Kombo Dhikiri Kombo is a 26-year-old Tanzanian entrepreneur, tour operator, and founder of Combo Safaris, tourism and traveling website that help travelers and tourists with visa application, flights tickets, safari, beach holidays, and cultural heritage visit to Zanzibar, an Island in Tanzania known for its beautiful natural beaches and landscape.
Born in Tanzania, East Africa, Kombo Dhikiri Kombo holds a Diploma in Heritage Management and Tourism, and he is currently studying Tourism Marketing and Management, a Bachelor degree. At a very young age, Kombo Dhikiri Kombo joined the tourism sector in Tanzania and worked as a tour guide and sales personnel at different tour companies within Zanzibar.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Kombo Dhikiri Kombo was working with tourism companies in Zanzibar. But things got a bit sour when the pandemic hits, this led to thousands of young Tanzanians working in the tourism sector losing their jobs. This unfortunate situation inspired Kombo Dhikiri Kombo to establish his own tourism company to promote and showcase the beauty of Zanzibar. In 2020, a total of 260.6 thousand people visited Zanzibar. Previously, the number of visitors was on the rise, reaching around 538.3 thousand in 2019. In the first quarter of 2021, visits to tourist attraction sites in Tanzania generated earnings of roughly 62 billion Tanzanian shillings (approximately 27 million U.S. dollars).
According to the Zanzibar Commission for Tourism, Tourist Arrivals in Zanzibar increased by 3.4 percent to 51,574 in February 2021 from 49,868 in January 2021 and decreased by 16.5 percent compared with the corresponding month in 2020. Tourists from Europe continue to dominate the Zanzibar market by accounting for 85.8 percent of the total visitors in February 2021 and increased by 0.5 percent compared with the corresponding month in 2020. In country wise, Russia dominated the Tourism market by accounting for 36.2 percent of all visitors entered in February 2021, followed by Polish (8.5 percent) and Czech Republic (4.6 percent while Japanese recorded the least (0.1 percent).
The African Dream caught up with Kombo Dhikiri Kombo to tell us his inspiring story.
The African Dream: Who or What inspired you to start Combo Safari?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: It was my dream to run a business that would employ many African youths. Covid-19 pandemic caused many youths to lose their jobs. Some that didn’t lose their jobs are underpaid. This inspired me to establish my own responsible travel business, Combo Safari in 2020.
The African Dream: Before you established Combo Safari, what else were you doing?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: Before establishing Combo Safaris, I worked at a leading last-minute Safari organizer in Zanzibar called Budget Safari, owned by Biubwa Omar.
The African Dream: As a young entrepreneur, what are the challenges you face with your company and how do you manage to overcome some of them?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: There are many challenges in the tourism sector; big competition, duplication of tourism products, lack of enough cash to cover emergencies due to the small number of customers as a result of Covid-19 mutations. I overcome my challenges using the idea of Combo Safaris, which is to combine multi-tour programs that organize private trips and ensure sustainability; something that basically adds a value of choice to my services. I increased a more sustainable strategy to manage finances, prioritize expenses, and do whatever to minimize the cost of operations.
The African Dream: Where do you see your company and yourself in the next five years?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: Well, to provide about 10 direct employment to youth, maximizing profit each year and good reputation especially in ensuring community and environmental sustainability.
The African Dream: What is your advice to young entrepreneurs in Zanzibar/Tanzania, and the continent as a whole?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: My advice to other young entrepreneurs in Tanzania and Africa at large is: change your mindset, attitude and be ready for technological advancement, adopt the best leadership skills and emotional intelligence to ensure teamwork at the workplace, improve financial discipline and prepare an annual marketing plan to win big competitions.
The African Dream: Your message to your customers, government, and people outside Africa that wants to visit Zanzibar and Africa at large?
Kombo Dhikiri Kombo: To my customers, continue trusting Combo Safaris for responsible tourism programs and recommend the best input to see on tour programs, African Government should easy policies for an amazing experience.
For more enquires and information, visit Combo Safaris
Email: info@combosafaris.com
Telephone: +255 657 675 186
Social Media: Facebook, Instagram & Twitter: ComboSafaris
