Cuito – Visa exemption for citizens of several countries could contribute to the diversification of the national economy, by allowing greater attraction of foreign capital and intensification of commercial exchanges, according to the Home Affairs Minister, Eugénio Laborinho.
Eugénio Laborinho was speaking Wednesday in the city of Cuito, province of Bié, at the opening of the nineteenth Extended Consultative Council of the Foreign Migration Service, which takes place for two days in the city of Cuito, under the motto “SME, Betting on Human Capital and in Modernization to Better Serve”.
The official highlighted that the policy that exempts and simplifies the procedures for granting tourist visas to citizens of 98 countries constitutes an important milestone, because, in addition to facilitating the movement of people and goods, it contributes to the country's growth.
According to a presidential decree published in Diário da República, in October last year, citizens of countries covered by the measure are now exempt from tourist visas for a period of up to 30 days per entry and 90 days per year.
The list includes 35 European countries, including all that are part of the European Union, Russia, Norway and Turkey. The United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico are part of the exempt American countries.
Among the 14 African countries covered are Cape Verde, Morocco, Equatorial Guinea, Botswana and Rwanda, while the 11 Asian countries on the list include China and Japan, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, India, Singapore, South Korea and Timor-Leste.
The diploma also applies to 14 countries in Oceania, including Australia and New Zealand, and 16 states and islands in the Caribbean and Pacific regions.
The presidential decree also includes simplification procedures for granting tourist visas to citizens from countries that are not part of this list, directing diplomatic and consular missions to adopt a “simplified and unbureaucratic service” that guarantees the granting of tourist visas. within a period of less than three working days.
Tourism, according to the minister, has been, in recent years, one of the most promising economic activities in the world, generating jobs and foreign exchange.
This time, he requested the Migration and Foreigner Service (SME) to better master the work tools made available to it, in order to carry out professional and exemplary supervisory action, in order to guarantee rigorous and effective border control.
The fight against illegal immigration, document fraud and other cross-cutting crimes must also constitute strategic interests of the SME, to counter the massive entry of foreign citizens that harm the national economy.
On the occasion, the national director of the Foreign Migration Service, chief migration commissioner António João da Costa, asked participants at the meeting to fully discuss the proposed themes and present suggestions that would enhance the upcoming challenges.
The governor of the province of Bié, Pereira Alfredo, stressed that the holding of this council will define action strategies, which aim to discourage the inviolability of borders.
During the event, the preliminary draft regulations on the organization and functioning of migratory regions and the degree of compliance with the activities carried out in 2023 will be analyzed.
The movement of cross-border resident citizens will also be discussed, in light of the agreements to abolish visas in ordinary passports between the republics of Angola and Namibia and Zambia, regulations on the social fund for employees and the proposed regulation of the senior management council.
Multiple entry tourism/business visas and their extension, integrated information system, projects in the migratory field within the CPLP and SADC space, standardization of migratory acts within the scope of simplified projects are, among others, issues that guide the event.
The Minister of the Interior, Eugénio César Laborinho, took the opportunity to deliver two vehicles to the local management of the SME and presided over the patenting, promotion and graduation ceremony of 62 employees from the same body.
He also visited the works of the new Cuquema penitentiary establishment, the Criminal Investigation Service building, the Civil Protection and Fire Service barracks facilities, the MININT Integrated Services and the former facilities of the Traffic and Road Safety Directorate.AS/PLB/DOJ
