The Pandemic and Traveling 

The pandemic changed so many things. I remember coming home from studying abroad during that time and feeling trepidatious about what the world was going to look like when it reopened. Surprisingly, it didn’t take too long. I visited Lake Tahoe that following May for Memorial Day and people were out in full force. About a year later, everything was up and going again and I took off abroad. The only requirements were to take a test for COVID within 48 hours of boarding a plane.  Even though it added an extra fee to traveling, it didn’t stop traveling from occurring. As people say, the show must go on.  

The Rules 

The Pandemic gave rise to people working remotely from home world-wide. It also highlighted the travel industry and the rules for transcending borders, as each country had their own rules and regulations about who could visit. Visiting regulations and remote work led to the creation of the digital nomad visa, the first one being created in Estonia in 2020. These visas allow foreigners to apply and work in a different country legally, usually remotely or from their laptop, and stay for longer periods of time than a regular tourist visa would allow. It also usually requires that a certain income amount is made either monthly or yearly to qualify.  

Digital Nomad Visas 

These digital nomad visas are great gateways to transversing borders more easily, however they also have an elite element to them. A lot of them require a higher income, such as making $50,000 a year. This works for people that come from affluent and highly developed countries.  

Give and Take 

It is understandable that governments only want people coming into their countries that will add to making the country better, rather than being a liability. They would want people to contribute to the country at hand. It’s no different than people wanting to make sure that the people that their kids are marrying are people that will add to their peace, happiness, and stability rather than taking away from it. 

An Alternate Route  

However, what if there was another way to contribute that would allow people from nations where the passport isn’t the strongest or the economy isn’t the highest to live in other countries? I watched a podcast with Trevor Noah and Barbados’ prime minister Mia Mottley, and she raised a great point about the number of jobs available in the Caribbean, but how there aren’t any bodies to fill the positions, as many people from the Caribbean are immigrating to larger countries. Yet she stated that when she travels to places like Africa, there are plenty of people that are searching for work and could be filling those positions.  

While I understand that there is the question of travel costs along with the preference of where people may want to go to receive profitable employment, what if there was a solution to these problems that would allow people from other countries to legally enter countries of their choice with the specific purpose of filling positions that would be beneficial to all involved. Countries would have people that are working and helping to boost the economy and workers would be receiving a wage that they would be happy with and have the ability to negotiate while also possibly being able to work toward receiving citizenship and/or being able to live in a country where they’d be more economically satisfied.  

Exploitation 

There would need to be laws in place to make sure that people weren’t exploited in this specific type of program. On the contrary, exploitation happens when people come from a scarce mindset. This program would be rooted in the idea of abundance and solving transcontinental problems regarding the workforce. The purpose of this program would be to make sure that everything was beneficial to all parties involved and the point being that people would be able to grow economically on both ends, particularly with people being able to provide and build for their families. This would also be a way to make sure that passport privilege is leveled out a bit.  

Why Africa? 

Mia Mottley used Africa as an example and I do as well because while I was in Senegal and Morocco, I did see countries where it’s very hard for the citizens to leave and where the economy wasn’t the best. I saw a global system that makes it very hard for citizens of certain countries to find avenues toward success. That’s not to say that there weren’t any, just that it was very difficult. While the dream I encountered is for many to go to America, Senegal and Morocco are ex French colonies. Therefore, many people from those countries tend to go to France instead. And once there, they face societal and job discrimination, which makes upward movement difficult.  

Another Option 

Creating a new visa like this gives people another option. America, Canada, and other countries in Europe aren’t the only places that have strong economies. If people were willing to fill an open position in a wider range of countries, (of their choice) that would be something that could lead to economic health. This doesn’t just apply to those that are economically challenged; this could be an option for people for whom America just doesn’t work or people that are looking for different avenues to gain another passport/citizenship.  

Being able to transverse borders will become easier as people worldwide are becoming more transient. With the right checks and balances in place, perhaps upward movement in the world doesn’t have to be hierarchical and can become more egalitarian.