A new report by the Henley Global Passport Index has ranked Nigeria’s passport as the least powerful among the 15 countries in the Economic Community of West African States.
The Henley Passport Index is the original, authoritative ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.
The index is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) – the largest, most accurate travel information database – and enhanced by Henley & Partners’ research team.
According to legit.ng, the countries ranked include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte D’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Henley globally also ranked Nigeria’s passport below South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, Namibia, Malawi, Uganda, Morocco, Rwanda, Chad, Algeria, Burundi, and Congo.
The ranking which is based on citizens’ freedom of movement across different countries further revealed that the Nigerian passport is at 98th position out of out of 199 countries.
West Africa African countries passport ranking Here’s the list of countries in the ECOWAS region ranked by the number of visa-free locations they offer, as per the report:
Gambia: 68 visa-free locations
Cabo Verde: 65 visa-free locations
Ghana and Sierra Leone: 64 visa-free locations
Benin: 60 visa-free locations
Burkina Faso: 57 visa-free locations
Senegal and Ivory Coast: 56 visa-free locations
Guinea: 55 visa-free locations
Togo: 54 visa-free locations
Niger and Mali: 53 visa-free locations
Guinea Bissau: 52 visa-free locations
Liberia: 49 visa-free locations
Nigeria: 46 visa-free locations
Henley globally explains ranking
Speaking with Arise Tv on Friday, February 10, the Managing Partner Uk/Nigeria of Henley and Partner Group, Stuart Wakeling, described the ranking as very important.
He added.: “It is a very important ranking because it shows the ability of the citizens of that nation to guide you on how many countries they can travel to visa-free or visa upon arrival. “It is pretty much every single country on the planet and it analyzes destinations that passport holder country has in association with another country.”
Wakeling further stressed that the ranking is aimed at increasing the global mobility of people. “We are doing this for greater mobility across the planet for increased business opportunity.”
Nigerian government reacts
Anthony Akuneme, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Immigration Service(NIS), explained that the ranking is based on reciprocity for access to countries, Punch reports.
He further stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working to establish more favorable bilateral agreements, which may result in more opportunities for Nigerians to travel.
Also a former Nigerian ambassador to Singapore, Ogbole Amedu-Ode believes Nigeria will bounce back.
According to him, an assertive and consistent implementation of Nigeria’s war on narcotics and cybercrime would mend the country’s reputation in the global community.
