Why Kenya is a billionaire's playground

**Chris Hemsworth and family in Kenya** [Hemsworth/Twitter]

Madonna

The renowned pop icon visited Kenya at the beginning of the year to check on her philanthropic works in Kibera. Pictures of her gazing across the rusty rooftops were splashed across local and global media outlets. But all work and no play would have made the 64-year-old icon a very bored person. Together with her children, Madonna helped create a large mural to honour the work of Kennedy Odede, founder of Shining Hope for Communities [Shofco]. "My children created a mural of broken glass in Kibera in honour of the great work that Kennedy Odede - is doing @shofco, an organization he created when he was a child living in the slums of Nairobi to improve the lives of families living in these challenging conditions," she said.

Madonna is not new to Kenya and in 2021, spent some time in Samburu, on the banks of the Uaso Nyiro River where she fully immersed herself in local culture and performing rituals with local warriors. She branded herself as 'mpenzi' or lover in Swahili, perhaps after falling in love with the best nature has to offer, or perhaps by being taken in by one Samburu woman's eloquence who narrated the virtues of a happy family. She mingled with dancers from nearby Pokot and could not hide her joy at the synchronised foot thumping of the agile dancers. "Was a special moment for all of us. They invited us to dance with them and shared their daily prayer of thanks," she captioned one of her photos. She even threw in a visit to the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary where she shared in feeding the orphaned elephants.

Richard Branson

Branson is one of the most eccentric billionaires, a daredevil who, even at the age of 72, has the ambitions of a college graduate. Nothing is off limits: dropping from the sky in balloons, kite surfing in stormy seas, flying into space, or hiking the world's highest peaks.

It is the latter that brought him to Kenya in October 2022. After climbing the highest peaks in Europe, the British tycoon set his sights on Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest. He may have underestimated the climb though, as there is no picnic on Mount Kenya.

After a sumptuous breakfast at Embu's Izaac Walton Inn, Branson and his son Sam and nephew Noah embarked on what was perhaps the billionaire's toughest mission ever, one meant to raise money for the Strive Challenge, an education charity. Branson braved the biting cold and the rain, and at some point, questioned if he had made the right call.

Samuel Eto'o

In April 2022, former Cameroonian international footballer Samuel Eto'o and his family were seen vacationing at the Billionaire Resort and Retreat in Malindi. Using a Kenyan-registered private charter plane, Eto'o, like all the other celebrity visits, jetted into and out of Malindi quietly, only releasing a photo of the family posing beside the plane on the tarmac. The Malindi resort posted on the photo: "Looking forward to welcoming you back in Malindi soon!" Confidentiality clauses by celebrities and their travel agents require details of such profile visits to be kept secret with only snippets released long after they have flown back home. Failure to honour such agreements could cost the travel agency millions through litigation.