EXPLORE THE ICONIC DANCING POTS OF RWANDA – RWANDA SAFARI NEWS

For the Rwanda Safari undertakers interested in exploring some of the unique country’s heritage, the dancing pots present a remarkable encounter that will deliver lasting memories.

Run by the famous Batwa people, the site offers an insight study to their ancient heritage including culture and history.  The vibrancy of the thrilling drums and fascinating men demonstrating their dance skills along with the friendly smiling faces of the children backed up by melodies of the singing ladies mark the magical welcome in this maiden Rwanda tour destination.

However, the sound of drums and dancing is not what makes the image of this community. The skill of pottery is the most fascinating wonder that has made this place popular across the world. The Batwa have since the ancient past exhibited the highest degree of pottery expertise and it is a no wonder that this site teems with incredible pottery products ranging from flower vases, traditional stove and decorative animals among which the travelers on Safari in Rwanda take as souvenirs back home.

The presentation of these beautiful products is undertaken in the main kiln house while the experiential part involves mixing of clay and water which is the foundation for making of pottery products and eventual burning of the pottery in the traditional kiln. The guests love being part of this experience that in turn generates lasting Africa safari tour memories. The epitome of the visit is marked by ubusabane – a traditional get together party that brings together locals of the adjacent community for dancing and cross cultural exchange.

THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UGANDA’S FIRST EVER FLOATING RESTAURANT TAKES SHAPE – UGANDA SAFARI NEWS

On the shores of Lake Victoria within the confines of the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre (UWEC) formerly Entebbe Zoo and one of the exciting Uganda Safari tour sites, the efforts to establish the first ever Uganda Floating restaurant are underway.

According to the Executive Director of UWEC, Mr. James Musinguzi, the first phase of this magical restaurant is anticipated to be complete by September this year and the first floor will be open to hosting the range of clients including those on Safaris in Uganda.

It is noted that builders are making final touches on the interior of this floor. The floating restaurant is a multi-million project whose ground was laid 10 years ago but financial constraints had curtailed its accomplishment.  The restaurant features four floors comprising of the main restaurant on the first floor, sixteen (16) rooms on the second floor while the remaining two (2) top floors will be multipurpose marked with a fascinating well designed roof top overlooking the Africa’s largest lake and one of the mighty Uganda tour holiday sites – Lake Victoria.

The extensive sandy beach stretching up to 350m marked with beautiful resting huts complement this unique project while counts of animals, bird species and reptiles at the Zoo combine to make the encounter diverse and worthwhile.  The place is noted to have hosted the Uganda’s first dragon boat festival.

The locals and stakeholders in the tourism sector are optimistic about the project’s potential to enhance the recreational experience on Lake Victoria. World travelers returning from various Uganda trips including Uganda gorilla Safaris and tours will find the ideal place to settle for Dinner before connecting to Entebbe International Airport for their return flight.

THE 2017 KWITA IZINA GORILLA NAMING CEREMONY GAINS GROUND – RWANDA GORILLA SAFARI NEWS

Locally known as Kwita Izina, the Gorilla Naming Ceremony is an annual event held in Kinigi at the Head Quarters of Volcanoes National Park – the main destination for Gorilla Trekking Safaris in Rwanda where baby Mountain Gorillas are given names for purposes of conservation.

The 2017 Kwita Izina Ceremony will see a count of thirteen (13) baby gorillas named and it will be the 13^th edition ever since this event was launched in 2005. The event celebrates the contribution of communities towards conservation while at the same time increasing the conservation awareness.

Kwita Izina Ceremony pulls together a count of stakeholders in the conservation both within and outside Rwanda including the travellers on Rwanda Gorilla Safaris to mark the success story of Mountain Gorilla conservation in Rwanda. The theme of the 2017 Kwita Izina Ceremony will be ‘‘Conservation and sustainable tourism a foundation for future generation’’

The Gala Dinner on Aug 26^th will mark the beginning of the event with key stakeholders raising funds for conservation initiatives and this will be followed by conservation and tourism exhibition for 2 days, conservation summit on Aug 28^th and 29^th and the culmination of the celebrations will be on Sept 1^st in Kinigi Musaze with the actual baby gorilla naming.

Mountain Gorilla Tourism remains at the centre of the Rwanda Safari tours and the tourism sector in general forms the back bone of the Rwanda’s economy. Apparently, the Gorilla permit in Rwanda costs $1500 and 10% of this goes to the revenue sharing scheme which directly benefits communities surrounding the protected areas. Projects like schools and health centres have been put up and enhanced using this money.

So, the Sept 1^st can be marked on the calendar and reserved for this special event – the Kwita Izina Ceremony in Rwanda.

