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<\/a><\/p>\nThe real power of South Africa’s passport<\/strong><\/p>\n “Passport holders of Africa’s wealthiest country, South Africa, have access to almost half of the world’s 227 destinations visa-free. While this might sound reasonable, a better measure of mobility for investors lies in their access to the world’s economic output,” said Suleman.<\/p>\n “This is reflected in the Henley Passport Power score, which completely changes the picture,” he added.<\/p>\n The 106 (47%) of the world’s destinations South Africans can access without a prior visa account for only about 15% of the world’s GDP<\/strong> – presenting a very poor economic power for investors residing there.<\/p>\n In contrast, despite its small population size and ranking as the 6th wealthiest country in Africa, Mauritius has access to 146 countries (64.7% of the world) afforded to its passport holders – giving them access to 57.30% of the world’s GDP.<\/p>\n This is especially significant considering that Mauritius contributes a mere 0.01% to the global GDP while South Africa contributes considerably more at 0.45%.<\/p>\n Regarding other African countries, Egyptians can access just 53 countries visa-free, representing nearly a quarter of the globe, but they only have access to a mere 4% of the global GDP.<\/p>\n While the 46 destinations Nigerians can travel to without needing a visa represent 20% of the destinations worldwide, they account for only around 2% of global GDP.<\/p>\n