Meet young explorer on mission to visit all 54 countries in Africa

He documents his experience on social media, from the affluent hotels in Zanzibar to cheap Bodaboda rides while he hangs on for his dear life. His adventure is nothing short of hilarious and mind-blowing, but more importantly, eye-opening.

You see, the negative stereotype of Africa perpetuated by some Western media has tainted the continent as dark and destitute, and Jovenchi is on a mission to reveal to the world the diverse and rich culture and way of life Africa possesses.

Speaking from Comoro, where he had just finished sightseeing, Jovenchi is excited about the next country he will be going to. He has so far been to 16 countries and is getting ready to go to the next one. Time is on his side, and so are his followers, who are cheering him on online.

He describes himself as a global citizen; after having travelled to so many places, he has realised that we are all similar.

He is against labelling people; certain nationalities are sometimes given a negative label that affects how people treat them.

Having studied in South Africa, where some Africans faced xenophobia, which did hurt citizens of certain nationalities, he adopted the title of a global citizen to embrace all people.

“It’s important to know your roots, but that shouldn’t mean people should judge you because of where you are from,” he said.

In Africa, where we are still separated by the borders demarcated by the colonists, it’s a shame that we still abide by that. Last year he was part of the ‘African Rising’ conference in Ghana.

And one of the things they were discussing was a borderless Africa. He visited Goma in the DRC, where the border conflicts that have plagued their community were the result of the land separation set by the colonialists; the fight that exists was not their making to begin with. That puzzled him.

Jovenchi has travelled to many corners of the globe, from Brazil to Bali and Europe, but he came to realise that when he came back to Tanzania after having visited an African country, he came back happier, which was due to the respect and hospitality he received in Africa compared to other places in the world.

He recalls the exhausting and demeaning experience he underwent when applying for a Schengen visa, the constant need to prove that you have money to visit their countries, and the need to prove that you will come back home and not illegally overstay in their country.

He found that degrading as a human being. “As a young person I don’t have a family yet, so telling them I will come back home because I have my mother is never enough reason to grant one a visa,” he explained.

Plus when he got there, he experienced a lot of facial profiling. To him, that was a buildup that formed the idea of just travelling across Africa.

“Even though in some African communities, they treat White travellers better than African travellers, when we travel more, they will get used to seeing fellow Africans travelling,” he said. He is adamant about promoting African travel in Africa; he wants our people to see African tourists and get used to that idea.

When he was in Goma, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a region where the western media still reports active shooting and clashes, the situation on the ground was calm, and he could move around, contrary to the portrayal in the media.

“Even in African news, they never post big cities like Dar es Salaam or Johannesburg; they will use a poor village or show crime in Africa,” he explained.

He observed white tourists going to Zanzibar and staying in nice hotels where they see Black kids in those hotels living a good life. They will not take pictures of those kids, but when they go in the streets and see dirty kids playing football, that’s the picture they take.

It’s things like that which build the narrative that Africa is poor, hungry, and in constant need of help, but he said there is more to Africa than that; there is Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Table Mountain in South Africa. If you see in the US, there are mass shootings and crime, but they still talk about the city of big dreams, New York, and promote all the beauty that the country has. Why can’t Africa focus on the positive and not the negative side? He questioned.

He plans to visit all African countries, and in each country, he wants to go to places people don’t know about in that country and promote their beautiful side. “I am currently in Comoros, and there is an amazing side of this country people don’t know about,” he added.

He is exploring the cultures of the people across Africa, the food, the beaches, and the big cities.

He wants to show other people what they can do when they visit Africa and shift the narrative. He is travelling to look for all positive stories in Africa and share them on his social media.

With 16 countries covered, he has a long way to go, with limited funds, resources, and time, but he is confident that he will achieve his goal.

There are still some countries in Africa he needs to get visas for and some other bureaucracies, but he is sure it will be an interesting ride. He believes he is playing a very big role in promoting the continent.

Mushaki in Goma is one of the most scenic places he has been so far; the lush greenery is jaw-dropping, and the volcanic mountainous area is surprisingly serene in a place that the world has been made to believe is a warzone.

The energy of the people he met was very joyful; he met youth who were promoting Goma tourism with their slogan ‘Visit Goma’. Their hopeful atmosphere was contagious, and they have a great vision regardless of what they have been through.

The language barrier was not so much of an issue; fortunately for him, they speak their version of Kiswahili, and he was able to communicate with them.

In places where they don’t speak English or Kiswahili, he employs Google Translate, which comes in handy. Born and raised in Dar es Salaam, Jovenchi still gets wowed by the beauty of the city. In most cases, people will choose Arusha or Kilimanjaro as their favourite travel hub, but Jovenchi still prefers Dar es Salaam.

Citing its diverse lifestyle, the city offers the busy metropolitan life, but you can still take a short trip to islands like Bongoyo and bask in the sun away from the noisy city. At the same time, you can go hiking in Pugu Hills, and you will still be within the Dar es Salaam vicinity.

“You get experience in different geography within this one city,” he said. “The city has the best street food you can have in the whole of Africa,” he added.

Asked if he will visit some countries like Somalia and Sudan that are known as currently unstable and plagued by internal conflicts, Jovenchi said, just like before visiting Goma, he did his research, reached the locals, and enquired about the real situation on the ground before making the trip. And oftentimes it is not as bad as people are made to believe, he noted.

“I found out in Somalia, you can get in if someone can just write you an invitation letter, and I am planning to go there,” he said. “The country has very amazing beaches, and it’s untapped because of political situations, and I want to bring to the light the beauty of that country as well,” he mentioned. Jovenchi’s parents are very supportive of his adventures.

He has always been the courageous one in his family, always the first to go zip lining, riding along the suspended cables. The journey so far is self-funded; in the beginning he wanted to have sponsors, but it was hard to make businesses believe in something they had not seen before.

But along the way, he has collaborated with some hotels in Zanzibar, like Kholle House in Stone Town and Malika Nungei Hotel nestled in Unguja, where he stayed and posted their content.

As he continues, he hopes he will get some corporations on board. “I hope I can get Air Tanzania, which travels to these places, to sponsor my next trips,” he said.