Safari Real Estate Brief | Making Safari Real Estate an Investable Asset Class: Legal Structure

For safari real estate to be taken seriously as an asset class, the structure has to be efficient and obvious. We want to remove as much ambiguity, perceived or real, as possible. 

Over the past years, we have experimented with multiple capital structures in Tanzania. 

We have worked with:

• International loan agreements

• Convertible notes, similar in spirit to SAFE structures

• Direct equity investments at the project level

Each structure solved a problem and moved us forward, but none felt refined or like a final solution.

Then we thought what ultimately matters to investorst:

• Familiar structure and jurisdiction

• Capital protection

• Clear governance

• Predictable cash flow mechanics

• Simplicity

• Regulatory compliance across jurisdictions

That led us to settle on a classic real estate private equity structure, adapted to the Tanzanian context.

The Chosen Model

We now structure investments through a US-based Delaware entity, which acts as the holding company.

• Investors (LPs) and the General Partner (GP) invest into the US entity

• The US entity owns the Tanzanian safari asset

• The Tanzanian entity holds:

• The licence to operate

• The physical asset

• Property level staff

This provides a familiar legal framework for international investors, while remaining fully compliant locally. It is also clean from an accounting perspective as the profit loss and the balance is fully segregated.

The Waterfall of Cash Flows

Returns follow a straightforward and widely understood waterfall:

1. Return of invested capital

2. 8% preferred return to investors

3. 60 / 40 split of excess returns

• 60% to LPs

• 40% to GP

In Tanzania, interest rates which govern preferred returns in this structure are regulated.

The Bank of Tanzania typically expects interest rates to sit within a reasonable band, usually around 8–10%, depending on the specific structure and documentation. Interest rates are subject to a 10% withholding tax while the principal repayments are tax free.

Why This Matters for Tanzania

If Tanzania wants to attract serious long-term capital into safari and conservation-linked real estate, the industry needs repeatable, credible structures.

Not every investor is looking for venture-style risk.
Many are looking for:

• Hard assets

• Cash flow

• Jurisdictional clarity

• Alignment between operators and capital

Safari real estate can deliver this, but only if it is structured properly.

In my opinion, that is how an experience-driven safari industry becomes an investable asset class.

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