Africa Proposes Its Own Version Of EU Passport

First look at the new AU diplomatic passports. Photo: Facebook.

The African Union (AU) has launched a pan-African passport that allows travelers to move freely across the continent.  

Like the European Union, the AU allow citizens of member states to use biometric passports when traveling, giving them the option of using automated gates instead of immigration counters at customs.  

Seychelles, Mauritius, Rwanda and Ghana took the lead on the initiative, which had been in the works since 2014. The AU hopes the move will lead to visa-free travel for all African citizens by 2020.  

AU heads of states, ministers of foreign affairs and permanent representatives of AU member states based at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia will be the first ones to receive the e-passport later this month.  

Though there are still some doubts as to whether or not the continent can successfully do it. .  

Only 13 of the 54 offer the e-passports as an option at the moment. Those countries would have to install the e-passport system in airports and at passports centers.  

A number of African countries also currently require visas for citizens from other African countries to come in, something that isn’t required for counties outside of Africa (Americans, for example, can travel to South Africa for 30 days without applying for a visa). Those restrictions would have to be lifted for the AU-passport to take hold.