Dangote: Visa restrictions undermining African investment

President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, says visa restrictions and barriers to movement within Africa are undermining investment and slowing the continent’s economic integration. He has therefore called on African leaders to move beyond years of discussion and take concrete steps to allow freer movement of people, goods, and services across the continent. Speaking at the Accra Reset, hosted by President John Dramani Mahama on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Monday, September 21, Dangote questioned why Africans often face greater difficulty travelling within the continent than visitors from outside Africa. He argued that restrictive visa regimes make it difficult for African businesses and investors to explore opportunities across borders, while foreign visitors can often access African countries more easily. “The issue of all these visas, free movement of people, goods, and services, we have been talking about it for a long time, and we’re really tired of talking. So we need to act now and make sure we allow the free movement of people. “I have always wondered: why are we not allowing ourselves to visit each other? If I’m not going to have a visa to a country, for example, even in Africa, why should I invest? Why are you allowing a European to visit Africa much, much easier than me as an African? It does not make sense,” he said. Dangote acknowledged security concerns often cited by governments for maintaining visa restrictions but argued that such concerns should not prevent legitimate movement among Africans. He said Africa must take greater responsibility for its own development by strengthening cooperation and removing barriers that limit trade, investment and interaction between its people. “We need to  really get together on the continent. Then nobody will come and develop our continent but us,” he added. Source: Citi Newsroom (https://www.citinewsroom.com/2026/09/dangote-visa-restrictions-undermining-african-investment/)