Free Movement Crucial to Unlocking Africa’s Market Potential – Julius Debrah
Chief of Staff urges African leaders to dismantle visa barriers to boost trade, innovation, and intra-African collaboration.
- Julius Debrah calls for the removal of visa restrictions to unlock Africa’s market potential.
- Entrepreneurs and young Africans continue to face travel barriers that hinder cross-border business growth.
- Free movement of people is key to achieving AfCFTA’s goal of a single African market.
Chief of Staff Julius Debrah has renewed calls for the removal of visa restrictions across Africa, emphasising that the free movement of people is critical to driving trade, innovation, and economic growth on the continent.
He made the remarks while speaking at the Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2026 held in Accra. The forum was themed “Empowering SMEs, Women and Youth in Africa’s Single Market: Innovate, Collaborate and Trade.”
Mr Debrah highlighted the persistent challenges African entrepreneurs and young people face when travelling within the continent, noting that multiple visa requirements continue to limit business expansion and cross-border collaboration.
To underscore his point, he cited the experience of former Member of Parliament Ras Mubarak and a group of young men who embarked on a Pan-African tour to campaign for a visa-free Africa. Despite the ambition behind the initiative, the group was only able to visit 31 countries and had to apply for 12 separate visas, with one application reportedly taking up to three months to be processed.
“Using today, we need to drum home the importance of making free movement on the continent so as to encourage the wider market we are looking for,” Mr Debrah said. He added that easing travel restrictions would enable entrepreneurs, young people, and small businesses to fully explore opportunities beyond their national borders.
He further noted that the push for relaxed visa regimes aligns with the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which aims to create a single market for goods, services, capital, and people to boost investment, economic growth, and intra-African trade.
Mr Debrah called on policymakers, regional bodies, and key stakeholders to prioritise the free movement agenda, stressing that it is central to unlocking Africa’s economic potential and empowering women, youth, and small and medium-sized enterprises across the continent.
