National geographic names Uganda among the top ten destinations for wildlife

Uganda again hits back among the prestigious tourist destinations in the world after being listed among the top ten (10) destinations for wildlife along with the whole of East Africa by the re-known National Geographic. The Pearl of Africa had received a similar accolade in the year 2012 as the number one destination in the world by the Lonely Planet something that boosted safaris in Uganda
The National Geographic lists Uganda among the top ten must see wildlife destinations on a global scale which is a positive endeavor to the exploration of the famous Uganda Safari parks including Kidepo Valley National Park – the Africa’s best according to the CNN.
The destination Uganda stands as the only country with the count of two (2) gorilla parks namely Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla which form a rich ground for gorilla trekking safaris in Uganda. In addition to the two parks, Uganda features other eight National Parks of which four are complete savannah habitats with extensive wild game and these include Kidepo Valley National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park and Lake Mburo National Park. These present remarkable ground for wildlife Uganda safaris.
The Kibale National Park stands as the primate capital of the world with 13 primate Species which include great count of habituated Chimpanzees. The Semliki National Park to the Congo boarder in the west of the country also presents a great bio diverse environment with rich primate count. The adventure destinations of Mount Rwenzori standing as the third highest peak on the continent of Africa towering to 5,109m above sea level covered by snow along with Mount Elgon standing as the fourth peak in East Africa with the largest volcanic mountain caldera on the world scale not forgetting the three volcanic mountains of Muhabura, Sabyinyo and Gahinga that is part of the Virunga Massif that features eight mountains.
The accolade of National Geographic features the gorilla trekking in Uganda as among their listed top ten (10) recommendations and on the continent of Africa, it is only Madagascar that is also mentioned. The other destinations on the list include; Canada, Mexico, Hawaii, New Mexico in the United States, Alaska, Scotland, Falkland Islands and Trinidad.
The Uganda gorilla safaris have benefited from the single East African Tourism Visa that covers the entrance to Rwanda and Kenya also. Apart from the single visa, Uganda offers low season permits at $350 from the usual price of $600 for the non-resident foreigners, $300 from $500 for the resident foreigners and 150,000/= from the 250,000/= for the citizens of the East African Community. All these have made safaris to Uganda easier and cheaper.

Hilton kampala hotel set to open in december 2015

The Hilton Hotel Kampala positioned on Nakasero Hill with all round views of Kampala city stands as one of the largest accommodation establishments in Kampala that have the potential of providing a considerable overnight stay for the range of travelers on safaris in Uganda.
Despite the numerous construction delays in the finishing of Hilton Hotel which was started with the aim of accommodating the dignitaries during the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the hotel has eventually come to accomplishment and the officials believe that it will open in December generating a minimum of 2,000 jobs and present additional up class accommodation to the Uganda safari undertakers.
The Aya group boss Mohamed Hamid has confirmed the official opening of Hilton Hotel in the month of December 2015. The proprietors believe that the hotel will enhance the hospitality image of Uganda which would in turn attract more travelers to plan safaris to Uganda.
Uganda still features low bed count and limited upscale accommodation units which partly affects her tourism and hospitality sector. Now, with the opening of such International chains of hotels like Hilton, Uganda is on the move to better her industry standards. The limited accommodation facilities results into increased accommodation tariffs that have always put the image of Uganda as an expensive destination which in turn affects the bed occupancy rate.
Hilton Hotel will stand as a fine luxury 5 star hotel in Kampala featuring a palm lined road leading to a domed five storey atrium along with 22 sculpted storey tower. Hilton Hotel features 272 luxury suites and the guestrooms presenting a range of facilities including three (3) restaurants, two (2) entertainment bars, an extensive health and beauty spa along with meeting and conference facilities taking over 1,000 delegates not forgetting the ballrooms for the private functions which will be open to all intending visitors including those on Uganda safaris.
The Hilton Hotel features a floor area of over 32,000m² and 23 floors. Uganda will come second to Kenya to possess the Hilton brand in the East and Central of Africa. Hilton Hotels & Resorts feature a range of over 550 hotels and resorts in over 80 countries in six (6) continents. Therefore, its opening in Kampala brings a lot of expertise and popularity not only for Kampala but for Uganda in general which will in turn increase the safaris and tours to Uganda

