In Africa, 35,776 immigrant visas were issued to citizens of African countries, according to data from the US State Department’s annual report. This represents just over 12.55% of all US immigrant visas.
The United States will resume issuing immigrant visas in 2021 after a months-long hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Worldwide, 285,069 such visas have been issued to foreign nationals residing in the United States, including 111,419 visas for Asian nationals.
The first beneficiaries on the African continent are Nigerians with 4,990 visas issued. In addition to being Africa’s most populous country with over 220 million people, Nigeria has already established a very strong Nigerian diaspora within the United States, facilitating immigration.
Nigerians followed by Moroccans get 3,585 immigrant visas in 2021, ahead of Cameroonians (3,048), Ethiopians (2,402) and Egyptians (2,230).