The statistics show that African citizens who applied for visas to Europe lost over USD 100M in 2024. USD 59m was lost to the UK alone, making it
The statistics show that African citizens who applied for visas to Europe lost over USD 100M in 2024. USD 59m was lost to the UK alone, making it an interesting reading. African youth, due to a lack of employment and better remuneration, have decided to seek greener pastures in Europe in the last 5 years. Across the length and breadth of Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, 90% of the youth want to get out of the continent, leading to many visa applications and rejections.
Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema has called for the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK) to quickly refund African nations for non-refunded visa application fees following widespread rejections, labelling the practice as exploitative. The president was livid to learn that the rejected visa application fees are not refundable.
In a statement, Hichilema highlighted that African countries collectively lost over $70 million in 2024 due to rejected visa applications to Europe, with an additional £44 million ($59 million) lost to UK visa fees.
According to multiple sources, the continent has already lost almost USD50m in 2025 in visa application rejections.
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