An African Safari is not just one of the most thrilling experiences on earth for a tourist, but also a huge revenue source for the countries involved. Some African safaris provide you with an opportunity to get up close and personal with some of the world’s rarest wildlife, encounter majestic mountains and wide skies, and completely immerse in another world. And the best part is that you can do all these without sacrificing your comfort.

If you are looking to escape the grim realities of our troubled planet, here are the top seven best African safaris to consider:

7) Segera Luxury Retreat, Kenya

Segera Retreat is a 50,000-acre luxury wildlife safari that lies on the grasslands of the Laikipia Plateau. Its accommodations are well known for their striking and elegant design. Its six timber and thatch villas are raised above a profusion of botanical life looking out to Mount Kenya. Segera is home to the Zeitz Collection, which is considered to be one of the leading collections of art from Africa and the African diaspora. Here, art and an aesthetic experience surround you at every turn.

According to their official website, every room in the retreat is solar-powered, and they also have a water bottling system for distilling still and sparkling water which significantly reduces the carbon footprint on their facility.

6) Uncharted Africa, Botswana

Uncharted Africa operates mobile safaris on the private Mapula concession in the Okavango Delta, it is a bit more rough-and-tumble than other safaris in the region. It operates luxury camps that embody classic 1940s-era safari fantasies. When the camp moves, guests can sleep under the stars in a fly camp on an island in the Delta. Wildlife that is likely to be seen includes zebra, wildebeest, wild dog, cheetah, elephant, lion, hippo, crocodile, buffalo and giraffe, not to mention a myriad of birds. Uncharted Africa’s guides are excellent and will ensure you don’t miss a thing on your journey. Fishing is also possible between March and December.

5) Singita, Boulders Lodge, South Africa

Singita is a South African company founded in 2005, which operates game lodges in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Rwanda. It owns game lodges in Sabi Sand Game Reserve, Kruger National Park, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Grumeti Game Reserve, Serengeti National Park, and Volcanoes National Park. Its South African operation in Sabi Sand is a private game reserve. It is synonymous with environmentally conscious luxury. A standout among the lodges is Boulders Lodge, which offers niceties like glass walls, a swimming pool, a gym, and a spa. With two-bedroom suits and children’s activities, it is more family-friendly than many other safaris in the region.

4) Mahali Mzuri, Kenya

Mahali Mzuri is Sir Richard Branson’s 12-tented luxury safari camp in the Kenyan Bush. Its 12 exclusive safari tents offer you the ultimate luxury safari experience. Its futuristic architecture is defined by steel girders. Mahali Mzuri offers luxuries like refrigerators and claw-foot bathtubs. Shared spaces include a swimming pool and a spa. The camp is situated in the private Olare Motorogi Conservancy in the wider Maasai Mara ecosystem. 

3) Explore Inc. Kenya

Explore, Inc. offers personalized luxury tours and intimate wildlife encounters throughout Africa, it was a company founded by Cherri Briggs. It is well-known for its exclusive and adventurous custom safaris. The company has won over its customers by orchestrating experiences, like a flight over Mt. Kenya in the plane used in Out of Africa. Sounds exciting!

2) Micato African Safaris, 

Micato is an African safari company with operations across multiple African countries including Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Namibia. Their Safaris expeditions are luxurious by design. They feature world-class accommodations and legendary game parks. They supply top local drivers and guides. They ship high-end duffels to guests in advance. Guests are usually welcomed with a meal or a drink. No wonder they are popular among many tourists worldwide.

1) Ol Jogi, Kenya

This is arguably the most prestigious private ranch in Africa. The Wildenstein family opened the Ol Jogi to paying guests in 2013, it was established over 60 years ago. Here, for $210,000 a week, they offer you sublimely comfortable sleeping arrangements for 14, doting service from staff members, endless sumptuous details, and private access to one of Africa’s most wildlife-rich areas. The 58,000-acre ranch is home to 15 per cent of the world’s Grevy’s zebra. Guests can stay out after dark, but it is advisable to follow their guidelines.

Places to visit on an African Safari

While having a relaxing evening in some luxury resort in the middle of the jungle might be enough for some tourists, the main purpose of an African Safari is to see the natural world as nature intended. Here are the top attractions every tourist on an African Safari should see.

Serengeti National Park

The Serengeti is without a doubt the earth’s greatest wildlife spectacle. Three million or more large mammals–elephant, cheetah, wildebeest, zebra, lion, gazelles by the gazillions, rhinos, giraffe, and going on 60 more large mammal species inhabit the great plain, its riverine forests. The Serengeti is simply a force of nature.

