Why Is the State Department Slashing Visa Processing Across Africa?

 The State Department published on 15 July 2026 an announcement titled "Realignment of U.S. Visa Services in Africa to Regional Hubs."

Effective August 1, the Department of State ended routine visa services at the following 25 US embassies and consulates in Sub-Saharan Africa: Antananarivo (Madagascar), Abuja (Nigeria), Asmara (Eritrea), Bamako (Mali), Banjul (The Gambia), Brazzaville (Republic of Congo), Bujumbura (Burundi), Conakry (Guinea), Cotonou (Benin), Durban (South Africa), Freetown (Sierra Leone), Gaborone (Botswana), Harare (Zimbabwe), Juba (South Sudan), Libreville (Gabon), Lilongwe (Malawi), Lusaka (Zambia), Maputo (Mozambique), Maseru (Lesotho), Mbabane (Eswatini), N'Djamena (Chad), Niamey (Niger), Nouakchott (Mauritania), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), and Windhoek (Namibia). 

Instead, persons seeking visas to visit the United States in the countries cited above will have to travel to a regional visa hub in one of the following 20 cities: Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire), Accra (Ghana), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Cape Town (South Africa), Dakar (Senegal), Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania), Djibouti (Djibouti), Johannesburg (South Africa), Kampala (Uganda), Kigali (Rwanda), Kinshasa (DRC), Lagos (Nigeria), Lome (Togo), Luanda (Angola), Malabo (Equatorial Guinea), Monrovia (Liberia), Nairobi (Kenya), Port Louis (Mauritius), Praia (Cape Verde), and Yaoundé (Cameroon).

The Department of State said it is realigning visa operations in Sub-Saharan Africa as "part of a long-standing Department practice that strengthens national security by promoting more uniform screening, vetting, and adjudication standards, as well as improves efficiency."  

Comment:  The national security explanation is not convincing.  For example, a consular officer located in Lusaka can adjudicate a visa application just as uniformly and accurately as one at a visa hub in Johannesburg.  In fact, a consular officer located in the country of application has a better understanding of the applicant's background than a consular officer in another country.  Nor is the realignment likely to save much money.  US embassies and consulates are still expected to provide routine passport and protection services for American citizens.  The consular sections in most embassies and consulates in Africa are small with one individual often handling both visa services and assistance to American citizens.  

What the realignment will do is make it more difficult for many Africans to visit relatives in the United States, study at American universities, and travel for tourism and business.  The geography of the realignment means, for example, that the entire Sahel region and all of southern Africa except South Africa and Angola will no longer have local non-immigrant and immigrant visa services provided by US embassies and consulates.  This raises the question.  Is the real reason for this realignment to make it more difficult for Sub-Saharan Africans to come to the United States?  Whatever the rationale, the State Department has just handed another victory to China and Russia.  

 

Why Does Trump Hate the State Department?

 The American Conservative published on 20 July 2026 an opinion piece titled "Why Does Trump Hate the State Department?" by Peter Van Buren.

This is a blanket condemnation of the State Department as an institution, at least under both Trump administrations if not all Republican presidencies.  The only positive comment about the Department comes at the end of Van Buren's remarks when he states: "Of course there will always be some role for the State Department overseas at least, primarily in consular staff assisting American citizens and the few traditional diplomats needed to handle the bureaucratic concierge work and VIP logistics that State has always been good at." 

Comment:  Van Buren's cherry-picked half-truths and non sequiturs are still a useful reminder to State Department personnel, who tend to be more liberal than the populists of the Trump administration, that it is important to follow the policy direction of the administration in power.

I spent thirty-seven years as a Foreign Service officer in the State Department under Republican and Democratic administrations (but not a Trump administration) and concluded that Department personnel with rare exception do, in fact, pursue the policies laid down by the White House.  

The Reagan administration, for example, attached considerable importance to support for the development of American trade and investment overseas. Appointed in the late 1980s by Reagan as ambassador to Burkina Faso, I devoted much of my three years in Ouagadougou promoting American trade and investment, albeit with only modest success.  My ambassadorial colleagues throughout Africa were equally supportive of Reagan administration policies.   

