Uganda: Gorillas Are a Gem; Let's Protect Them


1 September 2009


This week, the Uganda Wildlife Authority and the Tourism ministry kick
-start activities to mark the UN International Year of the Gorilla. The 
campaign seeks to highlight the danger these primates face and make a 
case for their sustenance.

Uganda specifically has reason to observe this day. In Bwindi 
Impenetrable National Park, in western Uganda, are about 340 gorillas, 
forming over half of the primates' entire global population, the rest 
being in DR Congo and Rwanda. Because of this, most of the tourists 
coming to Uganda are driven by the desire to see these primates.

In fact gorillas have become the flagship tourist attraction because 
they are the major unique tourist asset Uganda possesses--in comparison 
to the other East African countries--that are limited to the Big 5 
attractions--elephants, hippos, lions, leopards and buffaloes. In 
brief, any tourist who skips our neighbours to come here--is mainly 
doing so because of these gorillas.

And the importance of these tourists to the economy cannot be 
overstated. Last year alone, the country played host to about 600,000 
of these visitors, whose expenditure accounted for close to five per 
cent of Uganda's Gross Domestic Product--and was the second biggest 
foreign exchange source.

But it is not all rosy. Experts fear that unless these primates are 
watched and guarded closely--they are destined for extinction. In 
Uganda for example, the biggest threat arises from destruction of 
habitat because of the ever-rising population. It is therefore the duty 
of those concerned to ensure that communities around these habitats are 
guided on how they can co-exist with these beasts without posing a 
threat to their livelihood. The communities should also realise that 
they can mint lots of money by taking advantage of the animals and the 
visitors. These communities should be urged to engage in service and 
goods provision to feed the tourism industry.

We must also guard against the evil of poaching--now rampant in DR 
Congo. Baby gorillas are sought-for pets, but come with a price. Being 
protective in nature, a poacher can only get a baby gorilla after 
killing the rest of the adult family. Let's ensure we grow our gorilla 
numbers, if not for tourism, at least because they are our distant 
cousins.