When dawn broke over Lagos on that humid June morning, Omotoke Motunrayo Fatoki slung a single rucksack onto her shoulders and stepped into the hum of a city that never sleeps.
She carried no luxury gear— just a dream, unwavering determination and the conviction that an African woman from humble origins need not wait for permission to roam her continent.
Over the next six months, Omotoke Fatoki, the renowned travel storyteller known as the Alárìnká of Africa, journeyed by road through nine countries: Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, and finally, she stood beneath the vast desert sky of Namibia.
Every mile of her journey was funded by her savings, with the official travel partnership of Wema Bank and generous donations from her ever-supportive community.
Every border crossing navigated without a fixer, relying instead on the kindness of bus drivers, customs officers and strangers who became friends.
But this was never mere “adventure travel.” Volunteered and donated to the displaced people of Goma in the DRC. At roadside markets in Dar es Salaam, she recorded the songs of vendors whose names she’ll never forget. Through her platform Impact Adventurers, she livestreamed interviews, budget-hack tutorials (surviving on as little as ₦2,000 per day) and day-by-day reflections that turned each cramped bus berth into a forum for community.
“Travel doesn’t have to be expensive or exclusive,” she told me from Windhoek, her final stop. “You start where you are, with what you have. I want young Africans—especially women—to see that Africa’s wonders are within reach.”
Her feat builds on 2020’s landmark when she became the first woman to backpack all 36 Nigerian states—a journey that birthed a grassroots movement around accessible, purposeful travel.
Today, she packages every lesson into a new e-guide, Nigeria to Namibia by Road:
Itineraries for each leg, down to bus station names
Visa tips (from Cameroon’s unpredictable queues to Zambia’s visa-on-arrival hacks)
Transport options and approximate fares in CFA, shillings and kwacha
Budget worksheets so travellers can plan on under ₦2,500 per day
Safety notes and cultural pointers for solo women on the move
Yet Omotoke’s journey extends beyond individual empowerment. As a staunch advocate for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), she has seen firsthand how visa delays, opaque customs checks, and crumbling roads create more friction than a flight to Europe. “If AfCFTA is to succeed,” she insists, “intra-African travel must be easier, cheaper and fairer than flying to Paris.”
Her four concrete calls to action for Nigerian policymakers, FTAN and the Afcfta Secretariat:
Single African Visa to replace the patchwork of national permits.
Customs Reform—digital stamping and unified procedures to curb petty corruption.
Tourism Diplomacy—a Nigerian-led campaign positioning West Africa as a youth travel hub.
Infrastructure Investment—transnational highways and reliable bus corridors linking capitals.
For Nigeria—Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy—Omotoke’s overland odyssey is a soft-power masterstroke. It reframes Nigeria not just as an oil giant but as a gateway to a more connected, culturally vibrant continent. Her impressions of Namibia’s modern roads, efficient services and warm hospitality stand as proof that Africa’s promise far outshines the stereotypes.
“This journey is for everyone who’s ever felt travel was out of reach,” she says. “We don’t have to wait for visas to Europe—we have a beautiful continent right here.” With a backpack and belief, Omotoke Fatoki has shown that the road ahead belongs to those brave enough to walk it.
Omotoke Motunrayo Fatoki (the Alárìnká of Africa) is a Nigerian overland adventurer, storyteller and founder of Alárìnká Travel and Impact Adventurers. She was the first woman to backpack all 36 Nigerian states, completed a 70-day trek across West Africa, and has now traversed 23 African countries by road. On a mission to visit all 54 nations overland, she uses travel as a tool for impact, unity and connection.
Follow her journey on Instagram and Twitter [@Omotokefatoki], and explore her e-guide at Alarinka.com.
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