Reagan's Republican successor, George H.W. Bush, and his Secretary of State, James A. Baker was highly respected throughout the Department of State.  In return, I believe Bush and Baker respected State Department personnel.  It is simply not accurate to conclude, or at least imply, that State Department personnel do not follow the policies of Republican administrations.    

Van Buren writes that "State's Foreign Service Officers saw themselves as resistance superheroes who would take down Trump I."  This is utter nonsense.  Based on my continuing contact with active-duty officers, they are quietly doing their jobs as directed by political appointee supervisors or just trying to stay out of harm's way until there is an administration, Republican or Democratic, that gives them a little respect.  

Marco Rubio Dismantles Human Rights at State Department

 Foreign Policy published on 8 July 2026 an article titled "Marco Rubio Burned Down the House to Fix a Sink" by Amanda Klasing, Amnesty International.  

Secretary of State Rubio has led an assault on human rights in American statecraft by slashing humanitarian aid, decimating human rights programs, gutting human rights offices and bureaus, disengaging from global human rights systems at the United Nations and elsewhere, and threatening international justice mechanisms.  

He has also changed the guidelines for the State Department's annual, global human rights reports by prioritizing political agendas over consistent accounting of human rights violations around the world.

Crisis at the U.S. Department of State

 The Daily Beast published on 14 July 2026 an article titled "Insiders Expose Trump 'Crisis' at the State Department" by Ewan Palmer.

This is a devastating account of the current situation in the U.S. Department of State.  It draws heavily on a longer article in the UK's Financial Times.

Foreign Aid: US Congress vs the Trump Administration

 Propublica published on 22 June 2026 an article titled "'A Huge Grab of Power': Trump Is Defying Congress on Foreign Aid" by Anna Maria Barry-Jester.  

Bipartisan support for foreign aid remains in the US Congress despite the Trump administration's dismantlement of the US Agency for International Development and its effort to minimize US foreign assistance now administered by the State Department, which does not have the capacity to manage it in any event.  

The Hollowing Out of the US State Department

 CNN published on 16 May 2026 an article titled "As Global Crises Multiply, Scores of US Diplomats Say They Have Been Forced Out" by Jennifer Hansler.

An estimated 2,000 Foreign Service officers have been forced out or left by their own choice the U.S. Department of State in the past year.  Of 195 ambassadorial positions overseas, 115 are currently vacant, an unprecedented situation this late in an administration.  

This hollowing out of the State Department will have far reaching implications for the ability of the United States to project power and deliver on its foreign policy priorities.

US Ambassadorships: Career Diplomats Need Not Apply

 2paragraphs published on 2 May 2026 an article titled "Former U.S. Ambassador to China Says Just 7% of U.S. Ambassadors Are Career Diplomats, 'Our Country Deserves Better'" by Lisandra Gomez-Tate.

In previous administrations, about 70 percent of U.S. ambassadors came from the career Foreign Service.  In the second Trump administration, that number is currently just over 7 percent, i.e. minus the zero.  Most of the ambassadorial positions are now occupied by friends, family members, and large political donors.

Comment:  This statistic demonstrates the low regard the Trump administration and Marco Rubio State Department hold the career diplomatic service.  What a waste of talent!  

What We Lost When We Lost USAID

 The New York Times published on 8 February 2026 a commentary titled "What We Lost When We Lost USAID" by Jeremy Konyndyk, Refugees International.

Aside from the tangible damage done to dismantled programs that aided the world's needy, American foreign assistance policy is a reflection of who our country wants to be and of the kind of world we seek to build.  The demise of the US Agency for International Development is resulting in an America that increasingly stands isolated and friendless.  

Washington Hosts Critical Minerals Summit to Counter China

 Foreign Policy published on 4 February 2026 an article titled "What Will the U.S. Critical Minerals Summit Mean for Africa?" by Nasmot Gbadamosi.  