Mount Kilimanjaro

At 19,341 feet, Kilimanjaro is Africa’s highest, and one of Earth’s most massive mountains. If you are into mountain climbing, climbing the magnificent Kilimanjaro will take you between 4 – 10 days and cost you between $1,799 and $5,799 depending on the route, season, and number of people you’re sharing the experience with.

The Maasai Mara Game Reserves

Located in Kenya, the Mara abounds with rolling grasslands, expressive acacia trees, sweeping vistas teeming with wildlife, and one of Africa’s common but unforgettable sights.

Things to do in the Maasai Mara

• Watching miles-long trains of wildebeest and zebras in their endless migration in the Maasai-Mara-Serengeti ecosystem, Earth’s largest animal homeland, and haven. 
• Enjoying early morning tea as you watch a herd of elephants patiently waits in line for a frolicking dip in the Mara River. 
• Soaking up the feeling of being in a whole landscape alert with life, and being part of it.
• Watching lion cubs play hide and seek among grassy tussocks.
• Game drives in peaceful search of the Big Five (and maybe the elusive Little Five:  rhinoceros beetles, buffalo weavers, leopard tortoises (not so mini, really; they can weigh as much as three standard bowling balls), ant lions, and extremely shy elephant shrews, which weigh not much more than an elephant’s tear.   
• Quad biking and horsebacking on the acacia-accented savannah.
• Camel treks in the Mara’s hills. 

Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Located in Tanzania, the Ngorongoro Crater is one of our solar system’s greatest geographic ornaments, a gorgeous natural Eden the size of 75 Central Parks, home to 30,000 free-roaming animals. All-in-all, a superlative safari destination.

Things to do in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area

• Reveling in the world-uniqueness of the 100-square mile crater, standing on its grassy floor realizing that a couple of million years ago we’d be stuck in a fierce volcano with thousands of feet of rock over our heads.
• Watching hippos galumph in waterholes, wondering, like Peter Matthiessen, how the huge beasts could have found their way into the crater.
• Horsebacking and mountain biking on the crater’s lush slopes, based on the idyllic Manor at Ngorongoro, followed by a vitalizing swim in its pool.  
• Standing on the deck at Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge on the crater’s rim, looking 2,000 feet down at elephants ambling and beautifully designed zebras flowing across the acacia-dotted landscape.
• Breathing in the pure air of the African highlands.

Kruger National Park

Kruger is South Africa’s most famous and its largest park—almost 5,700 Central Parks would fit neatly into its classic, golden veldt, river-crossed, acacia-dotted African landscapes. Classic is a good umbrella word for Kruger. Founded in 1926, it’s a source of great South African pride, a conservation model, and as the beautiful home of all the Big Five, along with 142 other mammal species, quite probably the most of any African park.

The Okavango Delta

If we had to pick the most miraculous African place of all, it might well be the Okavango Delta, where the 1,000-mile-long Okavango River gives up on its search for an outlet to the sea and seeps life-givingly into the sands of the Kalahari, one of the world’s most uncompromising deserts, creating a vast and mesmerizing oasis.

The Okavango Delta is a unique pulsing wetland that covers between 6 and 15 000 square kilometres of the Kalahari Desert in northern Botswana and owes its existence to the Okavango (Kavango) River which flows from the Angolan highlands, across Namibia’s Caprivi Strip and into the harsh Kalahari Desert.

Tourists hoping to see the natural world will not lack for attractions on an African Safari, other places worth seeing include Yankari Games Reserve and Obudu Cattle Ranch in Nigeria, the Victoria Falls shared between Zambia and Zimbabwe, the Kalahari desert in Botswana and Mount Kenya which the locals refer to as the seat of Ngai, God himself due to its sheer magnificence.

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Here are some of the oldest universities in Africa with some of them dating back centuries before the middle ages in Europe.

10. University of Algiers (1909)

Located in Algiers, Algeria, the University of Algiers was established in 1909. It stemmed out of different higher education institutions created in the 19th century under French colonial rule. Today it is organized into seven faculties. There were some 30 indigenous Algerian students back in 1914. The university currently tutors more than 100,000 students in law, medicine, and Islamic sciences.

9. Cairo University (1908)

Located in Giza, Egypt, the University of Cairo was established in 1908. Its student population is about 280,000 students and has 18 faculties.

