Uganda Tourism News

A rare species of white elephants has been spotted in Queen Elizabeth National Park in South Western Uganda. The elephants were spotted by a group of tourists in Ishasha sector, which is also famous for tree climbing lions. There is a biggest concentration of animals in the Uganda  National parks, almost all parks except Lake Mburo National Park having the elephants. Kibale National Park and Bwindi impenetrable national park, famous for Chimpanzee tracking and Gorilla tracking respectively, have forest elephants. Whereas Murchison falls national park, Kidepo National park and Queen Elizabeth National park contain the black species of the elephants.

White elephant species are commonly found in Asia, but with the spotting of this specie in Queen Elizabeth National park, it is a great development to the tourism industry in Uganda.

Following the restoration of peace in Northern Uganda, tourism in the area has slowly started to improve. The Northern region was ravaged with instability for the last two decades, but with the defeat of Lord’s resistance army, peace has been restored and now tourists are free to go in the region without any fears. The northern region has many tourists’ attractions, like Kidepo National Park, Murchison falls National Park which covers part of the northern region, and other game reserves which all a good for wildlife tours and birding tours. Northern region also is reach in cultural tours and nature walks.

There are now good tourist hotels being built in the area, and being proxy to Southern Sudan which has just attained independence as an independent state from Northern Sudan, the tourists stop in Northern Uganda en route to Southern Sudan. The Southern part of Uganda was in early years once affected by insurgences which scared away tourists from going three especially for Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi impenetrable National park and Mgahinga National Park.

Two more habituated Mountain Gorilla groups have been established in southern Bwindi impenetrable national park bringing the number of groups in Southern Bwindi to two. According to the Uganda Wildlife Authority, the two groups will be officially launched in November this year, and this will increase the number of Gorilla Tracking permits to 72 per day, as the number of habituated groups will be nine, each group allowing a maximum of 8 people per day. The new groups are Oruzogo and Kahungye, and this makes Uganda among the three Mountain Gorilla countries the one that sells more gorilla tracking permits.

Rwanda has currently seven habituated groups in Volcanoes national park, where as DR Congo has 6 habituated groups in Virunga National park. Gorilla tracking is the major tourist activity in Uganda, though there are other tourist attractions like wildlife tours, Mountaineering, Birding tours and sightseeing as well as cultural tours.

At the end of this month, Ugandans will have an opportunity to visit Uganda National parks and other wildlife and forest reserves to watch different species of birds available. This has been arranged in an effort to boost Birding in Uganda, thereby improving on the tourism industry.

According to Mr.Stephen Masaba, the acting director of tourism and business services in Uganda Wildlife authority(UWA), this Birding activity will help Ugandans acquaint themselves with the knowledge of different bird species which will assist in selling them to the international community.

Birding is one of the tourism activities that contribute a lot of money into the industry, second to Gorilla Tracking. This is due to the fact that, tourists interested in Birding tour, take longer in the country, and visit many National parks and reserves, thereby spending more in entry fees to different parks, accommodation, transport, hence increased income into the country.

Some of the areas that have been listed to be visited include; Bwindi Impenetrable national park, Mgahinga national park,  Katonga and Kyambura Wildlife Reserves,  Rwenzori National Park, Mabira Forest Reserves,  Semliki National park,   Lutembe Bay, Kumbu Forest, Kibimba,   Lake Mburo National Park,  Entebbe Peninsula,   Kidepo National Park,  Kawanda-Namulonge, Mbarara University of Science and Technology Mt.Elgon National Park,  Bahai Temple,  Rwenzori Bottling Company Namanve, Murchison falls national park among others.

Kenya wildlife authority (KWA) announced the increase of park entry fees to USD80 from USD60 effective this month. This decision has not been welcomed by the tour operators arguing that the timing is bad and they have not been consulted in the decision. The Tour Operators say that this increase is going to affect their business since most of them already made the bookings and already charged little money from their clients.

The has been general increase in the prices in the whole of East African region, with Uganda National parks entry fees being the first to be raised following the increased cost of administration.

Kenya mostly leads the region in wildlife tours, where as Uganda, Rwanda are famous for Gorilla Tracking tours with the mountain gorillas only found in Volcanoes national park in Rwanda, Mgahinga national park and Bwindi impenetrable national park in Uganda.

