The founder of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, said South African authorities denied him entry because his visa expired a day before his arrival in 2025, while Europeans were reportedly allowed into the country without visas.
The business mogul disclosed his travel experience while speaking at the Africa CEO Forum titled “Africa at Scale: Capital, Policy, and the Architecture of Growth” on Thursday in Kigali.
The billionaire said he returned to Lagos after waiting at Cape Town airport for hours, noting the experience as part of the challenges faced by Africans in Africa.
“I had a personal experience. Last February, I was travelling to Cape Town for the Mining Indaba. And as we landed, I left at night from Lagos to Cape Town. We arrived at 6 in the morning.
“As we arrived, we went to immigration. I tendered my passport, and the immigration officer looked at it and asked, ‘Where is your visa?’ and I said, ‘My visa is there.’ Unknown to me, my visa had expired the day before.
