How much does Tourism in Bwindi contribute to the economy
Bwindi is located in the South western part of Uganda on the border along Democratic Republic of Congo and next to the Virunga National Park along the Albertine Rift.
It is sitted on an area of 331 sq kilometres with montane and low land forests which are habitats to variety of wildlife species.
The Bwindi was established as a national park and it is government by Uganda wildlife Authority a government agency in charge of Tourism in the park.
The wildlife species include the 120 mammal species , 350 bird species , 310 butterfly species 27 frog species 11 apeas including mountain gorillas which is the major tourist attraction in Bwindi impenetrable national Park.
The Park also has 200 tree species , more than 1000 flowering plants and 104 fern species.
20 mountain gorilla families are habited in Beindi impenetrable national park in the four sectors of the national park such as Buhoma, Ruhija , Rushaga and Nkuringo.
The major reason of establishing Bwindi as a national park was to protect the endangered mountain gorillas from poachers , diseases and Habitat loss.
Currently Bwindi has about 459 mountain gorilla individuals almost half of the world’s population of mountain gorillas remaining in the wild .
Bwindi experiences tropical climate being a tropical rainforest with annual rainfall ranges from 1400mm to 1900mm and temperature ranges from minimum 7 to 15°C and to a maximum of 20 to 27°C.
How much does tourism in Bwindi contribute to the economy
Tourism in Bwindi is one of the major sources of revenue to the government of Uganda because of the mountain gorillas that are popular making Bwindi impenetrable the major destination world wide thus a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product in the tourism sector.
Tourism in Bwindi contributes about 2.5% of the GDP where income is generated through park entry fees , gorilla permits among others and 60% of the revenue in the country.
Bwindi impenetrable national park receives about 20,000 tourists from across the world which makes it the leading contributor to the GDP than any other national park or tourist attraction in Uganda.
Uses of revenue from Bwindi impenetrable national park
Payment of conversation costs
. Part of the funds from Bwindi impenetrable national Park are used to cater for the conservation costs of the wildlife in the park . For example protecting mountain gorilas and the forests plus other wild life species available in the park.
Development of community projects
. Revenue from the National park is used by Uganda wildlife Authority to cater for the people around the park through construction of hospitals and schools for example for the Batwa people.
Best time to Visit
The best time to visit is in the dry season because the hiking trails are dry for easy movement through out the park.
The best months are June to August and December to February.
Tourits Attractions
Mountain gorillas
Mammals including primates and elephants and leopards
Hiking trails
Ancient forest
Birds
Batwa people
Tourist attractions
Bird watching
Gorilla trekking
Gorilla habituation
Batwa cultural experience
Forest walks
Mountain biking
Community walks
Lake Mutanda walks
Accommodation
Buhoma lodge
Bwindi guest house
Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla lodge
Volcanoes Bwindi lodge
Bwindi forest lodge
Kiho gorilla safari lodge
Bwindi safari lodge
In conclusion , Bwindi is the leading contributor to the GDP among the tourism sector being the most popular and most visited National Park in Uganda.
