Volcanoes National Park Rwanda

Volcanoes National Park, which runs along the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo(DRC) and Uganda, is home to the Rwandan section of the Virungas. Comprising five volcanoes, the Virungas are utterly spellbinding and few would argue that this is not one of the most exciting national parks in Africa. Of all the extraordinary sights and attractions around the Virungas, the one that really draws people here are the mountain gorillas.

While most travellers are understandably driven by the desire to have a face-to-face encounter with real gorillas in the mist, rare golden monkeys, a troop of which have been habituated to human contact, can also be visited. There are a variety of rewarding climbing and trekking options in the park, too. To get the most from the Virungas give yourself as much time as you possibly can, as this is a park that absolutely rewards those who linger.

Uganda E-Visa System Update

The Ugandan Ministry of Internal Affairs has released an update regarding the E-visa system where efforts are being made to enable for online visa application and issuance on arrival so as to soften the process for tourists on Uganda safaris! Below is the statement;

Uganda is in advanced stages of developing and eventual implementing of an e-visa and e-permit system where applications for visas and work permits will be made on line, an authorization sent to the applicant by email and visas/permits/passes issued upon arrival.

However, we are still carrying out consultations with our key stakeholders and we are considering and integrating their inputs, some of which may require adjustments in the software and may as such take some time.

We have all been waiting for such a system for a long time and we are cognizant  of the need for all our stakeholders to be informed well in time before the system takes effect, but we do not yet have the dates.

We shall make every necessary effort to inform all stakeholders such as the Aviation authorities, the airlines, the travel agents, our missions abroad, Government Ministries and some travelers through the acceptable and most reliable means once the system is ready.

We suspect that in the process of carrying out consultations some website picked on an erroneous date which is not correct and which is causing unnecessary panic in sections of the travel industry.

We appeal to all our stakeholders to stay calm and wait for the communication of the applicable dates from our part once we are ready.

We shall not implement the system without informing the users in time as this would turn out to be counter productive.

Any dates as of today as highlighted by some websites are not official and are therefore not correct. The correct date will soon be communicated.

All inconveniences caused are highly regretted. Jacob Siminyu - Spokesperson

If you want to visit Bwindi Impenetrable National Park or Rwanda, you can begin by applying for your VISA online.

Kidepo Valley National Park – Uganda’s true Wilderness

Tacked 700kms from Kampala, on the S. Sudan and Kenya boarder, Kidepo valley national park is by every description; Uganda’s wilderness and home to lots of localized and unique game! Kidepo possesses 4 of the big five including Elephants, Lions, Buffaloes, Leopard – missing only the Rhino that’s no longer found in any of Uganda safari parks. Rhinos can only be found at Ziwa rhino sanctuary in Uganda.

Lions surveying their prey in Kidepo Valley National Park

At the mention of Kidepo national park, many come to think of elephants but Kidepo Valley National Park is a biodiversity park. It is not only about elephants but also the famous giraffes. The towering giraffes are the tallest mammals in the world with babies standing at a height taller than a human being making them one of Kidepo’s pride.

The giraffe is the only mammal that spends most of its life standing because it even sleeps and gives birth standing. Giraffes often spend 10 minutes and two hours asleep making it the only mammal with the shortest sleep requirements and a regular sighting in Kidepo!

Kiedpo valley national park has the most exciting fauna of any Ugandan national park with 77 species of mammals, several of which are (in Uganda) restricted to Kidepo Valley National Park.

Explore those localized carnivores, the bat-eared fox, Aardwolf, Caraca, the stripped hyena, and Cheetah, leopard, spotted hyena and black-backed and side stripped jackal, these are not in any other park.

Besides the carnivores and towering giraffes, there are other large ungulates animals that make up the main tourist attraction at Kidepo valley and these include water bucks, lions, reedbucks, oribi, buffaloes, crocodiles, elands, Jackson’s hartebeest zebras, bush pigs, warthogs, , and five species of primates are also found in the park, including the endemic Kavirondo bush baby.

As though the magical wildlife and tranquil wilderness isn’t enough reason to visit Kidepo, the park also boasts an extensive bird list of 463 species confirmed and 26 unconfirmed, second only in Uganda to Queen Elizabeth National park

Visiting Kidepo Valley National Park; a visit to Kidepo will take you to the extreme ends of north eastern Uganda and the challenging terrain and road network makes it necessary that you contact a tour operator to organize a stress free safari including flights by Aero link (twice a week)!

Mountain Gorilla Census Begins in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo - Gorilla Tourism News

Have you ever heard about Gorilla trekking or wondered how many mountain gorillas do exist in East Africa? Well, you are not alone! Many people are probably unaware of how many of these primate cousins and very valuable tourist attractions there are and how their numbers are determined.

Every after five years, a gorilla census is carried out in the Virunga massif – which is a combination of Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, virunga national park in DR Congo and Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda – all together forming the Virunga conservation area.

The 2015/2016 mountain gorilla census is already underway under the umbrella of the Greater Virunga Trans boundary Collaboration (GVTC), with the work being done by Rwanda Development Board (RDB), I’ Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature and Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA)

The last mountain gorilla census was carried out in 2010, indicating an estimate of 480 gorillas living in social groups – also known as families and 14 long haired silverbacks (solitary mature male gorillas). Another census carried out in 2011 in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, indicated there were 400 gorillas and 16 silverbacks.

Silverback with a baby Gorilla in Volcanoes National Park - Rwanda

Belise Kariza, chief gorilla tourism officer with RDB, says the first round of the census that began in October 2015 was a success. “The second phase will be mainly about strengthening the accuracy of the first phase, getting the demographics which include age and sex ration, the size and numbers of groups, and the surrounding vegetation and water sources in comparison with the human activity in the area”.

