Imagine having a passport that will allow visa-free access to all 54 countries in Africa.
The African Union is set to unveil a common passport that will grant access to an African to all the countries without the need to get a visa.
This common passport is an electronic passport that will be unveiled at the AU summit in Kigali, Rwanda, later this month. 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.
The Union expects to distribute the passports to all African citizens by 2018.
The passports represent a key plank of the Agenda 2063 action plan, which emphasizes the need for greater continental integration, drawing on the popular vision of Pan-African unity. Freedom of movement has been a longstanding priority among member states, as enshrined in previous agreements such as the 1991 Abuja Treaty.
