Minister: This is what eTA has cost Kenya

Passengers at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on January 11, 2024.

Photo credit: Bonface Bogita | Nation Media Group

Complaints from travellers and a significant drop in Kenya's ranking in the latest Visa Openness Index by the African Union informed the latest decision to scrap restrictions for Africans.

The decision announced this week by the Cabinet, and which excludes Somalia and Libya due to security concerns, allows citizens of other African countries to visit Kenya without pre-travel authorisation.

This is aimed at advancing regional integration, supporting open skies policies, and driving tourism numbers, with the country targeting three million tourists by the end of this year, based on the steady recovery of the tourism sector in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano told The EastAfrican that exit interviews of travellers over their experience with the electronic travel authorisation (eTA), which Kenya introduced in January 2024, prompted her ministry to review the policy.

Before the introduction of the eTA, visitors from more than 40 countries, including several from Africa, were able to arrive in Kenya, get a stamp in their passport and enter without paying anything.

The new policy required travellers to apply and pay for an eTA at least three days before their trip to Kenya, unless they are citizens of an exempted country. The eTA fee is $30, valid for 90 days.

The policy faced criticism with some complaining that it was now more inconveniencing than a visa application.

Now, in the reviewed system, travellers will be permitted visa-free stays of up to two months, with East African Community citizens eligible to stay for up to six months. 

Until Tuesday's decision to grant Africans eTA exemption, only 17 countries were exempted. 

Kenya plans to implement a streamlined approval process with a maximum turnaround time of 72 hours for all travellers, the minister said.

“You recall last year there was a report on Visa Openness Index report 2024 by the African Development Bank and Kenya wasn’t ranked very well,” Ms Miano said, ostensibly blaming this on the eTA.

“We have been doing exit interviews at the Airport (Jomo Kenyatta International Airport) and, even if you looked at the social media, there seemed to have been inconveniences and dissatisfaction with the eTA,” she added.

“So, I prepared a brief informing the Cabinet that, from a tourist perspective, we think there is, indeed, an issue so, it was resolved that a team be put together and Deputy President (Prof Kithure Kindiki) convened a meeting on January 7, 2025.  We reported back on Tuesday and there were several recommendations that have been adopted. For example, exempting eTA for all African countries is a huge step.”

According to the minister, this policy adjustment aligns with broader efforts by the African Union and other nations, such as Ghana and Rwanda, to ease travel restrictions within Africa.

“The other major decision that was passed on Tuesday is that the eTA will allow multiple entry. Before Tuesday (January 21, 2025), even if you came to Kenya and left after two days and came again the next day, you would have to pay for eTA,” she explained. “Those who are required to have the eTA, when you apply, can take up to 72 hours, but you can also, at a fee, get it instantly. Still, ours is faster, convenient and cheaper, compared to Rwanda and Tanzania.”

Since 2016, the Africa Visa Openness Index has measured how open each country in Africa is to visitors from other African countries. 

The latest Visa Openness Index report 2024 released by the AfDB during the Africa Economic Conference in Botswana showed a significant drop in Kenya's ranking. 

In the 2023 index, Kenya was ranked 29th, but in 2024 it dropped to 46th place, a decline primarily blamed on the eTA requirement.

“We are looking forward to the next Visa Openness report, and we will ensure that the measures we have put are implemented meticulously to make Kenya more open,” Ms Miano pledged.

Related to the eTA is that Kenya promises to streamline the visitor experience at the airport.

Kenya’s performace on the visa index has also impacted the overall visa openness of the East African Community (EAC).  In 2023, the EAC was ranked second among regional economic communities, with better visa openness, but in 2024 it dropped to fourth place, partly because of Kenya's slower progress in opening up its borders with Somalia, the only EAC member state not yet included on the visa-free entry list by the AU.

But decline of the EAC's score, which stood at 54 percent last year, compared with 71 percent in 2023, was mainly due to Somalia’s entry into the EAC, which still requires a visa on arrival for all travellers.