The Itinerant Entrepreneur

Tanzania-born Franck Leya, the co-founder and Managing Director of Honest Travel Experience in South Africa, has had an interesting journey and is now working towards getting people to experience the continent on solar-powered scooters.

- By Nafisa Akabor. Photos by Nkayiso Shabalala

FRANCK LEYA’S FIRST TRAVEL EXPERIENCE BEGAN in the late 1990s as a refugee who had to flee the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) out of fear that his father, a political journalist, would be executed.

“My passion for travel pretty much started as an immigrant. After my dad was charged with treason, we began migrating to African countries depending on the diplomatic relationships the countries had,” says Leya to FORBES AFRICA.

A Congolese born in Tanzania, Leya had to travel by bus and foot over the years, having lived in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Angola, before reaching his final stop: Johannesburg.

“When we arrived in South Africa, it was different because my dad had gotten asylum. The laws here were different when compared to other African countries,” says Leya. “My love for storytelling began because I migrated so much that everywhere I went, I had all these cool stories I wanted to share.”

Growing up in Johannesburg, his mother warned him to be aware of certain places and buildings, says Leya.

“As much as the inner city was considered ‘dangerous’, it was the only place I could call home due to its diversity and acceptance of all people.”

Walking distance from his home was the iconic Ponte Tower, which he refers to as ‘The United States of Africa’.

“I was constantly reminded that if I don’t do well, I’ll end up in that building. At the time, the building was a symbol of failure,” says Leya.