Tanzania Reviews Visa Policy for Nigerians
The United Republic of Tanzania says it is reviewing its visa policy for Nigerians.Nigeria falls under Tanzania's Referral Visa category, which requires special clearance or permission from the Director of Immigration Services in Dar es Salaam or the Principal Immigration Officer in Zanzibar.
Speaking with newsmen in Abuja, the Tanzanian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Benson Alfred Bana, said the review followed Nigeria's revised visa policy for many countries. He said there were significant reasons that made Tanzanian government resorted to referral visa arrangement for Nigerian applicants.
He, however, said the arrangement was under review just as other policies. "We are grateful that the Nigerian government reviewed its visa policy. We've studied the revised visa policy and we've advised our government to follow suit.
"The government is taking it seriously and I can assure you that within a short time, there'll be a change. The purpose is to ensure that we attract as many Nigerians as possible. "At the moment, we're ensuring that our policy and institutional arrangements are streamlined to promote tourism," he said.
The envoy disclosed that 3,900 tourist visas were issued to Nigerians in 2013. The figure, he added, increased to 6,176 in 2018. He said given the size of Nigeria and the urge Nigerians had for traveling, these figures were still low.
