Entente Council to adopt common tourist visa

Abidjan- Cote d'Ivoire (PANA) -- A common tourist visa will be issued beginning 21 September in the five-member states of the Entente council, the Ivorian ministry of tourism and crafts said Friday in Abidjan.
The visa, valid in the member countries of the Council, will be issued to individuals or groups for visits in at least two member states of the sub-regional organisation which comprises Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Niger and Togo, it said.
The duration of the "entente tourist visa" may not exceed two months and may not be extended during the visit for which it is issued.
It will cost 25,000 CFA francs (about 34 US dollars) per person.
National workshops will be held simultaneously on 26 August in the various member countries pending the launch of the visa on 1 September 2001 in Benin for the Africa zone.