Foreign travel ban: African leaders' favourite cost-cutting measure

Though short-lived in many instances, these measures continue to gain popularity in the content. Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera recently suspended all foreign travel by government officials, including himself until March.

Speaking during his national address on November 15, he explained that this is part of cost-cutting measures following the devaluation of the Malawi Kwacha.

All cabinet ministers who are on taxpayer-funded trips should return to Malawi immediately, he declared.

In October this year, the Kenyan government made a similar announcement suspending all non-essential travel for government officials to streamline expenses and ensure that taxpayer funds are used judiciously.

The government also announced restrictions on delegations accompanying high-ranking officials and suspended ‘non-essential’ travel such as conferences, showcase events, exhibitions, caucus, and association meetings. For official travel, the government imposed a maximum limit of seven days.

In August, Gambian President Adama Barrow suspended all foreign travel with an executive order suspending all overseas travels by himself, the vice president, cabinet ministers, senior government officials, civil servants, and employees across all government institutions and agencies for the rest of the fiscal year to reduce public spending.

These recent announcements mirror a recurring pattern in African history. President Hage Geingob of Namibia in January 2018 suspended the foreign travels of all ministers, deputy ministers, and political office bearers.

The suspension which was in effect till February, was aimed at controlling travel expenses of government officials. President Geingob taking critical visits only with a small delegation, urged government officials to follow his example.

Dating back to December 2015, Tanzania's President John Magufuli gained popularity after instituting the ban following his election. He considered it ‘shameful’ to spend huge sums of money while the country was facing a serious cholera outbreak at the time.

As a show of effort to cut wasteful spending in the presence of implementing an IMF aid deal, Ghana’s President John Mahama emulated Magufuli but instead, banned public officials from first-class air travel.

With dwindling tax revenues, rising budget deficits, and debt levels, these African leaders have identified avoidable expenditures that strain government funds. These measures, aimed at increasing efficiency and prioritizing national needs, allowed for the reallocation of funds to critical areas. They in turn demonstrated the government's commitment to responsible financial management and ensuring that taxpayer money is used efficiently for the benefit of the country.