Tourists on a safari in the Serengeti witnessing the annual migration of wildebeest and zebras.
Tourism veteran Mohamed Baba has unveiled Aurum Africa, South Africa’s first employee-owned premium touring company, aimed at reshaping an industry that Baba describes as long overdue for real transformation. Launched with 40 team members, of whom 25 are immediate shareholders, Aurum places staff ownership at the heart of its business model. Aurum Africa will provide guided experiences across Southern Africa. It seeks to challenge the trend of foreign-owned tourism firms that overlook local expertise, replacing the current ownership model with sustainable growth and succession planning rooted in community. At the Cape Town launch, Baba voiced his rejection of token gestures of empowerment, insisting that true change happens when workers are trusted as co-owners. Aurum’s director, Thokozani Mdluli, described the company as a model of tourism equity.
Inside Travel