Nawiri Group

What Nawiri Group does

Nawiri Group is a privately held, purpose-led travel group headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, with regional offices in Port Louis (Mauritius) and Cape Town (South Africa), operating across East and Southern Africa. The group consolidates two wholly owned subsidiaries: Asilia, which operates 17 premium safari camps and lodges across East Africa and acts as a destination management company for the global travel trade, and Go2Africa, an award-winning tour operator that curates personalized safaris for end consumers. Nawiri Group employs more than 1,300 people across Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The group's core offering is high-end nature-based travel, with guests' safari spending directly funding conservation and community programmes through park fees, voluntary bednight levies, tourism taxes, and (from June 2024) the Asilia Giving Conservation charge, which Nawiri matches from group profit. In FY 2024/25 the group contributed over US$11 million to nature protection and positive-impact projects (a 27% year-on-year increase), channeled through 28 implementation partners and the Nawiri Group Foundation (which secured a separate US$5 million in grants in 2023). Measurable outcomes include support for 20,000+ primary school students across 57 rural schools, 244 vocational scholarships, and the stewardship of 20,000+ km² of protected wilderness and 1.2 million acres of community-owned Wildlife Management Areas.

Nawiri Group is B Corp certified (Asilia was the first African travel company to achieve this in 2012, with all group brands certified in 2022), is privately backed by long-term impact investors, and publishes annual Impact & Sustainability Reports. The group is not a technology company: it operates no disclosed APIs, software products, or proprietary technology platforms, with its competitive position resting on physical assets, brand reputation, partner ecosystem, and impact credentials rather than on technology differentiation.

Name

Nawiri Group

Legal name

Nawiri Group Ltd.

Website

https://nawirigroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Nawiri Group is a privately held, purpose-led African travel group operating Asilia (17 premium safari camps and lodges in East Africa) and Go2Africa (personalized safari tour operator), serving affluent global travelers while channeling over US$11 million annually into conservation and community impact across 11 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Safari Tourism Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152), Travel Agencies (561510), Recreational and Vacation Camps (except Campgrounds) (721214)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)

akta.pro primary industry

Safari & Wilderness Luxury Resorts (THAGACAD)

Keywords

• Safari travel services
• Premium safari camps
• Conservation tourism
• Sustainable travel experiences
• Wildlife conservation funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Safari Bookings and Accommodation: Revenue generated through Asilia's 17 premium safari camps and lodges across East Africa, and Go2Africa's tour operator services curating personalized African safaris. Guest bookings include voluntary bednight levies that support conservation and community projects.
2. Guest Donations and Impact Contributions: Guests contribute through voluntary bednight levies, tourism taxes, and conservation charges. From June 2024, Nawiri Group pledged to match guest contributions through the Asilia Giving Conservation charge mechanism.
3. Foundation Grants: Nawiri Group Foundation secured USD 5 million in grants to support ecosystems like Serengeti/Mara and Ruaha/Selous, developing income streams for local communities dependent on these areas.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Nawiri Group is a purpose-led safari travel group that sells premium nature-based travel experiences through two operating brands: Asilia, which operates 17 camps and lodges across East Africa (and acts as a Destination Management Company for the travel trade), and Go2Africa, which curates personalised multi-country safaris. Guest bookings, voluntary bednight levies, and matched group contributions directly fund conservation and community programmes across East and Southern Africa.

Product overview

Nawiri Group is a purpose-led travel group operating as a platform combining two primary travel brands: Asilia (17 camps and lodges across East Africa) and Go2Africa (an award-winning safari tour operator). The company generates significant funding for conservation and community initiatives through premium safari experiences, contributing over US$10 million annually to nature protection. The group also includes the Nawiri Foundation for grant-funded conservation work, and publishes annual Impact & Sustainability Reports documenting measurable outcomes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Asilia: Operates 17 camps and lodges across East Africa's most iconic landscapes. Known for premium, seamless operational delivery across East Africa, also acts as a trusted DMC for the travel trade.
• Go2Africa

Products and services

• Asilia Asilia operates 17 premium safari camps and lodges across East Africa's most iconic landscapes, providing seamless operational delivery for guests and acting as a trusted Destination Management Company (DMC) for international tour operators and travel agents.
• Go2Africa Go2Africa is an award-winning personalised safari tour operator that curates customised safari itineraries across Africa's most iconic landscapes, pairing expert insight with a deeply personal booking experience for end travellers.
• Sayari Camp Sayari Camp is an Asilia-operated luxury tented camp in the Serengeti, recognised for guest experience consistency, renewable energy use, waste reduction, and commitment to staff welfare and development.
• Erebero Hills Erebero Hills is an Asilia luxury lodge adjacent to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda, offering gorilla-tracking experiences, reforestation programmes, and community partnerships with Batwa and Bakiga communities.

