Yes, there are two things going on there... firstly, their economies are fucked up because they have inefficient and ineffective bureaucracies. Secondly, visa r

Yes, there are two things going on there... firstly, their economies are fucked up because they have inefficient and ineffective bureaucracies. Secondly, visa requirements between countries are typically more or less reciprocal, so because developed countries impose a heavy burden on travellers from those countries, they return the favor. In many cases, they'll have visa-free or less hassle for citizens of neighboring fucked up countries. You mentioned that this is for U.S. citizens, so you're more or less just dealing with a reflection of the U.S. visa burden imposed on those same countries :)