African countries are stuck on the free movement of people: how to break the logjam

The author examines why most African countries have failed to ratify the 2018 Free Movement of Persons protocol despite its potential to boost trade, investment, and living standards. While small or poorer nations like Benin and Seychelles have adopted liberal visa policies, larger and wealthier states remain hesitant due to fears of economic competition and xenophobic political mobilization. To break this logjam, the author suggests clarifying the implementation roadmap, linking free movement to free trade processes, improving civil registration and identity systems, and encouraging progress through smaller regional or ad hoc groupings.

• Despite over 30 countries signing the Free Movement of Persons protocol in January 2018, full ratification has been limited to only four states: Rwanda, Niger, São Tomé and Principe, and Mali.
• There is a disparity in border openness based on national wealth and size; smaller or poorer countries are often the most liberal, while larger and richer African nations are the slowest to open their borders.
• Resistance to the protocol in larger, wealthier countries is driven by sensitivities regarding citizens' fears that foreigners will seize economic opportunities, a sentiment often exploited by populist politicians in unequal societies.
• Implementation is hindered by technical deficiencies in home countries, specifically inadequate civil registration and identity documentation systems, which prevent host countries from verifying the status of migrants.
• To accelerate progress, the author recommends clarifying the implementation roadmap, linking free movement to free trade, and utilizing regional or ad hoc groupings to move forward ahead of the rest of the continent.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2022). African countries are stuck on the free movement of people: how to break the logjam. https://saiia.org.za/research/african-countries-are-stuck-on-the-free-movement-of-people-how-to-break-the-logjam/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. African countries are stuck on the free movement of people: how to break the logjam. 2022. https://saiia.org.za/research/african-countries-are-stuck-on-the-free-movement-of-people-how-to-break-the-logjam/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=African countries are stuck on the free movement of people: how to break the logjam |date=20 January 2022 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/african-countries-are-stuck-on-the-free-movement-of-people-how-to-break-the-logjam/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2022african, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{African countries are stuck on the free movement of people: how to break the logjam}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2022}, month = jan, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/african-countries-are-stuck-on-the-free-movement-of-people-how-to-break-the-logjam/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }