WHY ZANZIBAR?

Look closer and the opportunity becomes even more interesting.

Zanzibar is one of those rare destinations that can make an impression almost immediately.

White-sand beaches, extraordinary turquoise water, a warm tropical climate and the Indian Ocean create the setting. But Zanzibar offers much more than a beautiful coastline.

It combines an established international tourism industry, distinctive Swahili culture and history, increasing investment, an evolving economy and a property and hospitality market that is still developing.

For AVA Ventures, that combination is what makes Zanzibar particularly interesting.

The beauty may bring you here. The potential makes you look closer.

Natural beauty that cannot be recreated.

Location is one of the few elements of a property that cannot be manufactured.

Zanzibar has it in abundance.

Its beaches, tropical vegetation, coral reefs and Indian Ocean setting combine with historic Stone Town, Swahili architecture, spice farms, fishing villages and a culture shaped over centuries by African, Arab, Indian and European influences.

Different parts of the island also offer very different experiences — from established tourism centres and water-sports destinations to quiet stretches of coastline and secluded tropical settings.

For hospitality and property development, that diversity matters.

Buildings can be renovated. Interiors redesigned. Hospitality concepts repositioned.

But an extraordinary location is difficult to replace.

And perhaps Zanzibar's most fundamental advantage is the simplest:

People want to be there.

An established international destination with growing demand

Tourism sits at the heart of Zanzibar's economy.

Visitors arrive from Europe, Africa, the Middle East and further afield, attracted by the beaches, culture, history, marine environment and distinctive island lifestyle.

ZIPA currently reports more than 917,000 tourist arrivals, demonstrating the scale Zanzibar's tourism industry has already achieved. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

But tourism growth creates demand for much more than additional hotel rooms.

It creates opportunities for boutique hotels, villas, resorts, restaurants, wellness concepts, water sports, entertainment, experiences and professionally managed holiday properties.

For AVA, the opportunity is therefore not simply to participate in tourism growth.

It is to identify properties where location, design, renovation, repositioning or better management could create something travellers actively choose.

Zanzibar already attracts the visitors. The opportunity is to create the properties and experiences they will remember.

There is considerably more happening beyond the beach

Zanzibar may be internationally recognised for tourism, but behind the resorts is a substantial local business economy.

The latest official 2024 Updated Statistical Business Register recorded 41,428 establishments operating across Zanzibar. (National Bureau of Statistics)

That included approximately:

24,381 wholesale, retail and vehicle-related establishments
4,580 manufacturing establishments
2,531 accommodation and food-service establishments
1,048 financial and insurance establishments

And thousands more businesses operating across professional services, agriculture, construction, transport, education, health, entertainment and other sectors. (National Bureau of Statistics)

For an archipelago of approximately 2.1 million people, the scale and variety of this business base may surprise those who think of Zanzibar primarily as a holiday destination. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

Behind the beaches is a functioning and increasingly diverse commercial economy 

Manufacturing, industry and new sectors

Perhaps even more interesting than the number of businesses already operating is the direction Zanzibar wants its economy to take next.

The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar is actively promoting light manufacturing and industrial investment as part of its broader economic development strategy.

ZIPA identifies opportunities including food and agro-processing, packaging and canning, beverages, fish and marine products, dairy products, horticulture and other manufacturing activities. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

Free Economic Zones have also been established to attract private investment and support industrial development. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

There are already signs of expansion.

The official business register recorded 4,580 manufacturing establishments in Zanzibar in 2024, compared with 3,963 in the preceding comprehensive business census — an increase of approximately 15.6%. (National Bureau of Statistics)

This broader diversification matters to AVA.

A growing economy creates property requirements far beyond hotels and holiday villas.

Businesses need premises. Manufacturers need facilities. Employees need housing. Growing tourism needs suppliers. New industries require services, logistics and supporting infrastructure.

AVA's longer-term interest in Zanzibar therefore need not be confined exclusively to hospitality.

Tourism may attract the world's attention to Zanzibar. A diversifying economy could create opportunities far beyond the beach.

Foreign participation forms part of Zanzibar's development strategy

Zanzibar is actively seeking private and international investment across a range of sectors.

ZIPA currently promotes opportunities in areas including tourism, real estate development, manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture, energy, fisheries, the Blue Economy and the development of selected islets. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

The government has also established an electronic investment window intended to provide a more centralised route for investment applications, regulatory approvals and compliance requirements. (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)

Qualifying investments may be eligible for investment incentives under the applicable Zanzibar investment framework, depending on the nature, scale and approval of the individual project.