Local residents in Kiruhura district begged the president to assist them in curbing on the wild animals destroying their crops and water sources. The residents argue that the animals from Lake Mburo national Park escape and destroy their plantations.

They said that they have often talked to Uganda wildlife authority(UWA) officials to fence the park in vain. UWA officials have kept them on empty promises, and argued that they will be forced to start killing the wild animals if UWA cannot hid to their requests.

This is not the first stand off by the residents neighboring the Uganda National parks to complain about the wild animals. Residents neighboring Queen Elizabeth National Park, Murchison falls national park have often complained of the same.

The Batwa community who were evicted from Bwindi impenetrable national park, famous for gorilla tracking are still on standoff with UWA claiming to be relocated in a better settlement.

Court convicted the three people who killed the Mountain Gorilla with a light penalty of only USD20 each, a thing that has infuriated Uganda Wildlife Authority officials.

The three killed one of the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a silverback that belonged to the Habinyanja family, leaving the group with no heir.

The official said that though they were not going to appeal the case, they were not happy with the conviction, since the judges showed insensitivity of the effort to conserve the life of the endangered Mountain Gorillas.

Mountain Gorillas earn a lot of money to the country through the sale of Gorilla Tracking Permits. Poaching continue to be a major problem threatening the live of animals in the Uganda national Parks, which affects the tourism industry.

The Batwa in Kisoro in South western Uganda are demanding for land to settle on after they were evicted from Bwindi Impenetrable national park.

The Batwa were evicted in a bid to conserve the forest, which is a habitat for half of the remaining world‘s mountain Gorillas.

The demand was revealed by there chairman during the launch of Bwindi Community Map, which documents parts of the park and its biodiversity as well as the Batwa traditional knowledge, showing caves, gold sites, burial sites, hot springs, grinding stones, medicinal plants and the forbidden places in the park. All these help in the cultural tour.

The Batwa were hunters who lived in the Bwindi impenetrable forest park and Mgahinga National Park, but with the government’s effort to conserve the forests for the Endangered Mountain Gorillas, they were evicted out of the park, and only given free land outside, and allowed only limited activities in the forest.

Mountain Gorillas earn a lot of foreign exchange through sale of Gorilla tracking permits. Visitors who go Bwindi impenetrable national park and Mgahinga national park also enjoy Batwa cultural Trails who entertain them and showcase their culture.

Kenyan police and other security operatives arrested three poachers with Ivory on the way to Nairobi capital. Poaching is a major threat to the wildlife Parks in East Africa. In Kenya it has increased in recent months, and only last KWS established an anti poaching camp in Laikipia district to hunt for poachers now sneaking into conservancies with rhinos, while intensifying intelligence gathering on a broader scale to curb the menace. Over five tons of blood ivory has been burnt at Kenya Wildlife service camp in Tsavo East National park. This campaign is aimed at promoting wildlife conservation and promoting tourism in the region. Poaching in Uganda is also a major problem, with last months, over ten elephants found dead in Queen Elizabeth National park without their ivory. A Mountain Gorilla was also killed in Ruhija in Bwindi Impenetrable National park by the poacher. Mountain Gorillas are the major foreign income earner through the sale of Gorilla tracking permits. In the 1980s, Rhinos were killed to extinction in Murchison Falls National park and Kidepo National park as a result of poaching.

Over 64 residents have been equipped with various skills including anti poaching patrols in Longido District in northern Tanzania. The trained residents will help in curbing down on the spread of poaching in the Wildlife parks.

Parks where they will help include Mt Kilimanjaro National park, Arusha National park. and Amboseli National park.

The widespread poaching was attributed to the neighboring Kenyans, who the authorities say cross from Kenya into Tanzania to poach, an allegation the Kenyan observers refute.

Poaching continues to be a major problem in the tourism industry, in most of the East African Countries, with most animals endangered. Examples of endangered animals include the Mountain Gorillas found in Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park, Mgahinga national park in Uganda, Volcanoes national park in Rwanda.

Other animals affected by poaching are the Rhinos which were poached to extinction in Murchison falls national park and Kidepo national park in Uganda. Mountain Gorillas earn a lot of foreign exchange in the tourism sector through sell of Gorilla tracking permits.