By Alhagie Jobe
The African Union has announced it will launch the continental electronic passport (e-Passport) during the forthcoming 27th AU Summit scheduled to take place in Kigali, Rwanda in July 2016.
This flagship project, first agreed upon in 2014, falls squarely within the framework of Africa’s Agenda 2063 and has the specific aim of facilitating free movement of persons, goods and services around the continent – in order to foster intra-Africa trade, integration and socio-economic development. The concept of unrestricted movement of persons, goods and services across regions and the continent is not new; it has been outlined in documents like the Lagos Plan of Action and the Abuja Treaty – an indication that the unhampered movement of citizens is critical for Africa’s development.
According to a media dispatch from the African Union Commission, the first group of beneficiaries will include AU Heads of State and Government; Ministers of Foreign Affairs; and the Permanent Representatives of AU Member States based at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
African Union Commission chairperson Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma described the initiative as both symbolic and significant, calling it a “steady step toward the objective of creating a strong, prosperous and integrated Africa, driven by its own citizens and capable of taking its rightful place on the world stage.”
In her statement during the commemoration of Africa Day on May 25, Chairperson Zuma said by issuing an African passport to the leaders at the July Kigali Summit, they hope to accelerate the free movement of people, goods and services. “I see an Africa with a changed paradox, from rich continent, poor people to rich continent, prosperous people. The Africa we want is one with a vibrant Economic Community, with nothing less than 70 per cent intra-African trade” she said.
Aspirations 2 and 7 of Agenda 2063, respectively, envision an Africa that is ‘integrated’ and ‘united’, and the introduction of the Common African Passport as an effort towards realizing integration and unity on the continent.
Accordingly, the AU also announced that countries such as Seychelles, Mauritius, Rwanda, and Ghana have taken the lead in ensuring easier intra-Africa travel by relaxing visa restrictions and in some cases lifting visa requirements altogether. “The scene seems to be set to realize the dream of visa-free travel for African citizens within their own continent by 2020.
Issuance of the AU e-Passport, is expected to pave the way for the Member States to adopt and ratify the necessary Protocols and Legislation with the view to begin issuing the much expected African passport” it concluded.
