Malawians will face a travel ban to the United States (US) if the Malawi Government fails to address security and vetting concerns within 60 days.
The development comes two months after US President Donald Trump on January 20 2025 issued an executive order intensifying security vetting of foreigners seeking admission to the US.
According to the New York Times, Malawi appears on a ‘yellow list’ which gives affected countries 60 days to address the security and vetting issues, failing which countries in that category are moved into either a red list or orange list category.
These two categories mean either travellers to the US will be effectively banned or their visas will be sharply restricted. But this is a draft proposal, with US government sources indicating that it might be reviewed at a later stage.
Reported the New York Times: “The draft proposal, which has been under review by US embassies, security specialists and intelligence agencies, is part of Trump’s broader efforts to reinstate and expand travel restrictions, a signature policy of his first term.”
Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu, who is the official government spokesperson, was yet to respond to our questionnaire yesterday and neither did he pick up our calls.
Malawi joins 21 other countries—including Cameroon, Liberia, and Zimbabwe—that have been moved onto more severe travel restriction lists if they do not comply with US demands.
According to the New York Times, the US is primarily targeting nations with alleged deficiencies in sharing traveller information, inadequate passport security measures, or involvement in selling citizenship to people from already banned countries.
If Malawi fails to meet the US security expectations within the 60 days, it could be added to the “orange” or “red” list, which would impose stricter visa policies.
Countries on the orange list face restricted travel, with only select affluent business travellers allowed entry, while those on the red list would face outright bans.
Trump’s January 20 2025 executive order revived and expanded his earlier travel bans, which were initially blocked by the US courts before a revised version was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2017.
The Trump administration argues that the restrictions are necessary for national security. But critics, including former President Joe Biden, have condemned and described them as discriminatory.
Malawi’s placement on the list comes at a time when the country has been striving to maintain strong diplomatic and economic ties with the US.
Any potential restrictions could impact Malawians seeking to travel for education, business, or family reunification.
But a statement from Minitry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it learnt about the issue from the media.
Reads part of it: “At the moment, the ministry has not received official communicaition through normal diplomatic channels regarding the developments under public attention. Until such communication is received, the ministry urges the public to remain calm and patient.”
