World Tourism Day 2012

The 27^th of September was World Tourism Day. This event was celebrated in Entebbe at the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre formerly and commonly known as the zoo. There were a couple of activities that were done to celebrate the day which included horse riding, boat and bicycle racing with various performances from children. The theme of the World Tourism Day this year is Tourism and Sustainable Energy. These at the moment are very two important issues in our country and as we celebrate this day along side Uganda marking 50 years of independence, as a sector we need to see we can contribute more to the development of local communities as we build our nation day by day.

Particularly we could look at the fact that sustainable energy can be a threat to tourism but at the same time we cannot do without it because we need energy to run our daily lives domestically and industrially. So this year we are looking at how we can make these two important aspects co-exist without having one override the other. Uganda's access to electricity still stands at about 10 % of the population and this is quite dangerous because that means that we still have quite a number of people cutting down trees to burn charcoal because they cannot afford to access electricity or rather find it too expensive. This is also a threat to animals that have the trees and thick vegetation as their natural habitat like the birds, primates and mountain gorillas. At the same time as we also think of putting up dams like the Bujagali we have to remember that these are also tourist sites that bring in foreign exchange every year. 

Another point of concern would be the fossil fuel in the western arm of the rift valley also known as the Albertine rift valley. The Nile delta where River Nile enters Lake Albert is one of the richest areas of Murchison Falls National Park, yet it is also suspected to be sitting in the largest reservoirs of oil.The extraction of this fossil fuel is a threat to tourism and yet at the same time we all wish to see our country move from a developing country to a middle income economy. Uganda as a country needs to find ways to extract this fuel but also minimize any environmental hazards.

In other areas we can also be proud to celebrate the fact that tourism right now is bringing in more foreign exchange compared to coffee and Speaking at the review workshop in Kampala on 26th September 2012, the Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Ms Maria Mutagamba, said the tourism sector had overtaken coffee and cotton in foreign exchange earnings for Uganda.

According to the report, foreign exchange from tourism increased from $662 million in 2010 to $805 million in 2012, representing a 21 per cent growth while tourism contribution to GDP grew from 7.6 per cent in 2010 to 7.6 per cent in 2011.

So as we celebrate World Tourism Day we should be thankful for how far the tourism sector has improved and grown but also ponder on the way we can have Tourism and Sustainable Energy work.  We should also remember the local communities and see that they also benefit from the earnings that the country is receiving from tourism because the business world tends to care more about their profits and concentrates less on the communities that surround these tourist attractions.

World Rhino Day

‘The Rhinos here to celebrate our Golden Jubilee’

Uganda was once the home to thousands of rhinos, however by the 1960s, the numbers were down to only 400 Eastern Black Rhinos mostly in Kidepo Valley National Park and Murchison falls National Park as well as 300 Northern white Rhinos mainly in the Murchison falls National Park. During years of civil unrest in 1970s and early 1980s, the remaining rhinos were poached to extinction with the Northern White Rhino last seen in 1982 in Murchison Falls NP, while the last black rhino was last seen in Kidepo NP in 1983.

Today only 8 Northern White Rhinos exist in the entire World with non existing in the wild. (The last were last seen in 2006 in Garamba National Park, plans to move them to Kenya were never realized).

(4 previously in held in a Czech Zoo are now back in Africa calling the Ol Pejeta Sanctuary in Kenya home, 1 remains in the Czech Zoo, 2 are in the U.S.A)

Rhinos are popular for their horns so believed to contain (scientifically unproven) medicinal healing properties of curing impotence in manhood mostly in the Asian world.

In South Africa alone, 448 rhinos were poached in 2011, Early this year Rhinos were poached at a rate of 2 Rhinos a day!!

It is such a pity that man is the cause of the demise of the rhino and is known as the only predator of the adult rhino. In the wild, the adult black or white rhino has no true natural predators and, despite its size and antagonistic reputation, it is extremely easy for man to kill. The dramatic decline in rhino is unfortunate in an era of increasing conservation however in Uganda great efforts have been made to save this threatened specie.

Formed in 1997 the aim of Rhino Fund Uganda, was broadly described as “to create a sanctuary where rhinos can breed, with the aim of releasing them back into the wild”. Albeit true, a more effective conservation approach has been taken, describing their aim as follows:

Creating a secure environment, where rhinos can breed, forming a nucleus-breeding herd, from which groups of rhinos can be translocated into the Ugandan national parks.

The first six rhinos were introduced to this habitat during 2004/5, a period of four years elapsed before the first calf was born in June 2009. Subsequent to the first rhino’s birth, five more were born in regular intervals, with the last one on the 10^th of January 2012. Of the six calves, three are male and three are female, making up a total of six males and six females on the sanctuary, (of which the first calf was named ‘Obama’; as his father is from the Solio ranch in Kenya and the mother from Disney Animal Kingdom in Florida, USA.)

Today the 70sq. km Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary project is passionately led by Angie and Johan Genade boasting of a luxury Safari lodge as well as budget accommodation.

The sanctuary still faces Poaching threats but with increased staffing of well trained UPDF- UWA facilitated personnel, the team keeps abreast of the ever-chaining threats and modus operandi of criminal activities.

The Rhino, being one of Africa’s Big Five has enriched Uganda’s tourism safari packages. Most tour operators have added this exiting walk as a must stop, en-route to Murchison Falls National Park. The Sanctuary is 2 hours drive from Kampala on the Gulu highway and the dirt road (on the left at Nakitoma trading centre, after Migera Town) to the sanctuary is very noticeable (marked by 2 Rhino sculptures) leads you straight to the Sanctuary gate. From there the sign posts are clear.

From 441 visitors recorded in 2006, to last year’s 9479 the numbers should reach a record 10,000 visitors this year.

As the world marks World Rhino day, we in Uganda have more reason to visit the Ziwa Rhino sanctuary or at least the Uganda Wildlife Educational Centre in Entebbe this weekend to support this noble cause. More funding will as well go along way in taking the Rhino back to the Wild.

Together we can conserve the Rhino for generations to come.