Ghana has successfully positioned itself as the beneficiary of Nigeria’s puzzling withdrawal from the global investment table. As the next largest English-speaking country in West Africa with favourable travel and trade conditions, Ghana has quietly gone about its business. It has a simple and transparent visa policy. It is also strengthening its passport through a series of bilateral travel agreements, allowing for easier access to more destinations for its citizens.
Ghana’s ‘Right to Return’ campaign has generated huge interest among African-Americans and Afro-Caribbeans who want to visit or relocate to the continent. In 2018, Ghana issued roughly 80,000 visitor visas. Between January and September 2019, 750,000 visitor visas were issued, allowing more money and skills to easily flow into Ghana.
A relatively friendly regulatory policy towards foreign investment is also helping Ghana to reduce poverty.
After emerging from military rule at the turn of the century, Ghana has successfully established the rule of law and deepened its democracy. It also suffers less from internal conflict and unrest than its English-speaking neighbours.
Nigeria, by contrast, has a notoriously long and expensive visa application process and a surprisingly difficult path to citizenship.
While its $385bn economy with nearly 200m population should be the most obvious destination for investment and repatriation from the African diaspora, Nigeria has chosen to scare away investors with corporate shakedowns.
It also bullies its smaller neighbours with unilateral border closures, and generally thumbs its nose at the world.
This has created a perception of a country that is as unfriendly as it is poor, which Ajileye believes, can only end badly.
“In Economics, perception is everything. If people believe that things will get better, they usually do, and if people believe that things are going to get worse, they also usually do,” according to Ajileye.
– David Hundeyin is a writer, travel addict and journalist majoring in politics, tech and finance. He tweets @DavidHundeyin
Source: This Day
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