Benin waives visa rules for 31 African countries, may open up citizenship to Afro-descendants

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Benin Proposes Law for Recognition of Beninese Nationality for African Descendants​

May 14, 2024

Key Takeaways​

• The Beninese government is proposing a bill to grant Beninese nationality to Afro-descendants.
• Through this law, the government aims to restore lost links with the descendants of those who were expelled from the African continent as part of slavery.
• Candidates who want to obtain Beninese citizenship are required to provide evidence of their Afro-descent through official documents, authenticated testimonials or DNA tests.

At last week’s Council of Ministers of Benin meeting, a draft law was proposed to allow African descendants worldwide to acquire Benin citizenship.
The presented project aims to provide recognition to potential descendants of Beninese victims of the slave trade, a devastating crime that has deeply marked the history of Benin and Africa, VisaGuide.World reports.

African Applicants Must Provide Proof of Their Ancestry to Be Granted Beninese Citizenship​

According to the statement of the General Secretariat of the Benin Government, to obtain Beninese citizenship, candidates must provide tangible proof of their Afro-descendant ancestry, either through official documents, certified testimony or DNA tests.
The same also explains that once qualified, they will be issued a Beninese passport valid for three years, which provides visa-free access to 63 destinations worldwide, thus marking a first step in this recognition process. However, access to the final citizenship certificate will be conditional on residence in the country.
Through this bill, the Beninese government seeks to restore a lost connection with the descendants of those who were expelled from the African continent as part of slavery. At the same time, the law proposes to grant Beninese citizenship to anyone who can prove their expelled sub-Saharan African ancestry, opening the way for potential beneficiaries in countries such as Haiti, Brazil, Caribbean , and the United States.

The present bill initiated for this purpose aims to define the specific conditions and modalities according to which people recognized as Afro-descendants can acquire Beninese nationality by recognition.
General Secretariat of the Benin Government

Benin to Join 7 Other Countries That Grant Citizenship to Third-Generation Descendants​

The Beninese parliament is considering the draft law and is preparing to vote on it. If approved, this legalization will place Benin among a select few African countries that allow citizenship by descent beyond the first generation. As a result, Benin will join other African nations that grant citizenship to third-generation descent and beyond, which are as follows:

• Liberia
• Sierra Leone
• Sudan
• South Sudan
• Eritrea
• Rwanda
• Zambia

Article 98 of our Constitution provides that citizenship and civil rights are the domain of the law. Although Beninese nationality, by recognition, confers on its holder all the rights and obligations attached to it, according to Article 36 of Law No. 2022-32 of December 20, 2022.
General Secretariat of the Benin Government

This initiative follows the government’s recent decision to waive visa requirements for citizens of 31 African countries for less than 90 days.
Furthermore, the government said that the draft law presented to the National Representative once again reinforces the pan-Africanist policy advocated by the government since 2016 through the abolition of visas for all African citizens and reflects a strong desire for African integration