Skip to main content

South Africa to grant Nigerians 5-year visas

President Jacob Zuma of South Africa

President Jacob Zuma of South Africa

The South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Lulu Mnguni, on Wednesday announced his government’s decision to commence the issuance of 5-year visas to Nigerian professionals, business people and other frequent fliers.

Mnguni also diclosed in Lagos that his government was now prepared to eliminate the difficulties usually faced by Nigerians when seeking South African visas.

The High Commissioner also said that his government was moving away
from having political diplomacy to more of economic diplomacy with
Nigeria.

“There has been growing concerns from both Nigeria and South Africa on
the issue of visas. There have been complaints by Nigerians on how they are treated when seeking visas.

“Our President has indicated that Nigeria and South Africa need to
intervene by making it easier for our nationals to have visas to our two countries.

“We came to an agreement that business people and frequent fliers
between South Africa and Nigeria will qualify for long-term visas of
two, three, and five years.

“We have totally moved from political diplomacy to economic
diplomacy. And to promote this new economic diplomacy, there needs to be a smooth movement of people between our two countries,’’ he said.

Mnguni said that he had made a proposal to his government for the
recruitment of more staff, so as to be able to promptly attend to the
demand of Nigerians for visas to South Africa.

According to him, Nigeria and South Africa’s inability to promote
people-to-people relationships is responsible for the uninformed tension between them.

The High Commissioner, therefore, said that it was imperative for both
countries to “unplug some of the irritants’’ that have undermined
their cohesion.

“We need a friendship that resides with our people. Nigeria and South
Africa need to criticise each other in a constructive way.

“We need to look at how we can unplug some of the irritants that have
undermined our cohesion,’’ he added.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Court grants Fani-Kayode N50m bail

Fani-kayode sandwiched by EFCC officials Justice James Tsoho of the Federal High Court Abuja on Thursday granted a N50m bail to former spokesman of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode. Fani-Kayode was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a five-count charge of money laundering to the tune of N26m. Fani-Kayode is the sole defendant in the fresh charges numbered, FHC/ABJ/CR/140/2016. The EFCC accused the defendant of diverting 26 million Naira allegedly received from the ONSA while Sambo Dasuki was in office. The anti-graft agency also accused him of handling the said N26 million without going through financial institution as required under the Money Laundering Act. The embattled former minister is already facing 17-count charge of money laundering before the Lagos Division of the court, along with a former Finance Minister; Nenadi Usman, Danjuma Yusuf and a firm; Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited. They were charg...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pope not involved in Colombian peace deal- Vatican

Pope Francis Pope Francis has turned down a request to play a role in the peace deal between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group. The Vatican in a statement issued on Wednesday in in Vatican City said that an invitation was sent to his Holiness in early August to appoint a representative to participate in the committee that selected the judges for the talks. The statement said that though Pope Francis supported the peace process, he, however, reiterated that he would not get involved in Colombian peace deal. It said that Pope was praying for the enlightenment of the hearts and minds of those who were called to promote the common good of the Colombian nation. A deal was announced last week, putting an end to five decades of internal conflict between government forces and the FARC rebels. The agreement, which needed to be ratified through a referendum in Oct. 2, would entail setting up a special court to grant amnesties or pu...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fall of Assad is a Blow to Russia's Prestige

The potential fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-standing ally of Russia, would mark a turning point in Moscow’s global influence, particularly in the Middle East. Steve Rosenberg’s analysis underscores the profound implications for Russia, which has invested heavily—both militarily and politically—in ensuring Assad’s survival over the past decade. This article delves into why Assad’s downfall would strike at the core of Russian prestige and what it could mean for the broader geopolitical landscape. Russia's Strategic Commitment to Syria Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Russia has been a staunch supporter of Assad's regime. In 2015, Moscow launched a military intervention that proved decisive in stabilizing Assad’s hold on power. This intervention solidified Russia's role as a key power broker in the Middle East and demonstrated its willingness to project military power far beyond its borders. Syria is not just an ally for Russia; it is a...
Post a Comment
Read more