Ugandan locals to be trained about taping into tourism revenue

The Tourism bodies of Uganda have unleashed the move to embark on the training of communities that neighbor the Uganda safari sites as a strategic effort to curb wildlife poaching
The Ministry of Tourism Wildlife and Antiquities along with its agencies including the Uganda Tourism Board and the Uganda Wildlife Authority have already built Rwere Community Training Center worth $280million at the famous Uganda gorilla safari destination of Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in the district of Kisoro.
The newly built center according to Dr. Andrew Seguya the Uganda Wildlife Authority Chief intends to equip the residents of the area with the artisan skills like making of crafts such as ports and the portraits which attract the travelers on safaris in Uganda to buy.
The government aims at making these communities benefit from the travelers on safari in Uganda to enhance their individual livelihoods. This in turn will make them appreciate the significance of conservation and wildlife and desist from poaching.
The training center in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is just the beginning of the initiative that will roll to other national parks to implement the similar purpose. Seguya highlighted about this during the find raising dinner arranged at Kampala Serena Hotel where a sum of Ten (10) million shillings were gathered out of the required a hundred (100) million shillings that is required to equip the center that will open next year in February.
Considering the fact that wildlife still holds over 90% of the Uganda tour arrivals and yet poaching remains a significant issue, undertaking such initiatives is vital to craft a sustainable way of reducing poaching and ensure the continuity of species.
Additionally, the initiative is seen as a perfect means to development of community tourism where the local people penetrate the tourism circle and build the product by themselves and deliver it themselves which in turn is vital for the enhancement of their livelihoods and general transformation of their respective communities and the nation at large.

The USAID donates $1.6million road equipment to Uganda wildlife authority

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) a re-known International Aid Agency championed by the American people offered road equipment worth $1.6million to the Uganda Wildlife Authority a body that is responsible for the management of wildlife including those in protected areas that are explored on safaris in Uganda passing through her Uganda Biodiversity Programme that is effected by the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF)
The road equipment donated include the bull dozer, grader, an excavator, two tippers, a vibro roller along with one low-bed transporter which all together are valued at $1.6million approximately 5.9billion Uganda Shillings after taxes.
The finances used to purchase the equipment are noted to be a portion of the $10million fund intended to support the biodiversity conservation in Uganda by the government of America extending for four years that will come to an end in the month of August next year according to the USAID / Uganda senior Biodiversity Programme Officer Sam Mwanda. This support towards Uganda’s biodiversity conservation is seen as a considerable move to its continuity and the continuity of Uganda safaris and tours as well.
The Uganda Biodiversity Programme under the USAID commenced in the year 2012 with the aim of addressing the Uganda’s biodiversity threats through supporting Uganda Wildlife Authority and National Forestry Authority in enhancing their capacity to developing and managing their respective protected areas’ infrastructure for the biodiversity monitoring and threats reduction.
The program which aims at achieving sustainable biodiversity conservation along with local economic growth in the National Parks of Lake Mburo, Kidepo Valley and Murchison Falls as well as forest reserves of Kalinzu and Budongo is considered a positive move by a range of stake holders including the Uganda safari undertakers as it gives an assurance for the thriving of biodiversity which is still the core of Uganda’s tourism product.

The donated equipment is intended to enhance accessibility to and within the National Parks which will also make the monitoring and deployment easier. This comes at a time when Uganda Wildlife Authority had for a decade not received any brand new equipment for road construction which had subjected the body to incur high costs of maintenance.
The UWA Chief Dr. Andrew Seguya notes in appreciation of the equipment and acknowledges the central role that the equipment will play in increasing accessibility for easy monitoring and patrolling in the National Parks particularly Murchison Falls and Kidepo Valley where cases of poaching are still high. The equipment will also be used to curb fire outbreaks, build trenches around National Parks to reduce human wildlife conflict and construct dams which can act as water sources for animals in the dry seasons.
It can be noted that the National Parks in Uganda are positioned in the wild some of which are remote and at times challenging to access. Therefore the receiving of the road equipment comes at the moment when travel to and within these parks have to be made easier to the conservationists and the leisure travelers on safari in Uganda.