Donald Trump has reinstated and expanded his controversial travel ban, blocking visas from 36 African countries and sparking diplomatic outrage across the continent.
At a Glance
A June 4 proclamation bars full or partial visas from 36 African nations.
Six countries face total bans; seven more face restricted entry.
Trump cites national security, citing an overstayer-linked attack.
African leaders and human rights groups decry the move as racist.
Chad retaliated by suspending U.S. visa services.
A Blanket Ban on the Continent
On June 4, Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation banning entry from 12 nations—six of them African: Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Libya, and Somalia. Seven additional African countries face partial restrictions, including Burundi, Sierra Leone, and Togo. As Al Jazeera reports, this policy could affect a total of 36 African nations, making it the broadest regional visa crackdown in modern U.S. history.
Watch a report: Trump Expands Africa Visa Ban—Global Fallout Begins.
Fear, Fury, and Fallout
Trump claims the ban is a national security safeguard, referencing a deadly attack in Colorado carried out by an Egyptian overstayer. But backlash has surged. The African Union warned of “severe diplomatic consequences,” and the Chadian government suspended visa services to U.S. citizens in retaliation. Oxfam, Human Rights Watch, and other NGOs have condemned the policy as discriminatory and counterproductive.
Crushed Aspirations, Lost Opportunities
The impact is personal. “The U.S. was our El Dorado,” one Togolese architect told The Guardian, after her American graduate admission was voided. African tech firms report project delays due to canceled visas, while universities across the continent brace for a dramatic drop in international placements. The Washington Post warned that Trump is “building a wall invisible to Americans, but devastating abroad.”
If fully enacted, the ban could sever academic, economic, and familial links between Africa and the U.S.—transforming visa policy into a geopolitical fault line.
