Our safari guides are permanent staff at Nature Discovery; a group of professionals who are passionate to share the wonders of northern Tanzania’s rich wildlife and diverse landscapes. They receive training from naturalists, conservation specialists, professional safari guides, wilderness doctors and even psychologists, on the varied skills which make for superlative safari guiding.

Our team is comprised of nine driver-guides and four walking guides, most of whom have been with us for over ten years and have an impressive resume of experience as well as detailed knowledge of the legendary African bush found in Serengeti National Park and surrounds, plus the special tucked-away places off the main tourist tracks.

The driver guides spend at least six full months of each year on safari in northern Tanzania’s game parks and reserves, building their bush knowledge and experience. They are all keen observers and game spotters, and impressive game trackers too. We pride ourselves on safe driving principles, including providing seat belts on every seat of our fleet of Toyota Land Cruiser safari vehicles.

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Lazaro Mbise

Lazaro MbiseMbise is Tanzanian of the Meru tribe. He was born in northern Tanzania on the 10th of February of 1949, in Nkoaranga Village on the south slopes of Mount Meru. He grew up in the same village where he completed his primary education. Mbise completed form four (O level) in 1969 at Enaboishu Secondary School in Arusha.

Afterwards, he joined the armed forces until 1979, where he was posted to serve in the war between Tanzania and Uganda in 1977. In 1980, after his service ended, he returned home to take care of his family as a farmer of coffee, bananas, maize, and beans. In 1982 he attended Mount Meru Tour Guiding School, which was the start of his career in guided safaris. He is married with six children, and lives in Arusha.

Mbise began guiding in 1985 and joined us in 1997 as a driver guide. Every year, he spends at least six full months in the game parks and reserves, building his bush knowledge and experience. He is an extremely knowledgeable safari guide, a keen birder and game spotter, and a most careful driver. His great sense of humor and depth of bush knowledge makes him your perfect safari companion. The cheetah is his favorite animal, because of its blinding speed when hunting.

Mbise has received training and attended workshops and courses in the flora and fauna of Tanzania, first aid, and courses in vehicle mechanics. He has recently attended and trained in an intensive wilderness first aid course at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha.

Joseph Panda

Joseph PandaPanda is a Tanzanian from the Iraqw tribe which occupies the Arusha and Manyara regions near Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Manyara national parks.

Panda was born 48 years ago in the Karatu district and attended both primary and secondary school in Moshi. He joined Ifunda Technical College in the Mbeya region where he obtained a teaching diploma. Panda also took special courses for tourism and French language, where he obtained an advance diploma from Alliance Francais.

Panda is the father of three children, has been married 20 years, and he likes jogging and playing soccer.

He has been a guide since 1997 where he worked for two other companies before joining Nature Discovery in 2015.
Panda attended various courses including Wildlife Management at Alliance Francais, refresher courses at MWEKA college, and First Aid by the Tanzanian Road and Health department, and Red Cross Tanzania

He has attended Emergency First Aid and SOPs for both variants of Covid-19 organized by the Tanzania Tour Guide Association (TTGA), Global Health Tanzania and Red Cross Tanzania

Flora and fauna are his favourite subjects, and he enjoys taking people to the bush to observe the wildlife and says he never gets bored as he is a true friend of nature. Panda still gets excited every time he spots something exciting or rare, and he knows how to approach animals stealthily while still respecting his conservational mind.

Japhet Maleko

Japhet MalekoJaphet is Tanzanian, of the Masai tribe. He was born in Olorien Village on the slopes of Mount Meru, in northern Tanzania on the 7th of February 1954. He grew up in this village and attended primary school there. He attended Enaboishu Secondary School in Arusha, and then took some courses in ecology and wildlife.

He began his career in tourism in 1986, when he joined the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge as a guide for 2 years. He then moved back to Arusha in 1989 and worked for another safari company until he joined Nature Discovery as a driver-guide in 1996. Japhet is amongst the most dedicated, qualified and knowledgeable of any Tanzanian safari guides. His depth of expertise of Tanzania and all its wild places is unparalleled. He is a birding enthusiast and his scope of knowledge on the subject is simply amazing. Japhet understands the subtleties which make for an outstanding experience in the bush. Japhet’s favourite animal is the giraffe because of its grace.

Japhet has received rigorous training in Tanzania’s rich flora and fauna as well as in first-aid. He has recently attended and trained in an intensive wilderness first-aid course at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha and annually he joins our in-house training for First-Aid.

Japhet Maleko

Japhet Maleko, driver-guide at ND since 1996

 

Henry Jackson

Henry JacksonHenry is Tanzanian, of the WaArusha tribe. The WaArusha carry the same customs and traditions of the Massai, but instead of a nomadic lifestyle, they are farmers. Henry was born in northern Tanzania in October, 1978, in Kiranyi Village, at the foot of Mount Meru. He grew up in Kiranyi village and attended Olchoki Primary School and secondary school at Ngateu, completing form four (O level). He attended language courses at the Alliance Francaise for three years, and also at the same time studied in a tour guiding college and driving school. He currently lives with his family in Kiranyi Village.

Henry entered the tourism business in 2004 with Nature Discovery as a French Speaking Tour Leader. After extensive time spent in the bush for two years, and lots of driving practice, we made him a driver guide in 2006. Henry is a knowledgeable safari guide, a keen game spotter and a safe driver. His consistently professional and careful manner is appreciated by all. The lion is his favorite animal in the bush. He admires its power and symbolic strength.

Henry has received training from a professional guiding school in Arusha, where he studied first aid and attended workshops and courses in the flora & fauna of Tanzania. He has recently attended and trained in an intensive wilderness first-aid course at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha and annually he joins our in-house training for First-Aid. He is a proficient French-speaking guide with many years’ experience working in the bush showing guests the wonders of Northern Tanzania with his extensive knowledge of wildlife, birdlife and the flora and fauna.

Henry said he always wanted to be a safari guide since he was a little boy. He grew up listening to his father’s guiding stories and took an interest in learning about the flora and fauna of Tanzania at an early age. Henry truly enjoys his work as a guide and strives to be the best. He continues to take courses in French and Tanzanian wildlife to further his knowledge. He says he is lucky that his favourite hobby can now be his full-time job. Many guests have described him as a comedian, a linguist, and an expert on Tanzania and its wildlife.

Japhet Maleko

Henry Jackson, driver-guide at ND since 2004

Ephata Mollel

Ephata Mollel

Ephata is Tanzanian, of the WaArusha tribe. The WaArusha carry the same customs and traditions of the Maasai, but instead of a nomadic lifestyle, they are farmers. Ephata was born in northern Tanzania on the 9th of October 1963, in Monduli Chini Village, at the foot of Monduli Mountain. He grew up in Monduli village until he was six, then his family moved to the village Ngaramtone Juu, just north of Arusha, where he finished his primary education. He attended Enaboishu Boys Secondary School in Arusha, where he completed form four (O level). Afterwards he attended college in Moshi- the Central Cooperative College, graduating in 1988 with a diploma in accounting and auditing. He is married with five children.

Ephata served in the military for one year and then entered the tourism business, as his family had a history of being tour guides. He joined us in 1998 as a driver guide, and every year spends many months in the game parks and reserves, building his bush knowledge and experience. Ephata is an extremely knowledgeable safari guide, a keen game spotter, and a safe driver. His pleasant and thoughtful nature makes him your perfect safari companion. Ephata speaks four languages fluently: English, French, Kiswahili, and Kima, the language of the Maasai. The leopard is his favorite animal in the bush. He admires its hunting skills, and of course its beautiful coat and its camouflage when stalking prey.

Ephata has received training from a professional guiding school in Arusha and attended workshops and courses in the flora & fauna of Tanzania, and first-aid. He has recently attended and trained in an intensive wilderness first-aid course at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha.

Japhet Maleko

Ephata Mollel, driver-guide at ND since 1998

Peter Ngotio

Peter Ngotio

Peter is Tanzanian, of the Chagga tribe. He was born on the 27th of June 1960 in Marangu-Kilema, 5km from the Mt Kilimanjaro boundary. He attended Kilimanjaro Boys Secondary School in Moshi where he completed form four (O level). During his school holidays, his father said that all boys must climb Kilimanjaro as a porter to earn their own pocket money, so he did this as a part-time job. After completing his education, he attended Morogoro teachers training college in the central Tanzanian highlands, graduating after 2 years in 1980 with a diploma in education.

