However a businessman Mr. Kodet who claims the President of Uganda had offered him Katurumu Lodge to take over management is now facing opposition from the Uganda Wildlife Authority which is mandated to manage all Uganda national parks.

The Uganda Wildlife Authority has asked Mr. Kodet to go through the formal process of acquiring any government asset before developing the national park which is located in the Karamoja sub-region.

According to the Uganda Wildlife Authority Executive Director Mr. Andrew Sseguya business man Cornelius Lorika Kodet is to be stopped from carrying out renovations of the Katurum lodge until he goes through the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority process.

Mr. Kodet is a successful businessman who owns a beach at Entebbe – Aero beach, Apule Safari lodge in the district of Mbale and Mount Moroto hotel in the district of Moroto.

However, the businessman Mr. Kodet has said he will carry on with the construction of Katurum lodge following the directive he got from the President of Uganda. He said that when the Uganda Wildlife Authority had initially wanted to destroy the lodge, they had requested for money from government to do it but he instead asked the President to allow him redevelop it and he got a letter from the then Minister of tourism allowing him to go ahead with the construction and renovations. Mr. Kodet says he has an investment plan and intends to go ahead with his construction works.

Katurum lodge was constructed in the 1970s but was later vandalized after the government of Idi Amin was ousted in 1979. To make it functional the business man has put on a new roof and is doing renovation activities in the interior of the lodge. However, Mr. Sseguya says that the businessman can only go ahead if he follows the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets process as well as the letter from the then Minister of Tourism Mr. Kahinda Otafiire.

Katurum lodge is a property of the Uganda Wildlife Authority and was recently advertised in the International Tender of Joint Ventures.

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In the 5th century it is recorded that the a gorilla was spotted  by the first person from the western world, a Roman explorer

Types of Gorilas

There are 3 subspecies of gorillas depending on who you listen to since these distinctions are very slight. All these are found in the African continent ranging from the west African country of Cameroon to the East African country of Uganda. These are;

* Western Lowland Gorilla (gorilla gorilla)

* Eastern Lowland Gorilla (gorilla graueri)

* Mountain Gorilla (gorilla berengei)

Distribution Of Gorilla Subspecies

Western Lowland Gorillas

Despite the many hazards that these gorillas faces such as poaching for bush meat there are an estimated 10,000-35,000 lowland gorillas living in the wild, however, there are also those living in captivity in various zoos around the world. Those living in the wild are found in the African countries of Cameroon, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, and Gabon

Eastern Lowland Gorillas (Gorilla Graueri)

Approximately 4,000 free-living. Less than 24 in captivity. Found in eastern Zaire.

Mountain  Gorillas

Approximately 800 free-living. Zero in captivity. Found in 285 square miles in the rain forests of Rwanda, Uganda and Zaire.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Height:

Males 5′6″ upright, 4′6″ normal stance. Females 5′ upright, 3′6″ – 4′ normal stance.

Weight:

Males 300-500 lbs. Females 150-250 lbs. Babies from one to three years weigh between 20-30 lbs.

Arm Span:

Up to 9′2” (one male specimen).

Color:

Black or brown-gray fur with black skin on chests, palms and faces. Red heads are common in Camaroon gorillas especially. Males develop a silver back as they mature.

Stance:

Gorillas are quadrupedal. They walk on all fours with the soles of their feet flat on the ground and the knuckles of the hands curled and planted on the ground.

Recognition:
Gorillas recognize each other by their faces and body shapes. Each gorilla has a unique nose print. The differences between mountain gorillas and lowland gorillas are slight and result mainly from adaptation to high altitudes. Mountain gorillas have longer body hair, higher foreheads, longer palates, larger nostrils, broader chests, shorter arms, shorter, wider hands and feet.

GROWTH/MATURATION

Gestation is 8-1/2 months. There are typically 3-4 years between births. Infants stay with their mothers for 3-4 years. Females mature at 10-12 years (earlier in captivity); males 11-13 years, sometimes sooner if they assume leadership early. Lifespan is between 30-50 years.

EATING

Gorillas eat some 200 types of leaves, tubers, flowers, fruit, fungus and some insects. Favorite foods include bamboo, thistles and wild celery. Gorillas do not drink water. They obtain all the moisture they need from the vast amounts of foliage they consume. Males consume approximately 50 lbs. a day.

