Somalia’s Passport Gains a Modest Climb to 102nd in Worldwide Influence Rankings
This is the scoop, folks. Somalia’s got a bit of a step up in the realm of global travel documents. According to the 2025 Henley Passport Index, the Somali passport is now sitting at 102nd place, granting free passage to 35 destinations all over the map.
Let’s take a quick jaunt back a few years — in 2015, Somalia’s passport was limping at 108th spot. While a move to 102nd might seem like a crawl in progress, it feels like an anticlimax when you see how the United Arab Emirates leapfrogged 32 spots to touch the tenth with 185 visa-free travel options.
Henley Passport Index, for those out of the loop, is a global compass for travel privileges. It evaluates the ease of travel using a pool of 199 passports and offers insights into where one can wander sans visa. When you lay eyes on Somalia’s current position, it’s a stark reminder of its travel limitations, especially when you eye Singapore, a heavyweight champ whose folk can gallivant to 195 different locales without worrying.
Highlighting a glaring issue, the 2025 index casts a spotlight on the world’s travel chasm, with African lands facing heavy visa barricades. Somalia’s struggle mirrors the broader continental story where visa rejection rates are notably high. Studies indicate African candidates for Schengen visas face twice the odds of rejection compared to others.
Professor Mehari Taddele Maru from the Migration Policy Centre jumps in to dissect the problem, stating, “The elevated rejection rates for African citizens tell a tale of economic blues and biased policies that cement global travel inequality.”
Adding more names to this roster of restricted access are countries like Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, and Ghana, where over 47% of visa applications hit a wall. It paints a stark picture of African citizens held back from the world stage, their passports acting more as shackles than keys.
Dr. Christian H. Kaelin, head honcho at Henley & Partners, flags the need for a reboot of how we look at global movement. “The ease of hitting the road is often a matter of winning the ‘birthright lottery.’ Tackling this travel schism is crucial as the world grapples with migration issues and clamped mobility,” Kaelin remarked.
Bumping up the complexity, the 2025 report also delves into the rise of tech-savvy border systems like the UK’s ETA and Europe’s ETIAS. These tools aim to streamline border crossings, yet for countries like Somalia, lacking digital prowess, robust infrastructure remains far-reaching.
“This shift towards digital travel infrastructure is a game-changer,” says Nick Careen, a top shot at IATA. “While such tech upgrades boost traveler convenience, they risk exacerbating the divide for nations where digital access is still a dream.”
Despite Somalia’s efforts to polish its global footprint and spruce up the passport scene, the citizens are still in a chokehold when it comes to travel liberties. The restricted movement impacts everything from education and job prospects to integrating into the global fold. The pace at which the world is changing may leave states with feeble passport power even further out on the fringe.
The Henley Passport Index isn’t just fiddling around — since its inception in 2006, it’s been the oracle of global travel insights, relying heavily on the exclusive dataset from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Tagged along with the 2025 rankings, the Henley Global Mobility Report overlays expert analyses on the evolving geopolitical factors that sculpt the global travel tableau.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