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8. University of Khartoum (1902)

University of Khartoum (UofK) was founded as Gordon Memorial College in 1902 and established in 1956 when Sudan gained independence. It is the largest and oldest university in Sudan.

7. Stellenbosch University (1866)

The university’s origin can be taken back to the Stellenbosch Gymnasium, which opened in 1866.  It became the Stellenbosch College in 1881. In April 1918, it was awarded university status and became Stellenbosch University. Its student population stands at 30,000. Located in Stellenbosch, South Africa this university was the first African university to sign the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities.

6. University of Liberia (1862)

Authorized by the national government in 1851, the University of Liberia opened in 1863 as Liberia College and became a university in 1951. The school is one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in West Africa.

5. University of Cape Town (1829)

The University of Cape Town located in Cape Town, South Africa is without doubt one of Africa’s oldest universities. It currently admits about 27,000 students.

4. Fourah Bay College (1827)

Fourah Bay College, also referred to as the University of Sierra Leone, was established by the Church Missionary Society in 1827.  It started as an Anglican missionary school to train Africans as schoolmasters, clergymen, and catechists.

3. Sankore University, Timbuktu (1300)

Sankore University was founded by Mansa Musa, and unlike most modern universities there were no organized courses of study. Instead, the university primarily focused on the study of the Quran and other Islamic subjects. Other academic subjects such as medicine and surgery, anatomy, botany, evolution, physiology and zoology, astronomy, anthropology, cartography, geodesy, geology, mathematics, physics, chemistry, philosophy, language and linguistics, geography, history, as well as art were also thought.

At its peak, the university of Sankore boasted up to 25,000 students out of a total city population of 100,000.

2. Al-Azhar University (970 AD)

Al-Azhar University is Egypt’s oldest university and is located in Cairo, Egypt. Currently, more than 90,000 students are enrolled there.

1. University of Al Quaraouiyine (856 AD)

Located in Fes. Morocco, the University of Al-Karaouine or Al-Qarawiyyin is said to be the oldest continuously operating institution of higher learning not just in Africa but also in the world. It was founded in 856 AD and is one of the leading spiritual and educational centers of the Muslim world.

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Afrobeats artistes like Davido, Wizkid, Burnaboy and Sarkodie are despite all challenges making a lot of money from their craft. In recent years, Afrobeats – a form of African music developed mainly in West Africa has gone global, this type of music can be heard blaring on radio stations, airports, and supermarkets around the world.

In times past, the major obstacle facing the music industry in Africa was piracy. In Nigeria, the birth country of Afrobeats, most artists often complain of losing large parts of their revenue to pirates, who make illegal copies of their work and distribute it on the streets without much protection from the government.

Now, technology has changed the way people listen to and buy music, CDs are becoming more and more redundant as people embrace modern technologies.

These technologies mean music makers now have more control over the content they create and make more money from it compared to what was obtainable in the past.

Here are the ways through which Afrobeats artists make money from their works.

Streaming

In 2020, streaming is the biggest source of revenue for most Afrobeats artists. Streaming is easy in that it cuts out any sort of middleman, allowing the artiste to market their contents directly to their fans.

YouTube, the world’s biggest streaming platform allows all categories of artists from A-listers to upcoming artists to earn money from the views they get. Davido’s “A Good Time” album took just about 7 months after release to reach over 1 billion streams across multiple platforms. As Afrobeats is becoming more and more popular across Europe and North America, so is the demand from streaming giants like YouTube, Spotify, Audiomack and others, and these companies reward artists handsomely.

Shows and concerts

Stage performances are a major way through which Afrobeats artistes make money. Nigerians and Africans are energetic people which means there is always a market for live shows. In December last year, BurnaBoy reportedly earned about $250,000 performing at 9 different shows in a single night in Lagos.

But the most lucrative market for Afrobeats is not in Africa, it is in Europe and North America. Davido was paid a million pounds when he sold-out London’s 02 Arena in 2018.

Shows and concerts are a never-ending source of revenue as artists are constantly performing at political events, private parties of politicians and businesspeople, birthday parties, weddings and at universities.

Digital sales

Unlike streaming which in most cases restricts download, artists can use services that allow download for a fee. Despite the fact that most Africans download music illegally from the internet, most Afrobeats artists make a lot of money from digital sales abroad. Services like Apple Music help artistes to generate direct sales from Europe, America, Canada and sometimes even Africa.

Another significant source of revenue for Afrobeats artists is the sale of caller ring back tunes. Most fans will set their favorite songs as ring tone instead of the traditional beeps people hear while calling their number.

