With increasing mobility worldwide, with all nations becoming interdependent, passport power is crucial for international travel, diplomacy, and worldwide opportunities. In Africa, various nations have made tremendous progress to free their citizens to travel visa-free to many parts of the world. Here, we look at the strongest African passports of 2025, how well these access major parts of the world, including the Schengen territory, and how Africa has made improvements lately.
Top 10 Strongest African Passports (2025)
Based on the number of countries to which one can travel without a visa, the following African nations possess the most powerful passports, as reported by the 2025 Henley Passport Index:
- Seychelles – 156 visa-free or visa-on-arrival destinations (Global Rank: 25)
- Mauritius – 151 locations (World Ranking: 29)
- South Africa – 106 locations (Global Rank: 48)
- Botswana – 88 destinations (Global Rank: 57)
- Namibia – 81 destinations (Rank: 62 globally)
- Lesotho – 79 locations (Global rank: 64)
- Eswatini – 77 locations (Global Ranking: 65)
- Malawi – 75 (Global Ranking: 67)
- Kenya – 74 (Global Ranking: 68)
- Morocco – 73 locations (Global Rank: 69)
African Passports with Access to Schengen Space
Visa-free travel to the Schengen region is an important indication of a country’s strong passport. In Africa, there are only a few nations with this status:
- Seychelles: Holders of a Seychellois passport are entitled to visit the Schengen Area visa-free for short stays.
- Mauritius: Citizens of Mauritius enjoy visa-free travel to Schengen nations for temporary stays.
South Africa does not have visa-free access to the Schengen Area at present, but there are good diplomatic relations that make it easier to make visa requests and negotiate.
Most Improved African Passports (2016–2024)
A number of African countries have, within the last decade, considerably enhanced world mobility through increased visa-free travel by implementing policies and through diplomatic efforts. Those improvements include:
- Benin: Moved into position 1 from 31 on Africa Visa Openness Index.
- Ethiopia: Improved from rank 46 to 19.
- Sierra Leone: Went from rank 32 to rank 13.
- Nigeria: Moved up from rank 25 to 6.
- Gambia: Reached a peak of rank 1 based on progressive visa openness.
These nations have achieved important advances in promoting regional and international access, showcasing an increased emphasis on mobility and integration.
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Passport power is not just an convenience for travelers—it indicates the international status, economic power, and integration of a country. African countries like Mauritius and Seychelles are at the forefront of continent-wide passport power, and others are aspiring to increase it through strategic changes. As an increasing number of African states realize how critical passport power is, improvements in both the scope of travel freedom and cooperation internationally will be expected to expand across the continent.
