Passport mobility remains the single biggest structural constraint on international travel for most of the countries on the African continent. While the Seychelles holds Africa's strongest passport at 24th globally, most African passports rank far lower.
Visa rejection rates for major Western destinations remain a persistent point of friction. Schengen applicants from Comoros faced a 62.8% rejection rate in 2024, the highest among African countries and among the highest of any nationality worldwide. African applicants collectively lost about $67-70 million in non-refundable Schengen application fees on rejected visa applications in 2024, 40% of the EU's rejected-visa fee revenue. And of the 39 countries for which the U.S. fully or partially suspended visa issuance, 26 are African countries representing 66.7%.
Source: Henley Passport Index 2026.
How often an African currency actually moves depends on its exchange-rate regime. Hard-pegged currencies such as the CFA franc that’s fixed to the euro, or the lilangeni, loti, and Namibian dollar's 1:1 peg to the South African rand, barely move day to day since their value is set by policy rather than markets; those currencies only shift during rare, historic political regime changes. Managed or basket-pegged currencies, like Morocco's dirham (MAD), drift slowly and predictably within a controlled band. Market-determined currencies like Nigeria's naira and Egypt's pound, can move sharply particularly when a country is mid-transition through a structural reform, as both Nigeria and Egypt have been in recent years.
Of the 17 major African currencies tracked by African Markets, a provider of financial market data, news, analysis and research with a focus on Africa, only four appreciated against the U.S. dollar in the first half of 2026, while thirteen lost value — including Botswana's pula, a currency usually cited as one of the continent's most stable.
January–June 2026
Figures show each currency's percentage change in value against the U.S. dollar during H1 2026, not the exchange rate itself. An x% gain means the currency strengthened by that amount relative to where it started the year, not that x currency equals 1 USD. Source: African Markets data via BusinessDay NG 2026.
Ghana recorded international spending of roughly GH¢4.0 billion (~$357 million), following the country's first nationally representative survey of international travel, covering same-day and overnight international trips. Same-day international trips are driven mainly by business and professional travel (33.8%) alongside visits to friends and relatives. Overnight outbound trips are dominated by visiting friends and relatives; nearly a quarter of all overnight outbound trips (23%) were taken to attend funerals, reflecting how central family and community obligations are to Ghanaian international travel patterns. The Ashanti Region recorded the highest number of same-day outbound trips across the year, while the Greater Accra Region — home to Ghana's main international airport — recorded the highest number of overnight outbound trips.
Top International Destinations from Ghana
Source: Ghana Statistical Service 2023 DOTS.
International travel from Ghana by volume is mainly to West Africa, overwhelmingly regional neighbors reachable by land. However, when looking at international travel from Ghana by spend, the highest-spending overnight trips were for business and professional purposes, concentrated in North America and Asia.
For travelers departing Africa, the Middle East's ongoing instability is felt less as a direct destination risk and more as a connectivity problem: Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi have long served as the primary transit hubs linking African airports to Europe, Asia, and North America, and disruption to that corridor ripples across the continent's international travel options. Following the outbreak of the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict in early 2026, Ethiopian Airlines, the continent's largest carrier, suspended service to 10 Middle Eastern destinationsSuspended destinationsAmman, JordanBeirut, LebanonManama, BahrainTel Aviv, IsraelDoha, QatarKuwait City, KuwaitDubai, UAESharjah, UAEAbu Dhabi, UAEDammam, Saudi Arabia, reporting estimated losses of $137 million in a single week; most of that network had been restored by early June 2026, though Kuwait and Bahrain remained affected by renewed strikes as of that update, and schedules continue to shift with little notice. Kenya Airways suspended Dubai and other Gulf routes over the same period, with most of its network back to normal by late April 2026 and Gulf service gradually returning under an extended ceasefire. RwandAir and Air Tanzania each suspended their entire Middle East service with no publicly available information on whether that suspension has been lifted. The disruption has had an unexpected side effect, with some African airports picking up rerouted international traffic as global carriers seek alternatives to the Gulf corridor, though African airlines' own dependence on Gulf hubs for onward connections remains a structural vulnerability industry analysts have described as a "Gulf trap."
Authorities recommend that travelers with any itinerary connecting through Gulf airports (Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, or nearby) consult their home country's foreign ministry travel advisories in real time before departure, and verify refund conditions and travel insurance terms immediately, as some policies expressly exclude coverage in situations of war or armed conflict. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued a Conflict Zone Information Bulletin recommending that operators avoid the airspace of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman through November 16, 2026; Gulf carriers have restored between 75% and 96% of pre-conflict operations as of mid-July 2026, the most current information available as of this briefing, but routings and schedules remain subject to change with little notice. Egypt, given its proximity and role as a regional aviation and diplomatic hub, warrants particular attention for travelers connecting through Cairo. See our Travel Insights Overview for the full regional picture.
The WHO declared this outbreak, the 17th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) caused by the Bundibugyo virus strain, a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) in May 2026, following its detection in Ituri Province. As of September 26, 2026, the DRC has reported 8,067 confirmed cases and 3,901 deaths across 63 health zones in seven provinces, including Dungu on the border with South Sudan, making this the largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded in the DRC and the second-largest of any origin ever documented. In late September 2026, the WHO reported the first encouraging signs of progress, with cases down about 26% in Ituri and 15% in Haut-Uele over the prior 21 days, but up 73% in North Kivu. Uganda's portion of the outbreak was formally certified over by the WHO on August 26, 2026. Unlike the more familiar Zaire ebolavirus strain, there is no licensed vaccine or specific treatment yet available for Bundibugyo virus, though supportive care has proven lifesaving when administered early. Travelers with itineraries touching affected provinces should check current guidance before departure. Several countries, including the U.S. and Canada, have implemented Ebola border measures and restrictions.
As of September 5, 2025, Mpox is no longer a WHO Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). However, outbreaks have continued, driven primarily by a more transmissible strain first identified in September 2023 in Kamituga, South Kivu province, in the eastern DRC. Since then, this strain has spread across multiple East and Southern African countries.
Madagascar currently has the largest single-country outbreak globally since December 2025. As of August 16, 2026, Madagascar has reported 3,436 cumulative confirmed cases and 22 deaths, with 75 of its 115 districts affected. Angola, Kenya, and the DRC reported the next-highest counts on the continent from July 2026 to mid-August 2026, though all far fewer than Madagascar. A separate, milder outbreak continues in Ghana, Guinea, and Liberia. Travelers with itineraries touching any of these countries should check current guidance before departure.
Malaria remains a risk across much of sub-Saharan Africa. Authorities recommend consulting a travel health provider about antimalarial medication several weeks before travel to areas with risk of exposure, and using mosquito protection measures — e.g. repellent, bed nets, and long sleeves — particularly in rural and lower-altitude areas.
Authorities recommend confirming that routine vaccinations — including tetanus/diphtheria, MMR, and hepatitis A/B — are up to date before any international trip, and checking destination-specific requirements — such as yellow fever certification, required for entry to many African and South American countries - several weeks before travel.
Most travelers from Africa have no reciprocal healthcare coverage when traveling abroad; private travel insurance is typically the only coverage available for medical care outside your home country. For travelers applying for a Schengen visa, proof of travel insurance with at least €30,000 in medical coverage is a mandatory condition of the application itself. Emergency medical evacuation coverage is worth confirming specifically for itineraries touching areas with limited medical infrastructure. Verify coverage directly with your insurance provider before traveling abroad, and check with the provider on coverage and limitations.