Endorsement deals

The use of famous artists as company brand ambassadors is becoming popular across Africa. These endorsement deals are usually not cheap as they can run into several millions of dollars. It is an easy source of money for the musician as all they have to do is take pictures and attend a few meets and greet events with fans.

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Licensing

This is not a very developed means of making money yet in Africa. The Disney-produced film, Queen of Katwe contains music from several Afrobeats artists including Davido, Phyno among others. 2face Idibia’s African Queen was also used in the American movie Fat Girls. Licensing fees from movies, documentaries, and advertisements is also an important source of revenue.

Session work

Another way to make extra money as an Afrobeats artiste is by doing session work in the studio for other projects. This includes getting featured on the songs of other musicians, appearing in their music video and producing beats for their songs. In 2016 Tekno produced Davido’s “If” a song that went on to become a global hit.

Investments

Nothing lasts forever, most Afrobeats musicians have realized this which is why they are investing their income into other artists and doing music as a long-term business investment. Since 2010, artists like Davido, Don Jazzy, Olamide and even Wizkid have been investing in other upcoming artistes who have gone on to become superstars in their own right and reward their sponsors with a handsome return on investment.

The economics of Afrobeats is a tricky one, and not every artist has been able to enjoy much financial success from it despite having a number of hit songs. Upcoming musicians are usually at a disadvantage as they usually don’t get similar opportunities as the already established ones. But its upcoming artists that get to go on and become global Afrobeats superstars!

How to make money as an upcoming Afrobeats musician in Africa

Obviously, most of the sources of making money as a musician in Africa usually favor the already established artists and the upcoming ones are at a disadvantage. To understand how to game the industry to your advantage as an upcoming artiste, you need to understand how the already established ones made it. When the likes of Davido started music, they made a simple bargain – give the music out to the public for free with the hope that when they become popular they can make money from shows, digital sales, streaming, and global tours. In the beginning, they concentrated on making quality music without trying to quickly monetize.

Upcoming Afrobeats artists should focus on making high-quality music, people will eventually notice the quality and the money will start to flow. In the meantime, streaming platforms like YouTube that do not have strict policies on record labels can be used to generate appreciable income from low traffic. Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are also important tools to generate buzz for upcoming Afrobeats artists.

The Afrobeats scene is a bit crowded, but there is room for anyone who is willing to put in the hard work, create quality content and wait. In an industry where the likes are Wizkid can earn up to $3 million on a single endorsement deal, it might be worth all the efforts.

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When Covid-19 was just starting to sweep the globe, experts predicted Africa would be devastated, with millions of lives lost. But 11 months later, the continent seems to be doing better than anticipated.

The United States with a population of about 326 million people, has so far recorded over 228,000 deaths from the coronavirus, while the entire continent of Africa has recorded just over 41,000 deaths.

Researchers have found no reason to believe that Black people have a natural immunity to the coronavirus, despite some pseudoscience that has circulated about African Americans in the US. The trend in Africa stands in stark contrast to the experiences of Black people in America, who, due to a range of other socioeconomic factors, are at a disproportionally higher risk of becoming ill from the coronavirus.

But why has Africa been so successful at controlling the coronavirus pandemic?

Experience with other epidemics

Experts say some African nations’ experience with previous viral outbreaks like Ebola means it was already prepared to deal with Covid-19.

In 2014, Nigeria led several West African states to contain the outbreak of Ebola by perfecting public health measures which include isolating the infected, tracing their contacts, and then getting them quarantined while they get tested.

Favorable climate

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Maryland USA found a correlation between temperature, humidity and latitude, and the spread of Covid-19.

Muhammad Sajadi, the lead researcher opined that the virus had an easier time spreading in lower temperatures and humidity.

“Not that it does not spread in other conditions – it just spreads better when temperature and humidity drop,” he said.

Youthful demographics

Africa is home to the world’s youngest population with a median age of 19 years, according to UN figures.

Globally, most of those who have died have been aged over 80.

“The pandemic has largely been in younger age groups.. about 91% of Covid-19 infections in sub-Saharan Africa are among people below 60 years and over 80% are asymptomatic,” said the World Health Organization (WHO).

 Early action

Scientists highlight that what is likely behind Africa’s low caseload is, first and foremost, the fact that most countries implemented draconian protective measures very early on.

The country of Lesotho even imposed a nationwide lockdown before they had a single case.

It declared an emergency and closed schools on March 18, and went into a three-week lockdown about ten days later.

