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The United States of America (USA) has confirmed the reversal of all visa restrictions imposed on Ghana. The news was first relayed in a social media post by the Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa on Friday night. He said US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Allison Hooker, directly communicated this to him at a bilateral meeting on the margins of the UN General Assembly. In a Facebook post on Saturday morning the US Embassy in Ghana confirmed that the maximum validity periods for all categories of nonimmigrant visas for Ghanaians have been restored to their previous lengths. “The maximum validity allowed for the B1/B2 visitor visa is again five years, multiple entry. The maximum validity for the F1 student visa is again four years, multiple entry.” According to Ablakwa, this breakthrough followed months of high-level diplomatic negotiations. It will be recalled that the US imposed visa restrictions on Ghana and other countries in July this year. The affected countries were slapped with a maximum three-month single entry visas and other limitations. In the specific case of Ghana, the Trump Administration said they were reacting to many years of visa overstays mainly by students. Story by Hajara Fuseini