UGANDA GIFTED WITH TWO MOUNTAIN GORILLA BIRTHS IN A WEEK’S TIME – UGANDA GORILLA SAFARI NEWS

Mubare Gorilla Family one of the three habituated Mountain Gorilla groups in the Uganda trekking safari region of Buhoma – Bwindi Impenetrable National Park struck a magical wonder when two of its members attained successful births in the period of one week.

Noted World over as critically endangered, the Mountain Gorillas are characterized by low birth rates and hence very uncommon for them to register two successful births at such close interval.  A total of 880 Mountain Gorillas are known to be remaining in the whole world of which a minimum of 400 individuals are known to be thriving in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. This has made this park a key in the Mountain Gorilla conservation efforts along with being an exciting destination for Gorilla Safaris in Uganda.

On July 23^rd and 28^th, the females Karungi and Kisho gave birth to healthy baby gorillas increasing the Mubare Gorilla group to 14 members.  The born babies are believed to have been sired by Kanyonyi – the leading Silverback and a key member always explored by trekkers on Uganda gorilla safari.

Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga National Parks are noted to have had ten (10) gorilla babies and one death since the beginning of 2017 according to Conservation Area Manager Mr. Pontious Ezuma.  He attributes the continued birth to better conservation efforts which makes the Gorillas to feel safe and settled to have babies.

The survival of Mountain Gorillas maintains the product base for Gorilla tourism which apparently contributes around $10m to the tourism earnings of Uganda.  Tourism sector in general remains the leading foreign exchange earner for Uganda followed by remittances from abroad and Coffee.

Prime Uganda Safaris & Tours is dedicated to arranging a memorable gorilla safari that will enable you spend time with these newly born Gorilla babies!

THE DEMAND FOR UGANDA GORILLA PERMIT ON THE PEAK – UGANDA GORILLA SAFARI NEWS

Unlike in the past where the high demand for Uganda Gorilla trekking permits would be experienced in the peak months of June – August, the trend seems to be changing and now, the increased demand spreads across the year.

The trend is partly attributed to the recent 100% increment in the Rwanda Gorilla permit leaving many world travelers with the option of taking up Gorilla Safaris in Uganda. Apparently, the Uganda Gorilla permit is $900 cheaper than that of Rwanda in the high season months and $1050 cheaper in the low season months of April, May and November.

Other factors including increased marketing undertaken by among others; the three (3) Public Relations firms namely Kamageo, PHG Consulting and KPRN along with the Uganda Tourism Board and the Private tour operators such as Prime Uganda Safaris and Tours Ltd have also increased the visibility of the destination Uganda and hence popularising the Uganda Gorilla Safaris and Tours.

The success story of Mountain Gorillas Conservation in Uganda is also a credible factor. Uganda now stands as a single destination with the highest population of Mountain Gorillas with her protected area of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park alone sheltering a count of a minimum of 400 Mountain Gorillas out of the 880 Mountain Gorillas that are known to be remaining in the world. Another Ugandan National Park – Mgahinga is part of the greater Virunga landscape where the remaining 480 are known to be thriving shared by Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo.

This therefore, calls for advance booking of Gorilla permit regardless of the planned travel month. In order to avoid missing out, the traveler intending to take up a gorilla safari to Uganda should consider an immediate purchase and allow the operators some flexibility to determine the accommodation and itinerary flow as guided by availability.

ENHANCING ECOLOGICAL DIVERSITY; THE STORY OF INTERNAL ANIMAL TRANSLOCATION IN UGANDA – UGANDA SAFARI NEWS

The first major one was Rothschild Giraffe translocation from Murchison Falls National Park to Lake Mburo National Park in June 2016 where a total of fifteen (15) Rothschild Giraffes were transferred accordingly. The respective individuals adapted well to the acacia savannah stretches of Lake Mburo National Park and now encountered by travellers on Uganda Safaris.

Besides the Giraffe translocation to Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda Wildlife Authority also undertook another shift of Rothschild Giraffes from the savannah stretches of northern sector of the park to the shrub lands of the southern sector of the park early this year.

This move to enhance the ecology in different parks has gone beyond the Rothschild Giraffes. The most recent is the Kob translocation from Murchison Falls National Park to the famous Kidepo Valley National Park in the far North East of Uganda. A minimum of 100 Kobs were transferred boosting the food supply for big cats in Kidepo and enhancing the park’s vibrancy in the safari world.  Kidepo Valley National Park is one of the fascinating but less explored Uganda tour destinations due to its far distance from Kampala.

These efforts combined are a positive step towards sustainable conservation especially following the discovery of Oil in the Albertine rift where Murchison Falls National Park is part.