But only days after the lockdown was lifted, did Lesotho find its first confirmed cases. In a population of more than 2 million, the country has so far recorded about 1700 cases and 40 deaths.

Underdeveloped transport system

The underdeveloped transport systems within and between African countries appear to have been a blessing in disguise. It means that Africans do not travel as much as people do in more developed countries, minimizing contact among people of different countries.

Furthermore, Nigeria – Africa’s most populous country has had its borders with neighboring countries including Benin and Niger closed to curb smuggling and boost local production. This measure which has been in place since August 2019, appears to have significantly reduced contact among different people in West Africa.

The low number of coronavirus in Africa is not just down to luck, it shows that with individual action, and following public health measures, Covid-19 can be controlled.

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This desert is the third-largest in the entire world, surpassed only by Antarctica and the Arctic—both of which are cold deserts. That makes it the largest hot desert on earth.

Interested in learning more about this amazing place? here are seven interesting facts about the Sahara!

7. The Sahara is absolutely huge

Imagine a desert roughly the size of the United States or China! It is estimated that this desert takes up a mind-boggling 9,200,000 square kilometers, which is equal to 3,600,000 square miles.

The desert is bordered on the east by the Red Sea and on the west by the Atlantic. On the north are the Atlas Mountains, and in the south is the Niger River. The name “Sahara Desert” is a bit redundant, by the way. “Sahara” actually means desert in Arabic, so when you say “Sahara Desert,” you are essentially saying “Desert Desert.”

6. There are ongoing shifts in the Sahara’s climate

It may be tempting to think that a desert is always hot and dry, but there are many variations in the weather and climate of this one. In fact, there are ongoing shifts in the Sahara desert climate which follow an incredibly long cycle—around 41,000 years. Why 41,000 years? This has to do with a change in the tilt of the earth’s axis between 22 and 24.5 degrees.

Indeed, in around 15,000 years, the desert should become far more green than it is today. The desert has also experienced greener periods in the past as evidenced by prehistoric drawings in caves which indicate that there was once plenty of plant life where today the land is barren. Areas that today would be un-farmable were at the time fertile cropland.

3. Sometimes the Sahara can be quite cold

While the Sahara is classified as a hot desert, sometimes it’s actually quite cold, particularly at night time starting in December and continuing through February.

It is not unusual for temperatures to drop below freezing. And once in a great while, heavy snow may even fall as it did in 2016 for the first time recorded in 37 years.

The sight of snow-capped sand dunes is certainly an unusual one, but some of the pictures from that December are magnificent.

It is also well worth it to check out pictures of the previous snowstorm from 1979. Some of these photos are just as incredible. The snow was so intense that year that it stopped traffic in the region. That said, it didn’t last very long. Within a few hours, it had melted entirely.

Wondering how hot the Sahara gets? During summer, the average high temperatures range to around 40°C. Sometimes they may surge as high as 47°C.

2. The Sahara Desert is anything but lifeless

When you picture a desert, it is easy to imagine nothing but endless miles of sand dunes and barren rocks. But in reality, the desert is a complex ecosystem, and the Sahara is teeming with life. There are estimated to be around 1,200 plant species inhabiting this desert.

There are so many different species of animals and birds. Some of these include gazelles, antelopes, monitor lizards, cheetahs, wild dogs, vipers, and ostriches. Like the human inhabitants of this desert, many of these species are nomadic, migrating in order to follow the water supply throughout the year.

1. The Sahara actually has a number of sub-regions

These sub-regions are known as ecoregions and are defined according to their different precipitation, temperature, elevation, and soil characteristics. Along the west coast for example is the Atlantic coastal desert, which is able to support succulent plants, lichens, and shrubs. In the north is the North Saharan steppe and woodlands. Other ecoregions include the Sahara Desert ecoregion, the South Saharan steppe and woodlands, the West Saharan montane xeric woodlands, the Tibesti-Jebel Unweinat montane xeric woodlands, the Saharan halophytes, and the Tanezrouft.

Some of these areas are particularly desolate and devoid of life. The Tanezrouft for example has almost no vegetation. Other areas however have watercourses which run for part of the year as well as rainfall. This is why the South Saharan steppe and woodlands contain pastures, shrublands, and even dry forests. Most of the Sahara isn’t even comprised of sand at all.

So now you know more about the Sahara! The third-largest desert in the world covers a huge amount of land and is a very unique place. If you are touring Africa and have a chance, you should definitely visit—the experience is one you will never forget.

Just remember that it is an unforgiving place, and you should come well-prepared.

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