We expect more visa waivers this year — Ablakwa
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has commenced processes to secure more visa waiver agreements with many more countries this year, after a similar agreement with Zambia, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has said.
“You know that visa waiver agreements remain my priority.
As Foreign Minister, I expect more visa waiver agreements this year. Even within the month of March, April and May, you'll be hearing some good news,” he said.
Mr Ablakwa spoke in an interview with the Daily Graphic after holding bilateral meetings on the sideline of the 39th AU Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, yesterday.
To secure more visa waivers, the minister said, the ministry was working to tighten security features and add more value to the Ghanaian passport to make it the most credible and valuable travel document on the continent.
“We want the Ghanaian passport to be the most valued passport in Africa, and one of the most valued anywhere in the world, and we are very much on course.
“I'm excited about the progress we are making, and I want to congratulate the team of diplomats I work with who are helping me in the negotiations and who are in the advance team, doing a lot of heavy lifting as we negotiate with all of these countries,” he said.
Mr Ablakwa indicated that the Ghanaian passport in its current state was arguably the most secure in terms of the security features with the chip-embedded status, but would from time to time undergo reviews to ensure it was even more secured.
“We are ahead of many countries; we will be in the top 10, if you talk to the experts who have analysed our passport,” he said.
Passport accessibility
The minister affirmed that the ministry had put in place stringent measures to ensure that foreigners could not infiltrate the system to acquire the Ghanaian travel document to protect the credibility of the passport and the effort to secure more visa waivers.
“I am also making sure that we improve security that our passports will not get into their hands because as we sign more of these visa waiver agreements, many people will be envious and will be trying to infiltrate.
“The bad guys will try to lay hands on our passport, though they are not citizens and are not entitled to have Ghanaian passports.
“So, be assured that we have improved the security, we have invested in AI tools and modern technology to make us ahead of what the bad guys will be trying to do.
It’s great times for Ghanaian passport holders,” he stated.
Adoption of resolution
The minister added that the country’s draft on the UN resolution to declare slavery and slave trade as the greatest crime against humanity had been adopted at the ministerial level following a fruitful Executive Council meeting.
He said the Heads of State were expected to also endorse the draft resolution during their meeting in the next two days.
Mr Ablakwa indicated that President John Dramani Mahama was expected, in a few days after the endorsement of the resolution, to head to the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM), where the President would address the CARICOM Summit at Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean.
