By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Ethiopia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have stripped Nigerian passport holders of previous privileges they enjoyed, including visa-on-arrival, e-visa and outright passport issues.
Turkey no longer allows Nigerian passport holders to obtain its e-visa, which used to be a seamless process enjoyed by citizens in the past.
In 2022, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) banned nationals of Nigeria and a few other African countries from entering its capital city, Dubai. Despite several interventions of the Nigerian government, the visa ban is yet to be lifted.
Though Festus Keyamo, aviation minister, said the UAE will lift its ban on Nigerians in October, nobody knows whether this will come to fruition.
Similarly, Ethiopia stopped issuing visa-on-arrival to Nigerians two years ago and has refused to reverse it till date.
Airlines have, since 2022, issued circulars to passengers advising that they obtain their visas at the Ethiopian embassy in Abuja before travelling.
Bolanle Olukanni, daughter of Ambassador Ayoola Olukanni, former Nigerian Commissioner to Australia between 2011 and 2015, recently lamented that her parents were denied visas because of the fear they would not return.
BUSINESS DAY