The United States (US) government, under President Donald Trump, is considering fresh travel restrictions that could affect Nigeria and dozens of other countries.
According to The Washington Post, a confidential memo signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlines a proposal to impose visa limitations or outright entry bans on nationals from 36 countries, unless they comply with new standards set by the US State Department within 60 days.
This marks a significant expansion of earlier proposals that targeted travel from select nations.
The latest document suggests the administration may move to enforce broader visa sanctions unless the countries in question demonstrate reforms in document verification and identity security systems.
“The new list includes Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
“The memo identified varied benchmarks that, in the administration’s estimation, these countries were failing to meet. Some countries had ‘no competent or cooperative central government authority to produce reliable identity documents or other civil documents,’ or they suffered from widespread government fraud.”
Other countries under review include Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Bhutan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Syria, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.
The listed countries are expected to submit an initial compliance plan to the US State Department by Wednesday, detailing steps to meet the new requirements.
Back in March, the Trump administration had floated a similar travel ban proposal involving 43 nations, though Nigeria was not among them at the time. Those nations were grouped into three categories: red, orange, and yellow. The red group faced complete travel bans, the orange group had visa access heavily restricted, and the yellow group was given a 60-day deadline to resolve specific concerns.
If implemented, this new measure could have far-reaching implications for travel and diplomatic relations between the affected countries and the United States
