Rwanda's president, Paul Kagame, said in the UK-Africa summit in London that Rwanda is considering waiving visa fees for Africans entering the country. Also to benefit are Commonwealth and Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) citizens.
“The Commonwealth is a community of values, with continued relevance for today’s world. More than one-third of its member states are African. These are the reasons why Rwanda chose to join in 2009. In that connection, we are soon considering exempting citizens of the Commonwealth, as well as the African Union and the Francophonie, from paying visa fees when entering Rwanda,” President Kagame disclosed, as reported by the state broadcaster, the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA).
From January 1, 2018, Rwanda started a global visa-free policy for all travellers in which all visitors could enjoy 30 days visa on arrival. However, citizens from some countries were required to pay a fee where applicable. The declaration read in part: “30 days visa upon arrival – Citizens of all countries to get a visa upon arrival without prior approval, starting 01 January 2018. Before that, only African countries and few others were getting visa upon arrival.”
Come June, Rwanda will host the 26 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, CHOGM 2020. Rwanda ranks among the top countries in the annual visa openness index publications.