Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, announced on Saturday, September 27, that the United States has lifted the visa restrictions it imposed on his country last July.
Ghanaian citizens are now eligible for multiple-entry visas valid for five years, along with other enhanced consular privileges.
This measure comes a few weeks after President John Mahama announced that Ghana had agreed to accept West African nationals deported from the United States as part of the fight against illegal immigration, adding that an initial group had already been received.
Relations between the two countries have been tense, according to the Ghanaian head of state, who specifically referred to the increase in customs duties on Ghanaian products from 10% to 15% and the aforementioned visa restrictions. However, ties could improve thanks to this diplomatic breakthrough.
“I am truly delighted that months of high-level diplomatic negotiations have produced a positive outcome,” the minister said, as quoted by Ecofin Agency.
The U.S. has also imposed visa restrictions on other countries, including Cameroon and Nigeria. These nations were subjected to single-entry visas valid for a maximum of three months, along with other limitations. In Ghana’s case, the U.S. government had justified its measures by citing many years of visa overstays, mainly by students.