Washington hosted this week officials from 50 nations, including Angola, DRC, Gabon, Guinea, and Nigeria, at a critical minerals summit.  The United States sees African engagement as essential in its efforts to remove Beijing's chokehold on critical minerals.  

Dismantlement of USAID Projected to Result in Many Deaths

 CNN published on 4 February 2026 an article titled "One Year on from Dismantlement of USAID, Study Projects that Global Aid Cuts Could Lead to 9.4 Million Deaths by 2030" by Lauren Kent.

The Trump administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID) early last year.  A new study by the Lancet medical journal projects that the human toll of these aid cuts could lead to at least 9.4 million additional deaths by 2030.

The Center for Global Development reports that the dismantlement of USAID may have led to between 500,000 to 1,000,000 lives lost in 2025 compared to previous years.  

State Department's Africa Bureau: Little Room for Career Diplomats

 AllAfrica.com posted on 12 January 2026 an analysis titled "Africa: Former CIA Analyst Now Top U.S. Africa Official at State; Dealmaking Dominates as Conflicts Spread" by Reed Kramer.  

The top official in the State Department Africa Bureau, Nick Checker, comes from the Central Intelligence Agency via the Trump administration's National Security Council.  Massad Boulos, the U.S. Senior Adviser for Arab and African Affairs, is the father of Tiffany Trump's husband and former truck and heavy machinery dealer in Nigeria.  

The Trump administration recalled 15 career ambassadors from embassies in Africa in late December.  Now only 17 of 52 embassies in Africa, which includes 4 in North Africa that are part of the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, have ambassadors assigned to the country; 35 ambassadorial positions in Africa are vacant.  The Trump administration has put forward only 4 nominations for ambassador to embassies in Africa--Morocco, Tunisia, Namibia, and South Africa.  All 4 nominees are political appointees.

The Unravelling of the U.S. Foreign Service

 Lawfare Daily published on 14 January 2026 an interview titled "The U.S. Foreign Service at a 'Breaking Point' with John Dinkelman."

John Dinkelman, president of the American Foreign Service Association and a 37-year veteran of the State Department, describes the dismal state of affairs in the U.S. Foreign Service today.

Comment:  I also spent 37-years in the U.S. Foreign Service, albeit in an earlier period than Dinkelman, and find it heart-breaking to learn what is happening to an organization that I love and respect.  

US Suspends Immigrant Visa Processing from 75 Countries

 PBS News published on 14 January 2026 an article titled "State Department Suspending Immigrant Visas for 75 Countries, Citing Public Assistance Concerns."

The State Department announced on 14 January that effective 21 January it will suspend the processing of immigrant visas for citizens of 75 countries whose nationals the Trump administration has deemed likely to require public assistance while living in the United States.  The suspension will not apply to applicants seeking non-immigrant visas, or temporary tourist or business visas.  

The 75 countries include 26 in Africa: Algeria, Cameroon, Cape Verde, DRC, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, and Uganda.  

Career Officers Seeking Ambassadorships: Hibernate for at Least Three Years

 The National Journal published on 12 January 2026 an article titled "Trump's Ambassadors Are Largely Political Appointees" by Ledyard King.

As of January 1, 2026, 64 of the 70 nominated ambassadors--91 percent--have been political choices based on their ties to the Trump administration or the amount of money they donated to the Trump campaign.  In a normal administration, at the end of four years, the ratio is about two-thirds career officers and one-third political appointees.  

Comment:  While the percentage of political appointees to career officers may change over the next three years, the outlook for career Foreign Service officers is pretty dismal.  

Secretary Rubio Says State Department Disaster Response Better Than USAID

 UMVA posted on 19 December 2025 an article titled "Rubio Explodes: Disaster Response Saved Despite Biden's Chaos!"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio justified the State Department's ability to manage disaster relief programs following the dismantlement of USAID by citing its recent response to the category 5 hurricane in Jamaica.  The State Department sent disaster assistance response and urban search and rescue teams and provided $1 million in assistance.  