He worked as a teacher in Shinyanga near Lake Victoria for a number of years before beginning his guiding career in 1988 as he was passionate about Tanzania’s rich wildlife and diverse landscapes. He received a lot of training on guiding, mechanics, safety driving and landscapes, paying attention to how not to get lost in the bush. He joined us as our first driver-guide in 1992 and every year spends numerous months in the game parks and reserves, building his bush knowledge and experience.

Peter is an extremely knowledgeable safari guide, a keen observer and game spotter, and a safe driver. His knowledge of Tanzania and all its wild places is unparalleled. He has an amazing rapport with his safari guests and understands the subtleties which make for an outstanding experience in the bush. Peter’s favorite animal in Tanzania’s wilderness is the cheetah because of its grace and speed, and the fact that it’s relatively docile when you encounter it in the bush, compared to the Big Five, which are notoriously aggressive. Cheetahs only kill when they are hungry and when they have had their fill, they leave their prey for other predators.

Peter has received training from the professional guiding school in Dar es Salaam, and attended workshops and courses in mechanics, Leave No Trace principles, the flora & fauna of Tanzania, human adaptive behaviour and client care, psycho-social and emergency first-aid and, of course, theory and practical driving courses. He has recently attended and trained in an intensive wilderness first-aid course at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha. Annually he joins our in-house first-aid training.

Gaspard Donatus Umbu

Gaspard Donatus Umbu

Gaspard was born in 1966 and is of the Iraku Tribe, one of the most famous tribes found in northern Tanzania. He had his primary education at Rhotia Primary School in Karatu district and completed his secondary education in Sanu Seminary in Mbulu where he was awarded his “A level” certificate in 1992. Afterwards, he attended major and senior seminary in France for 6 years. Gaspard is married and has four children.

On his return to Tanzania from France, he attended courses at the Big Five Institute to study tourism and tour guiding courses. He started to work as a tour guide in Arusha from 2004, and in 2009 he joined Nature Discovery where he has worked since.

Each year he spends at least six full months in the same parks and reserves building his bush knowledge and experience. Gaspard is an extremely knowledgeable safari guide, a safe driver, and speaks fluent French and English. He enjoys sharing the Tanzanian bush with visitors from around the world. A bit of a globetrotter himself, Gaspard has travelled to many countries, including Kenya, Italy, France, and Israel.

Gaspard’s favorite animal is the leopard. Apart from being so elusive, it is also such a majestic creature. One of his favourite attributes is how they are always self-grooming and keeping themselves clean.

Gaspard annually attends workshops and courses in the flora and fauna of Tanzania and regularly does First-Aid courses. Anyone who has travelled with Gaspard knows his love for his country and the warmth for his clients on every safari.

Japhet Maleko

Gaspard Donatus Umbu, driver-guide at ND since 2008

Nelvin E. Ngowi

Nelvin

Nelvin was born on 14th of April 1991 and raised in a small rural village in the Kilimanjaro Region. He is of the Chagga Tribe which is the second largest tribe among more than 120 different tribes found in Tanzania.

The Chagga tribe is based around the base of Mount Kilimanjaro. Apart from being very astute businesspeople, some of them cultivate coffee, bananas, maize, beans, and more, on their farms. Many Chagga members who do not get into business occupy themselves by guiding mountain trekking tourists on Mount Kilimanjaro.

Nelvin completed his primary and secondary education in Kenya and once complete returned to Tanzania where he started studying French, English and Tourism.

His relationship with tourism began when he had his first pet dog when he was ten years old and fell in love with animals. Nelvin now has 2 pet dogs Taiko and Icare, as well as a cat. He first started to care for animals and then to study them. He became a tour guide when he completed his tourism and wildlife certificates from Nairobi Institute and Patience Academy based in Arusha.

Nelvin is a registered professional tour guide and driver in Northern Tanzania and has more than 10 years experience in guiding. Nelvin is regularly recommended to other tourists who wish to travel to Tanzania due to his friendly nature, good humor and care.

His favourite animal is the elephant, as they are very intelligent, and as long as they are not disturbed, they remain very placid. Nelvin is very concerned with poaching of elephants and wishes to make a difference one day by starting his own anti-poaching project.

Nelvin is hardworking and loves his career and looks forward to guiding future tourists for many years.

Japhet Maleko

Nelvin E. Ngowi, driver-guide at ND