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Uganda unlike other holiday destinations in Africa has very fertile land that is well watered with dense forest and many rivers, streams and lakes. It has many safari attractions to offer but the major highlight is the mountain gorilla trekking. Ranging from wildlife safaris, birding safaris to adventure sporting activities like white water rafting, kayaking and bungee jumping along the Nile river, Uganda has lots of tour attractions however of all these mountain gorilla safari is the major tourism foreign exchange earner and is unique to Uganda and Rwanda.

The Ugandan forests of Bwindi are home to the rarest and most majestic of all the apes, the mountain gorilla.  There are few wildlife experiences that can compare to tracking a family of mountain gorillas through the thick, tropical rainforests of Uganda. George Schaller famously stated that “No one who looks into a gorilla’s eyes – intelligent, gentle, vulnerable – can remain unchanged, for the gap between ape and human vanishes, we know that the gorilla still lives within us”. Gorillas and Uganda wildlife tour packages are some of the most unique in Africa and lonely planet voted Uganda the best travel destination.

In order to carry out better conservation plans for the highly endangered mountain gorillas, International Gorilla Conservation Program – IGCP is carrying out a census of the gorillas in Bwindi and Mgahinga national parks. The census is expected to run till the 20^th of October 2011 in which the population of mountain gorillas is expected to have risen by 26% according to projections from the 2006 population census.

Mr. Stephen Asuma who is the International Gorilla Conservation Program Country representative in Uganda said that it is imperative for Government to help in the sensitization as well as the promotion of gorilla tourism to both local and the international community as this is one way of raising both awareness about the plight of the mountain gorillas as well as the money needed to help in conserving the mountain gorillas.

According to Mr. Asuma in the 2006 census the number of mountain gorillas recorded in Bwindi impenetrable national park were 340 gorillas meaning it has half of the number of mountain gorillas in the wild in Africa.

The only way to ensure the preservation of mountain gorillas in the wild is through tourism, however the fact that they have 97% of our DNA means that they are very susceptible to diseases that humans suffer from. Unlike humans however who have medicines to treat these common illnesses, diseases like Ebola can easily wipe out the mountain population to the point of return.

Mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi national park is carried out at the moment in 6 families with 8 mountain gorilla permits sold per family. However during the months of July and August which are in peak season the permits are usually sold out. A gorilla safari in Bwindi is actually the number one Uganda tourism attraction.

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In addition to this, Mizano was the only black-back in his family meaning there is no heir to the Habinyanja family. A black back is a male that grows into a silver back gorilla which is usually the head of family.

According Lillian Nsubuga the spokesperson of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, the sentence passed is utterly shocking and UWA intends to bring the matter up with the office of the chief Justice. She said that although they do not intend to appeal, the punishment meted out against the perpetrators of this crime is not befitting. It can’t therefore help in deterring any future poachers from not only entering the national park but also from killing this endangered species.

Poaching although greatly reduced is still being carried in many of Uganda’s national parks. During a recent trip to Murchison falls national park I was shocked to find out that it is very easy to get game meat provided that you are in the know. For hippo meat for instance all one has to do is ask for “Machar” which when translated means charcoal and you will be availed the kilograms you want.

This practice unless curbed will not help the tourism industry compared to our neighbors in the region. The number of wildlife for instance in our celebrated national parks is way too small these days for anyone to compare with those in Masai Mara game reserve which are readily available. One would have to drive long distances for a number of days for instance in Murchison falls or Queen Elizabeth national park to be able to see lions which is not the case in the Serengeti or Masai Mara national park.

The lion population in Lake Mburo national park for instance has been decimated by the cattle keepers in the region. Even the leopard population has almost been wiped out (that is if they are still there).  Unless Ugandans begin to realize the economic potential of tourism, they will carry on killing animals in the game reserves for food and short-term economic gains. A tourist who had paid top-dollar for a Uganda safari recently told us that she had to do another Kenya safari because she had not seen the big five in Uganda. This is a shame considering the our national parks which were once teeming with wildlife are slowly but steadily being poached.

The culprits Amos Kazongo, Fideli Begumisa and Ronald Byamugisha from Kanungu District in June using spears killed Mizano, the black from Habinyanja family of mountain gorillas.

Under Schedule 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species mountain gorillas are considered highly-endangered wildlife species. With a population estimated to be about 800 only in the wild, these gentle giants can only be found in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.  Mountain gorillas ranked highest among the contributors to the foreign exchange earnings in tourism in Uganda

The source of the Biblical Nile River is also located in the Country and has some of the World’s best places for white water rafting in the whole World. The Country also has 1047 recorded bird species is an area the size of the British Isle. This accounts for over 50% of all the bird species in Africa, 10% of all the bird species recorded in the World with many of them being endemic to the region including the fox weaver bird.

