U.S. lawmakers slam State Department for denying Nigerians, Ghanaians visas at higher rates than Asian applicants
Three U.S. lawmakers flayed the State Department under Anthony Blinken for rejecting a huge chunk of student visa applications filed by Nigerians, Ghanaians and Kenyans while approving those of their Asian counterparts by a margin so wide that the lawmakers requested a briefing.
Gwen Moore, Sheila Jackson Lee and Sara Jacobs sent a scathing letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken on January 24 to explain the wide disparity between the 54 per cent study visa denials of African students and 10 per cent rejection rate for the same demographic in Europe and less than 35 per cent in other regions across the world.
The letter validated concerns that the State Department deliberately discriminated against African students and favoured their Asian counterparts whose native countries, like Bangladesh and Honduras, did not fare economically better than the marginalised Africans.
Having found that seven out of 10 African students were denied study visas, according to FOIA data provided by the State Department, the lawmakers demanded an explanation from Mr Blinken.
The data analysis showed that 69 per cent of Nigerians were denied study visas in 2022, and in 2023, the figures increased to 75 per cent. Ghana’s refusal rate, formerly 48 per cent in 2018, rose sharply to 61 per cent in 2022 and then 63 per cent in 2023.
Kenyans took the worst hit of a 75 per cent refusal rate in 2022, which dropped to 74 per cent in 2023. In 2018, visa denials stood at 43 per cent.
The lawmakers wondered why Africans suffered more denials than Asians, particularly given that nations like Bangladesh, Honduras and Kyrgyzstan had similar economic situations with African states.
“If the 2023 student visa refusal data above is compared to countries with very similar per capita gross domestic products, it becomes evident that countries in Africa (such as Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria) have substantially higher student visa refusal rates than similarly situated countries throughout the rest of the world [such as Bangladesh (63 per cent refusal rate in 2023), Honduras (20 per cent refusal rate in 2023), and Kyrgyzstan (52 per cent refusal rate in 2023)],” the lawmakers stated in the letter.
Mses Moore, Lee and Jacobs reminded Mr Blinken that the study programmes benefit America’s national security and strengthen diplomatic alliances with other nations.
“The student visa program benefits the national security of the United States. It supports U.S. diplomacy by promoting people-to-people ties that create goodwill and mutual understanding,” the Congress members stated.
The three lawmakers rebuked Mr Blinken that no excuse sufficed for the unfair and discriminatory visa rejections dealt to African students in recent years.
“It is critical that foreign students from Africa are treated similarly to foreign students from other parts of the world,” they wrote in the letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken in January. “There should be no reason that the State Department data should reflect such disparities among similarly situated countries.”
Rice University confirmed the report and stated that African students who had already been issued admission were denied visas compared to students from other continents, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Ms Moore said she was proud to lead other representatives to draw attention to the disparity and seek the State Department’s explanation for why African students were denied the opportunity to study in the U.S. despite securing admissions.
“As chair of the Congressional Caucus on Ghana, I was proud to lead co-chairs Representatives Sheila Jackson Lee and Sara Jacobs in this effort to address and shed light on this disparity,” Ms Moore said. “America’s student visa admission rates must reflect that students from all parts of the world enrich our nation with their knowledge, talent, and skills. I look forward to receiving a response from State Department officials on this issue.”
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