered and departed France on my American passport, not Ghanaian. And then they said not only do I need a visa, but I must use my American passport to enter the country, and I could not enter with my Ghanaian passport!
So I, an African, was not being allowed to enter an African country as an African. I was instead being forced to do so as an American.
READ: Africa: Ghana To Unveils E-Visa Platform to Ease Entry for Travellers
And the crazy part, is that I was there for an African Union conference! Which they knew.
At this point I was making a scene over how ridiculous the whole ordeal was. Everyone around me could hear and see what was happening.
Coincidentally, the Nigerian Minister of Trade @joduwole who was also attending the conference, was on my flight, and witnessed the ordeal. And there was a Nigerian/British man who was in the same situation, being forced to use his British passport. We had no choice but to get the visas on our foreign passports if we wanted to leave the airport. So we did.
The next day, during the Biashara Afrika opening ceremony, in which the president of Togo was in attendance, as well as other heads of states, and political leaders, @joduwole told the story of what she witnessed happen to us in the airport.
Sitting in the audience, embarrassed, the President of Togo responded that he would redress the issue by making Togo visa-free for all Africans. So that no African could ever be asked for a visa for any reason. Togo is now the 6th African country to go visa-free for Africans.
There was so much going on after the airport fiasco that I didn’t even have the chance to process it or figure out my next move. I likely would have sued the country in an ECOWAS court. But now I don’t have to. And I’m honored that my mistreatment led to a policy change that helps all Africans.
Thank you @joduwole for using your voice and power to share my story.
It was a loss for me, but a win for us all!
They definitely had the wrong one that day. Crazy thing is, I’m an immigration lawyer. So I definitely knew the law lol.