The Country is teeming with flora and fauna and has over 10 national parks and with over 18.2% of the land covered by wetlands, rivers and lakes. Given its geographical location with the equator cutting across, Uganda has diverse vegetation cover making provide good habitat for different animal species.

In the West is the Mountains of the Moon – Mount Stanley which is the highest mountain range in Africa with the third highest peak in Africa. The rest of the land is full of rainforests as well as plains with Savannah grasslands

However despite of all this beauty, Uganda’s tourism potential is not very well known to the outside world and is the least visited among the Countries in East Africa which do a lot of marketing of their tourism potential to the outside world.

The efforts by local Uganda tour operators has however enabled the Country garner a lot of foreign exchange making it the second highest foreign exchange earner to the Country for the last couple of years. The government has for the last 3 years been able to allocated only $3.45 million dollars for the tourism industry in Uganda which is a pittance compared to the over $10 million dollars which Kenya has been allocating to marketing tourism in Kenya.

The Uganda Tourism Board is meant to getting about $900,000 of the total money allocated to marketing tourism in Uganda which is way too little compared to what many Countries are doing to make their tourism industry. The failure to prioritize Uganda’s tourism industry has led to the other Countries in the region, Tanzania, Rwanda and Kenya out competing Uganda.

Going by the statistics, in 2009 Uganda’s tourism brought in $572 million and $660 million dollars in 2010 which is a great contribution to the economy coming in only second remittances from Ugandans living in the diaspora.

According to experts in the industry, Uganda needs $30 million annually to market itself to key source markets like the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and other markets in Asia like China and Japan as a key holiday destination in Africa.

Going by the figures from the World Tourism Council, the USA, Germany, UK, France and China are the biggest travel spenders and doing target marketing in these Countries would see Uganda have an increase in the influx of tourists from these destinations. Uganda’s leading tourist arrivals are mainly African’s who are considered the lowest spenders in the industry.

Gorilla tours in Uganda is the leading tourism foreign exchange earner accounting for over 80% of the funds the Country receives.

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CRIME? Scaring a woman. Sentence? Death by spearing. This was the recent verdict of a ‘village kangaroo court’ against a chimpanzee accused of scaring a woman out of her skin in the tiny village of Rwobuhuka, Kabwoya Sub-county in Hoima District. The woman screamed after an encounter with a wild chimp on a village path, attracting a mob that resolved to end the life of the beast.

The cruel act did not go unnoticed. The flesh-smelling hands of the bloodthirsty villagers provoked the proverbial “long arm of the law” from Hoima town to intervene. They rounded up three suspects in an attempt to avenge the death of an endangered species.

The Rwobuhuka chimp is not the first to suffer at the hands of the humans and will probably not be the last one. In a related incident, a chimp in Kibale was speared recently, but recovered after treatment.

Every year, an average of five chimpanzees get caught up and killed in such conflicts, but the number could be higher since some cases remain unreported, says Lilly Ajarova, the director of Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary and Wildlife Conservation Trust.

Life is sweet, Ajarova says, “but the life of chimps in the forests outside protected forest patches in the districts of Bunyoro is as sweet as pain dipped in honey”.

In some cases, she says the chimps end up landing in the snares set by farmers to get rid of crop-raiding animals or by hunters with an intention of catching antelopes. Chimps have been caught in snares, ranging from wires made from barbed wire fences to large traps weighing six kilogrammes fabricated from spare parts of lorries. This leads to excessive bleeding of the victims and sometimes the lucky ones become disabled.

More than one quarter of 5,000 chimps encountered five years ago were disabled by the snares, according to a report of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). This, according to Ajarova, impairs the ability of the chimps to fend for the young ones and increases their vulnerability in the battle for survival.
Farmers speak out about the losses caused by wild animals.

Julius Kwamya has given up growing cocoa. “Chimps spend more time on my land than in the forest,” he says. “With chimps around, you can only harvest about 10% of the cocoa. The rest is eaten by the chimps,”

Kwamya says. “I have opted to grow water-melons in order to earn an income.”
They bite the pods with their hard teeth, releasing the contents, which they feast on before moving to the neighbour’s plantation to eat sugar cane and jackfruit.

