Who we are
Access Africana's mission is to provide principled, accessible, and affordable tours & experiential learning to Africa and her Diaspora.
PRINCIPLED: We are a black-0wned tour operator informed by Black Consciousness & ecologically mindful sensibilities. Therefore, we seek to minimize the exploitative nature that much of the tourism industry is based on. Our experiences are as immersive as possible, considerate of the people, land, and cultures we interact with, and we match the fun and excitement we provide on our tours with authentic connections to the people, histories, cultures and consciousness found in our host countries. We also partner with local, Black-0wned and women-owned vendors where possible.
ACCESSIBLE: We believe that it is our birthright to be able to return and visit to the continent that we never voluntarily left and build stronger relationships with our distant relatives in the Diaspora. Therefore, we strive to eliminate as many barriers as possible for our Access travel family. This means that all our travel experiences include the following for FREE:
extensive pre-departure voluntary education, cultural orientation, and group bonding opportunities
hands-on passport, visa, and immunization guidance
flexible payment plans and payment methods
AFFORDABLE: We have struck a balance between profitability and accessibility for our people. This means offering our unparalleled experiences at prices within reach of as large a segment of our population as possible. Inflation and economic conditions do fluctuate and we adjust accordingly to ensure that our tours are still attainable.
A message from Our founder and ceo
Peace Access Family,
I’m Ani Mwalimu and I am grateful that your interest led you here. My journey back to Africa began with influences from my parents, Robert and Molly Wallace. Despite being born in Augusta, Georgia, my dad was raised on military bases in Germany until he was 12 and returned to the 1965 Jim Crow/Civil Rights Movement South. At the age of 13, he was thrust into the struggle for human rights when he joined the first class of youth to desegregate Richmond County Academy. After white violence disrupted their learning environment, my father returned to Lucy Craft Laney High School. Having been raised around the craters of WWII Europe and then being confronted with the brutal systems perpetuated by white supremacy in the US, my father’s critical worldview took shape. He never quite fit in socially which ushered him to the oasis that literature and poetry can provide. He often told me that it was books which helped him make sense of the senseless world he had to navigate. This is how he developed his foundational love of history and poetry; A love he would pass to me at an early age.
I remember reading Black Indians in 5th grade and in middle school my father telling me my teachers were lying to me about my history. He commanded that I should always do well on their tests but never believe the answers I was writing. He told me I’ll only ever know my history by studying it personally. After exposure to the literature and references of Fanon, Dubois, and Clarke in high school along with the influence of Dead Prez, Black Star, and KRS One in my senior year, I was determined to study abroad in Ghana when I got to college. Thanks to a sizable scholarship provided by Occidental College, I was able to enroll in the SIT African Diasporic Studies Program based at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. (For greater context about the transformative nature of this experience, you can view the first few minutes of my TEDx talk below). In short, since my five months in Ghana in 2004, I’ve dedicated my life to teaching about Pan-Africanism and the right of my fellow descendants of enslaved Africans to return to the continent and reconcile our history in order to build up a more accurate and dynamic self-identity and future. The dedication, courage, and sacrifice required to follow through with this mission came from my mother. She taught me first-hand through her life what the true definition of courage is and how taking control of your life can lead to blessings and life-altering experiences for other people.
I was a high school history and English teacher, dean of students, vice principal, youth minister, librarian, and chess coach. I began leading tours in 2008 at Boston International High School when we took youth to the Dominican Republic focusing on research related to Haitian batey communities. The next year, I founded the NGO Pan-African Connections. Under this banner I led my first youth group to Ghana in 2010. In 2015, I led my first adult tour consisting of a large group of friends. Since then, Access Africana was born and in total we’ve led more than 10 tours to Ghana, Barbados, and the Dominican Republic. So far, our Access Travel Family has come from 11 states including the West Coast, South, Midwest, and East Coast.
In February of 2023, with the travel impacts of the pandemic subsided, I left my day job to expand the capacity of Access Africana full time. Our vision is to provide the opportunity for all black youth in the U.S. to experience Ghana and other areas of the Diaspora. Profits from our adult tours (25%) help to provide scholarships for black youth who cannot afford their travel. We are also expanding our destinations and types of tours starting on the continent with Ethiopia and South Africa and in the Caribbean/South America to Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Brazil. If you’ve read this far, I guarantee you, as much as an stranger can, you’ll thank yourself for the rest of your life if you prioritize returning to Africa, in particular, Ghana. Due to the context of Access’ long-standing relationship with Ghana, in addition to our unique approach to adult group travel, we stand by our claim to offer you an unparalleled, life-changing experience there. More important though than WHO you go with, are the powerful words of Oleta Adams, “I don’t care how you get here, just get here if you can.”
