From Victor Osula, Abuja
The Federal Government has hinted at the possibility of introducing reciprocal measures following the United States’ decision to require Nigerian visa applicants to submit details of their social media accounts and activities from the past five years.
The U.S. Mission in Nigeria had announced that all visa applicants must list usernames, handles, screen names, and other identifiers associated with their social media profiles across platforms used within the last five years.
The Mission warned that omitting such information could result in visa denial or ineligibility for future applications.
Reacting to the development, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, said the government is considering a reciprocal response that could see U.S. citizens applying for Nigerian visas subjected to the same requirements.
“We are aware of the development. I think it’s part of the new measures they informed us about earlier. On matters of this nature, the best option is reciprocal action.
“Some people from the U.S. might want to apply for a visa, and we will adopt the same measures,” Ebienfa said.
He added that an inter-agency meeting involving the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, and the National Intelligence Agency would be convened to determine Nigeria’s official response.
“Visa issues are reciprocal. What you are mandating our nationals to do, we will also mandate your citizens applying for our visa to do,” he stressed