Quantifiable outcome

• US$11 million contributed to nature protection in 2025, funding landscape-level community-led conservation programs across East and Southern Africa
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Green EconomycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership since 2024 supporting landscape-level conservation programs across East and Southern Africa.
• CLAWS (Communities Living Among Wildlife Sustainably)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Conservation partnership since 2024 with CLAWS in the eastern Okavango, Botswana. Supports communal herding programmes, livestock protection, and wildlife-friendly beef certification. Nawiri Group funding through Go2Africa has enabled CLAWS to advance integrated conservation and livelihoods programmes.
• Honeyguide FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Long-term conservation partnership since 2007. Honeyguide supports community-owned Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) spanning over 1.2 million acres. Nawiri Group is the primary funder of Honeyguide's work across northern Tanzania, including human-wildlife conflict mitigation through the HEC Toolkit.
• Meserani Snake Park ClinicminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partnership supporting snakebite treatment in Northern Tanzania. Nawiri Group funded 200 vials of high-quality polyvalent antivenom to support treatment during periods of increased demand.
• Kuru DogscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation dog partnership deploying trained tracking dogs to patrol and protect vast areas, deter poachers, detect wildlife products at borders, and uncover wire snares. Nawiri Group funding supports training, care, and deployment of conservation tracking dogs.
• STEP (Southern Tanzania Elephant Program)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal NGO operating across key elephant ranges in southern Tanzania. Partnership supports elephant monitoring, ranger support, habitat protection, and community outreach through programmes like the Tembo Cup using sport for conservation education.
• Kamitei FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducation partnership in Tanzania supporting rural schools around Nyerere, Ruaha and the Usangu Wetlands. Supports infrastructure, books, teacher training, and scholarships. Awarded 244 vocational training scholarships and supports 20,000+ students across 57 primary schools.
• Carbon TanzaniacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCarbon offset partnership generating verified forest carbon credits in Tanzania. Revenue paid directly to communities for development and livelihood needs. Scope 1 emissions from Tanzania operations offset through Carbon Tanzania's REDD+ projects.
• Change a Life BwindicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUganda partnership working with Batwa and Bakiga communities to create sustainable livelihoods connected to conservation. Supports forest-friendly livelihood programmes including beekeeping, tailoring, basket weaving, and mushroom farming. Hosts reforestation efforts and community events like World Gorilla Day.
• Afya PlusminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTanzanian NGO partnership improving water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in schools. Built fully operational WASH systems at Magigiwe Primary School and three other schools in Mbarali District, benefiting hundreds of students.
• Lion Landscapes (formerly Ruaha Carnivore Project)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCarnivore conservation partnership employing Lion Defenders in villages around Ruaha National Park. Supports livestock protection, camera trap programmes, and community-based conflict resolution. Reduced carnivore mortalities dramatically through community-led conservation.
• Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership contributing over US$180,000 to EWT work across the Greater Kruger landscape. Focus on Farming for the Future programme in Western Soutpansberg supporting regenerative agriculture training, mentorship, and improved market access for smallholder farmers.
• Chyulu Hills Carbon ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerREDD+ carbon offset project partnership protecting over a million acres of grassland, dry forest, and cloud forest between Tsavo and Amboseli in Kenya. Nawiri Group made first payment to offset 2024/25 Scope 1 emissions from Kenya operations.
• Mara Elephant Project (MEP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology and conservation partnership in the Greater Mara Ecosystem. MEP uses EarthRanger GIS platform, EcoScope analysis module, ElephantBook machine learning software, and AI geo-fences for elephant conservation and habitat protection.
• College of African Wildlife Management (Mweka)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEducational partnership with students researching community waste management in Tanzania during World Environment Day clean-up initiatives.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• &Beyond: Premium safari operator with 30+ lodges and camps across Africa and India. Closest direct competitor to Asilia in the high-end, impact-led safari market with similar multi-country footprint and DMC capabilities.
• Wilderness Safaris: One of Africa's largest luxury safari operators with camps across Southern and East Africa. Direct competitor to Asilia in Botswana, Kruger, and Serengeti circuits, with overlapping guest profiles and conservation positioning.
• Singita: Ultra-luxury safari and conservation brand operating premium lodges in South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and Rwanda. Competes with Asilia at the top end of the premium segment, sharing the conservation-tourism model and B Corp-style positioning.
• African Bush Camps: Botswana-founded safari operator with ~20 camps across Southern and East Africa. Competes with Asilia in the mid-to-upper premium segment, with comparable community partnership narratives.
• Great Plains Conservation: Conservation-led safari company founded by conservationists, operating camps in Botswana, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. Direct peer given shared impact-led brand identity and overlap in Okavango/Laikipia geographies.
• Ker & Downey Africa: Luxury African safari tour operator offering fully bespoke itineraries across multiple countries. Direct competitor to Go2Africa in the high-end custom safari curation market.
• Natural Selection Safaris: Safari operator focused on Botswana and Namibia with a portfolio of partner camps and curated itineraries. Comparable to Nawiri in scale, conservation focus, and reliance on a curated camp network.
• Micato Safaris: Family-owned luxury Africa tour operator known for high-touch service and philanthropy-linked travel. Direct peer to Go2Africa in the curated premium safari segment targeting affluent North American travelers.
• Audley Travel: UK-based tailor-made travel specialist with a dedicated Africa team offering bespoke safaris. Competes with Go2Africa for English-speaking custom safari clients globally.

Broad incumbents

• Abercrombie & Kent: Global luxury tour operator with a strong Africa safari portfolio. A larger incumbent that competes with Go2Africa on luxury Africa itineraries but operates across many other destinations, making it broader than Nawiri's focused Africa model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nawirigroup

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nawiri Group