For AVA, this creates the possibility of looking beyond conventional holiday property.

As Zanzibar develops, opportunities may emerge around hospitality, residential development, commercial property, tourism infrastructure, industrial premises and other property-connected businesses.

The objective is not to pursue a particular sector simply because incentives exist.

The opportunity, location, structure and commercial logic must work together.

Unfinished projects. Underperforming properties. Exceptional locations.

This is where Zanzibar became particularly interesting to AVA.

During an early visit to Zanzibar several years ago, one thing was difficult to overlook: the number of partially completed hotels, guest houses and other developments across the island.

A local driver explained that some visitors fall in love with Zanzibar and embark on ambitious property or hospitality projects, only to discover that developing and operating successfully on an island can be considerably more complicated — and expensive — than originally anticipated.

That conversation stayed with me.

On subsequent visits, and through continued observation of the Zanzibar property market, more opportunities became apparent.

Unfinished hotels. Guest houses. Beachfront properties requiring renovation. Under-positioned hospitality businesses. Prime development land. And occasionally, opportunities whose location or potential make you stop and look twice.

Some require relatively modest intervention.

Others require levels of capital, expertise and execution that would be difficult for one individual to provide alone.

And that realisation ultimately became an important part of the thinking behind AVA Ventures.

The opportunity is what it could become

Not every opportunity needs to begin with vacant land and a new building.

An unfinished hotel may already contain much of the infrastructure required to create something exceptional.

A beachfront property may occupy a remarkable location but require renovation.

A small resort may have good fundamentals but suffer from outdated design, weak positioning or ineffective management.

An existing hotel may have potential under an entirely different hospitality concept.

Value can potentially be created through completion, renovation, repositioning, design, branding, improved operations and professional management.

AVA's objective is therefore not simply to find available property.

It is to identify unrealised potential.

What exists today is only part of the question. What could it become?

Secure. Complete. Renovate. Reposition. Lease. Develop.

Zanzibar presents another interesting characteristic: not every hospitality opportunity necessarily requires developing or securing a property from the ground up.

Hotels and guest houses can sometimes be available for lease or rent.

Where the economics and legal structure make sense, AVA could potentially lease an existing hospitality property, improve or reposition it where appropriate, and operate it as an AVA-managed hospitality business.

This could create a route into certain opportunities without the capital commitment associated with developing every project from scratch.

AVA may therefore consider opportunities involving:

COMPLETING an unfinished hotel or guest house.

RENOVATING an existing beachfront or hospitality property.

REPOSITIONING an underperforming hotel or resort.

LEASING & OPERATING an existing hospitality business where the commercial case supports it.

DEVELOPING strategically located land for an appropriate hospitality, residential or commercial concept.

CREATING a distinctive eco-tourism project where an exceptional location and responsible environmental approach make such a concept viable.

There need not be one predetermined formula.

The opportunity should determine the strategy — not the other way around.

Sometimes value is also about having another place to call home

Not everybody interested in Zanzibar will be motivated purely by investment returns.

For many people, having a second home in another country represents something more personal: another place to spend time, an alternative lifestyle, an international base and geographical diversification beyond their primary country of residence.

That idea may feel increasingly relevant during a period of geopolitical and economic uncertainty.

Zanzibar combines this possibility with an established tourism destination, tropical lifestyle and a property market that remains less mature than many long-established international island and resort destinations.

For suitable AVA projects, this could also connect with a simple philosophy:

OWN. ENJOY. EARN.

Depending on the structure of the individual project, owners may have the opportunity to enjoy their property personally during selected periods of the year while making it available to the tourism market when they are elsewhere.

With professional local property management, the property could therefore potentially serve two purposes:

A place to enjoy personally.

An income-producing asset when not in personal use.

A property does not necessarily have to be only an investment.

It can also become somewhere you genuinely want to be.

Internationally connected. A tradition of non-alignment.

Zanzibar forms part of the United Republic of Tanzania, a country whose foreign policy maintains a longstanding commitment to non-alignment, good neighbourliness, international cooperation and economic diplomacy. (Tanzania Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Zanzibar itself has been internationally connected for centuries, with African, Arab, Indian and European influences contributing to its distinctive identity.