Comment:  The US response to the hurricane in Jamaica has been relatively modest.  In the meantime, the United States has pulled back sharply from humanitarian disasters in places like Sudan.  The jury is still out as to the capacity of the State Department to replace the disaster response record of USAID but count me a skeptic.

State Department Tries to Manage Foreign Aid without Adequate Staff

 Foreign Policy published on 16 December 2025 an article titled "The Trump Administration's Epochal Shift on Foreign Aid" by Deborah Kaliel and Phillip Palmer, both former USAID officials.

The Trump administration abolished the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and shifted its remnants into a State Department that was and still is inadequately staffed to handle the new responsibilities.  

Comment: It should have come as a surprise to no one that the State Department was ill-prepared to add responsibility for running what is left of American foreign aid programs, especially following sharp reductions in State Department staffing.  While USAID operated in missions overseas closely affiliated with the US embassy, all of the USAID offices closed at the demand of Elon Musk and DOGE.  State Department personnel, unfamiliar with USAID programs, were expected to pick up the pieces.  This was obviously not going to work, and US foreign policy is now paying a steep price for this mistake.

Rubio Says Only Trump Can Resolve Sudan Crisis

 Aljazeera published on 4 December 2025 an article titled "Rubio Says Trump to Get Involved in Sudan Peace Efforts as Civil War Rages."

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on 3 December that President Trump has been personally overseeing efforts to bring an end to the war in Sudan.  He added that Trump is "the only leader in the world capable of resolving the Sudan crisis."

U.S. Foreign Service at the Breaking Point

 The American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) posted on 3 December 2025 a survey titled "At the Breaking Point: The State of the U.S. Foreign Service in 2025."

AFSA polled all of its active-duty members and received a response from 2,100 or about one-third of the total.  The results reflect a crisis developing in the organization where I served for 37 years.  

Some 86 percent of respondents said changes in the workplace since January 2025 have affected their ability to advance U.S. diplomatic priorities.  A whopping 98 percent reported poor morale.  Nearly one-third reported changing their career plans since January 2025.

US State Department: How Not to Manage a Bureaucracy

 The New York Times published on 2 December 2025 an article titled "U.S. Diplomats Report Broken Morale and Abandoned Careers" by Michael Crowley.

A recent American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) survey of 2,100 State Department diplomats reported that 98 percent believe workplace morale has fallen since the Trump administration took power in January.  Only 1 percent reported an improvement in the situation in the State Department.  

CNN covered the same report on 3 December 2025 in an article titled "Trump Administration Changes Have Left US Diplomats Demoralized and Less Able to Do Their Jobs, Report Says" by Jennifer Hansler.

CNN quotes the president of AFSA as saying: "The Foreign Service--the very institution tasked with navigating our global interests--is being dismantled in real time."  Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised State Department personnel when he first arrived.  There is now a belief he has turned his back on them.  

American Food Aid after the Destruction of USAID

 The George Washington University Global Food Institute published in October 2025 a report titled "Surveying the Food Aid Ecosystem: Six Months Post-USAID."

The Trump administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development soon after Donald Trump assumed the presidency.  This triggered the most significant humanitarian funding shift in decades.  Billions of dollars in cuts, abrupt stop-work orders, and inconsistent exemptions affected programs across more than 70 countries.  To learn the results of this development, a team from GWU interviewed more than 20 stakeholders across the food aid and assistance ecosystem.

They concluded that local non-governmental organizations, abandoned mid-project without resources, may be reluctant to partner again under U.S. government funding.  Formal forums like the Food Aid Consultative Group ceased functioning, leaving organizations to rely on ad hoc back channels and personal networks.  Agricultural development support has been broadly curtailed, leaving in place short-term in-kind food aid and some humanitarian assistance.  Organizations that once worked through formal networks convened by USAID, the United Nations, and others are increasingly sharing information and advocacy strategies through informal channels.

The pathways of funding, information, and cooperation that defined the aid sector for decades are giving way to a thinner, more fragmented system.  The hope going forward is to shape a more resilient, equitable, and evidence-driven aid system.