In the previous census, the numbers were arrived at by estimate but 2015/2016 census is being carried out using advanced technology and DNA samples. “The census results, which will be released in 2017, are a best indicator of the benefits in terms of security, research and environmental health dividends obtained through the GVTC”, says Dr Muamba Tshibasu Georges, executive secretary, GVTC, adding that due to the collaboration, security in the Virunga massif has increased, leading to normal reproduction rate of the gorillas.

A healthy gorilla population is also the result of collaborations between governments and NGOs. Jossy Muhangi, the public relations manager, UWA, says, “Gorilla doctors have researched on the diseases that affect both humans and gorillas and are coming up with vaccines for those visiting the gorillas”.

Last week, the Uganda cabinet also approved the Uganda wildlife bill 2015 that brings forth stiffer penalties for wildlife crimes in terms of fines and jail terms. Conservation efforts by GVTC also include establishing schools and water sources in communities around the Virunga Massif to do more towards conservation efforts.

How the Gorilla Census is done

Joseph Arinaitwe, an ecological monitoring and research ranger with UWA in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, says that the gorilla numbers in the Virunga Massif are now estimated to be at 800. A new group of data entrants currently on training, entered the forest on 4^th April 2016.

“

The census is generally a sweep from one side of the forest to another” says Arinaitwe adding; “we are starting on the southern part of the massif in Rwanda, and will end on the Ugandan side. There will be different teams in the forest, in constant communication with each other”. Gorilla census begins with the individuals following a gorilla trail until they locate a nest site. Every evening, gorillas make a nest in which to sleep and they never return to those nests.

“Even if they return to the same site, they will make a new nest next to the old one. Each nest contains one gorilla and we consider it used when we find gorilla dung in it”. The first duty after finding a gorilla nest site is to establish how old it is. If it is older than five days, then it is useless because most of the DNA is gone.

“One site can have many nests, so we label each nest with a small piece of paper. Then, we wear protective gloves and begin establishing the size of the dung”. Depending on the size of the dung, the data collectors can conclude, using age classification strata, whether an adult male, medium range or baby gorilla was in the nest.

“Dung measuring 7.2cm, with silvery hair in it, means an adult male gorilla (silverback) slept in the nest. Other dung is classified a medium size, though not specifying the sex.” While measuring the dung, the sample collector has to ensure that his gloves do not touch it because that particular DNA can be transferred to other dung, thus making it hard for the laboratory to have conclusive findings. 

Also, sample collectors are not allowed to speak while holding the dung because their saliva can mix with the Gorilla’s DNA. After measuring the dung, a sample of it is placed in a tube containing ethanol. The tube is then transferred to a Ziploc bag.

“Ethanol helps to preserve the sample for an average of 24 to 30 hours before transferring it to another sample tube containing silica to keep it dry. The laboratory analysis to establish the individual DNA of the gorillas is done in an American lab.”

After collecting data samples from one gorilla site, the team follows the gorilla trail to look for more nesting sites. “From at least three consecutive nest sites, you can tell the average number of the gorillas in that particular group/ family. If the first site had 19 nests, the second one might have slightly less or more and it is important because what you missed in the previous site can be found in the next one.”

Once the team has collected a good number of samples, it is shipped out of the forest for safer storage until the whole exercise is completed and the samples will be transferred to the USA.

Uganda Travel Update; Yellow Fever Certificate Mandatory Entry Requirement to Uganda

Visitors to Uganda for Uganda safaris must possess and present a yellow fever vaccination certificate or receive the shot at Entebbe airport and face isolation for at least 10 days effective immediately! According to the Health ministry spokesperson Rukia Nakamatte, the directive is part of a World Health Organisation recommendation to prevent the spread of the disease which has already claimed six lives in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes and can kill from 10 to 14 days.

Uganda tourism had a difficult year – 2015 and all the election “madness” has not made it easier. The obstruction of social media was disappointing to the very few tourists the country had and the way the government has handled the election aftermath has painted a gloomy picture about the country.

Some circles have debated that the move to make a yellow fever vaccination certificate a requirement for entry is an overreaction by the Ministry of Health and that it is insensitive for the ministry not to consult some key stakeholders like the tour operators before reaching such a decision that the directive be implemented with immediate effect!

Yellow fever vaccination requires 10 days to be effective, and given the time it will take to get this information into the mainstream travel media and across travel agencies, tour operators and the general public, the full extent of the potential downside becomes apparent.

If this is implemented overnight as stated, it will mean that maybe hundreds if not thousands of visitors planning to fly to Uganda over the next coming weeks, may have to be vaccinated, not an appealing prospect given the perception visitors have about Uganda’s health facilities, or as threatened, ‘put in an isolation unit‘.

At least 29 countries have been flagged as high-risk countries within Africa and 13 within south and Central America. Some of the African countries named include Angola, Kenya, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, DRC, Ethiopia, Benin, Chad, South Sudan and Sudan.

 

Other countries in Central and South America include; Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago among others.

Intending visitors to Uganda (especially visiting Bwindi Forest National Park) are therefore advised to immediately seek medical advice and undergo inoculation, but should remember that the shot will only be effective after ten days. This gap, due to logistics and perhaps the lack of vaccine or a nearby recognized vaccination center, may widen this time frame to as much as several weeks, during which passengers disembarking in Uganda will face the stark reality of either being vaccinated or put into isolation.

Whether the government employed common sense or tempered such a hasty decision in the broader interest of the country is still a topic of debate especially among the Uganda tourism and travel circles.