Today it continues to attract travellers, businesses and investors from many different parts of the world.

No country or destination is immune from geopolitical, political or economic risk, and AVA does not suggest otherwise.

However, during a period of changing relationships between countries and increased global uncertainty, Tanzania's non-aligned international outlook may provide an additional point of interest for globally mobile people considering where to travel, establish businesses, own property or create a second base.

Connected to the world without being defined by one side of it.

And that is precisely part of the attraction

Zanzibar is still an evolving property and hospitality market.

For AVA, that is not necessarily a disadvantage.

In mature international resort destinations, many prime locations have already been extensively developed, competition can be intense and property values may reflect decades of institutional and international investment.

Zanzibar continues to evolve.

Infrastructure can improve. New international hospitality brands can enter. Previously overlooked areas can become established destinations. New industries can emerge. And exceptional locations can become increasingly difficult to secure.

But emerging-market opportunity also requires discipline.

Property and lease rights require careful verification. Infrastructure and utilities vary by location. Construction quality, access, planning requirements, development costs and commercial assumptions all require investigation.

Not every inexpensive property is a bargain.

Not every beautiful location is commercially viable.

Not every opportunity AVA investigates should become an AVA project.

Being prepared to walk away from the wrong opportunity is as important as recognising the right one. 

The best opportunity may simply be too large for one person

This was one of the important realisations behind AVA Ventures.

Some of the most compelling opportunities identified in Zanzibar have required substantially more capital than would be practical for one person to commit to a single project.

An unfinished hotel.

A remarkable beachfront property.

A resort requiring substantial redevelopment.

Prime development land capable of supporting a larger concept.

The question then changes.

Instead of asking:

“What can one person afford to pursue?”

AVA can ask:

“Is this opportunity compelling enough to bring the right partners together?”

Pooling capital can make larger opportunities accessible.

But collaboration can provide much more than money.

Architecture. Construction. Finance. Hospitality. Interior design. Marketing. Technology. Operations. Property management. Local knowledge.

Different people can contribute different strengths at different stages of a project.

Capital meets capability — with the opportunity as the common objective.

Zanzibar brings together characteristics that are rarely found in one destination.

Extraordinary natural beauty.

A strong and expanding international tourism market.

More than 41,000 operating business establishments across a surprisingly diverse economy.

A manufacturing sector the government is actively seeking to expand.

An investment strategy encouraging development across multiple sectors.

Unfinished and under-positioned properties where value may potentially be created.

Prime locations and development opportunities within a market that has not yet reached the maturity of many established international resort destinations.

The possibility, in suitable projects, of combining personal enjoyment with tourism income.

And an internationally connected destination within a country maintaining a longstanding tradition of non-alignment. 

Many of the world's best-known tropical island and coastal destinations have been attracting international property investment and large-scale development for decades.

In some of these mature markets, prime beachfront property has become exceptionally expensive, development opportunities increasingly scarce and entry prices difficult to justify for all but the wealthiest buyers. Their property values often reflect just how far those destinations have already developed.

Zanzibar appears to be at a different stage of that journey.

Compared with many mature international island destinations, attractive property and development opportunities can still appear at price levels that make Zanzibar particularly interesting. Unfinished projects, properties requiring repositioning and undeveloped locations also create possibilities that may be increasingly difficult to find in destinations that have already been extensively developed.

That does not mean Zanzibar property prices will inevitably rise, nor does a comparatively attractive price make a property a good investment.

But markets evolve.

As tourism expands, infrastructure develops, international investment increases and exceptional locations become more difficult to secure, today's availability and pricing should not be assumed to remain  

unchanged indefinitely.

For AVA, that creates an important balance between patience and timing.

We should never rush into a property simply because it is available. Every opportunity must justify itself through appropriate investigation, due diligence, commercial logic and structure.

But when an exceptional opportunity has been properly assessed and the fundamentals make sense, we should also be capable of acting decisively.

Responsible does not have to mean slow.

None of these factors individually guarantees a successful investment.

Together, however, they create a destination that AVA believes deserves serious attention at this particular stage of its development.

And AVA's interest in Zanzibar is not theoretical.

We have visited. We have looked. We have seen the opportunities. We continue to follow the market — and we intend to be on the ground.

The objective is not to pursue every opportunity.

It is to recognise the exceptional ones, investigate them responsibly and be ready to act when the opportunity justifies it.