One week after bagging an award at the Internationale Tourismus-Börse Berlin (ITB Berlin) for his presentation on the Volcanoes National Park as a green destination, Rwandan tour operator Greg Bakunzi now says the country is moving in the right direction in its conservation efforts.
Rwanda was voted the top Green Destination in Africa, followed by Botswana, in the Green Destinations’ “Best of Top 100 Awards” at a ceremony that was held in Palais am Funkturm, Berlin, on March 7, 2018.
Talking to Chwezi Traveller from Berlin, Bakunzi says the initiatives the government of Rwanda has undertaken over recent years through the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) indicate Rwanda’s deep commitment to protect Mother Nature and to promote responsible tourism.
“We have seen a lot being done by the government and these are all geared towards environmental conservation. My award during the ITP Berlin is also a win for the country for making valiant efforts to ensure Rwanda also maintains its position as a top green destination not only in Africa but in the whole world,” says Bakunzi.
Bakunzi names a number of positive moves that the country has made in its conservation efforts, like last year’s increase in gorilla trekking permit price.
“Even though to some school of thought, this move would sound the death knell for Rwanda’s tourism revenue since it was seen as exorbitant compared to other mountain gorilla hosting countries… It shows our deep commitment to ensure these endangered species are protected and that it’s not all about tourism revenue but conservation efforts should be given top priority,” says Bakunzi, the founder of Red Rocks Cultural Center.
On 6th May, 2017, RDB announced an increase in the price of Gorilla Permits from $750 to$1,500. A new exclusive package for tourists who wish to book an entire family of gorillas was also introduced at $15,000, and would receive exclusive personalized tour guide services.
The expansion of the national parks, according to Bakunzi, is also among the significant measures the government, with the help of private sector partnerships, is making to ensure the wild is protected. The size of the Volcanoes National Park was as of 1958 was 33,870 km2 before it was encroached on by neighbouring population. Currently, the park covers 160 Km2.
In the run up to last year’s Kwita Izina, the annula baby gorilla naming ceremony, RDB said they would have to buy land from the people living near the Volcanoes National Park and relocate them before expanding it.
Bakunzi adds that the move by African Parks in partnership with RDB to translocate seven lions from South Africa and reintroduce the species into Akagera National Park was a groundbreaking effort for both the park and the country.
He says Rwanda’s ban on use of plastic bags is now being emulated by some East African counties like Kenya and this is also one of the major initiatives the country has taken to protect nature and the environment.
However, he says it should not be left for the government to initiate moves geared towards conservation and protection, but everybody, including tourism industry players, should be involved.
Bakunzi adds that recently, Red Rocks Cultural Center came up with a program called Red Rocks Initiative for Sustainable Development whose programs also include community development and conservation around the Volcanoes National Park.
“We have initiated tree-planting projetcs involving the local cooperatives around the Nyakinama village and Red Rocks with the aim of restoring forests around the Volcanoes National Park. This move, we believe, will ensure that hundreds of thousands trees are planted and the natural habitat of various animal and bird species is regained,” Bakunzi says.
He says the award of Rwanda being voted the top Green Destination in Africa, followed by Botswana, meant a lot to him as a person, but also was a stamp of approval for Rwanda’s conservation efforts, something he says he was honored to showcase through his presentation.