Despite the losses, Kwamya’s view is that chimps do not deserve to be killed. “Chimps are endangered and they are a wonderful heritage,” he says.

Hoima District environment officer Joycelyne Nyangoma has conducted a research on the effects of crop-raiding animals and discovered that cocoa farmers like Kwamya suffer as a result of chimps, but not many farmers grow cocoa. “Chimps love cocoa and sugar cane,” she says. “The biggest problem is baboons and vervet monkeys because they will destroy even what they are not going to eat.”

Vermin (baboons and vervet monkeys) are affecting the livelihoods of the farmers. “When the crops of the subsistence farmers are eaten, their incomes and livelihoods are also threatened. People are kept in the vicious cycle of poverty,” Nyangoma says.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. In some cases, children have had to be deployed to watch over the gardens. But Nyangoma says that her research discovered that most farmers attach little value to education. “They want their children to go to the garden or market, not school,” she says.  Uganda gorilla safari

Others, particularly the sugar cane farmers, set deadly traps to protect their crops. The sugar cane farmers are seen as more progressive and they are prepared to protect their profits at all costs, according to Nyangoma.

Receding forest cover
Over the last four years, massive deforestation has been taking place across the country. But the districts of Bunyoro; comprising Bulisa, Masindi, Hoima and Kibale have suffered more than the other parts of the country in the recent past. “I started work in Hoima four years ago and I have seen a lot of deforestation. There are places where I went and saw well-stocked forests, but they are not there today,” she says.  Mabira forest

Six weeks ago, chimpanzee conservationists camped in Hoima and mobilised communities for tree planting in order to restore the degraded areas. But one day the team found trees on private land massively chopped down on the Hoima-Munteme road.

“We encountered over 20 acres of private forest cut down overnight,” says Ajarova. “This exposes the chimps because it directly affects their habitat.”  chimpanzee tracking

When the chimps come tracing their habitats (the forests) which are supposed to be passages connecting the large forest reserves, they find farmland. “It is very frustrating on the part of the chimps as what they have called home is suddenly cut down into farmland. Chimpanzee trekking.  The thinking is much like a human being living in a three-bedroomed house with everything you need and when you go back from work, you find two of the rooms demolished,” she says.

A heritage and keystone species
Chimp conservationists like Ajarova warn that the chimps are key stone species meaning that their habitats have a lot of biological wealth and ecological services. “The forests are sources of streams and rivers,” she says. “When the forests are cut down, the chimpanzees get exposed and could disappear. The human population will also perish.”

Chimps think about tomorrow
The wildlife conservationist who started her career at UWA says the chimps are humans’ closest cousins since they share more than 98% of their genes. “Did you know that chimpanzees think ahead of time like human beings?” asks Ajarova.

Chimps are part of the country’s heritage and the cornerstone for the growing primate tourism, according to Ajarova. Humans’ survival is tied together with the chimps. “What shall we tell our children and grandchildren if we lose this heritage? asks Ajarova.

Though the chimps are increasingly threatened everyday, Ajarova cherishes each step taken to secure their survival.

End

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World Bank provided the Uganda Wildlife Authority – UWA over $38 million to help in the funding of the Protected Areas Management for Sustainable Use – PAMSU for the period between 2002 and 2008.

The Concession between Madhvani Group stipulates that no other developer is to establish any tourist structure like safari lodges as well as any complementary facilities in the park for a distance spanning 15 miles which is basically the whole of Queen Elizabeth national park.

According the witness Prof. John Kasenene who is a former member of the board at Uganda Wildlife Authority who  appeared before the commission of inquiry there were several anomalies including the awarding of a concession to a then member of the board Mr. Jonathan Wright the proprietor of The Uganda Safari Company – TUSC to run a safari lodge in Kidepo national park.

Prof. Kasenene said that although the process to award the concession to Mr. Jonathan started before he was a member of the board, he got the concession when he was a board member and it compounded the whole situation.

Mr. Kasenene said that there was friction and misunderstanding between the Uganda Wildlife Authority Executive Director Mr. Moses Mapesa and the UWA board chairman Mr. Andrew Kasirye because according the witness Mr. Mapesa and Mr. Jonathan favored foreign nationals and gave little consideration to local Uganda tour operators with concessions being awarded to mainly foreign nationals. According to the witness Mr. Mapesa the then Executive director of UWA used his powers to block most of the local nationals who applied for concessions.

According to Mr Kasenene Apoka safari lodge within Kidepo national park was burnt down and Mr. Jonathan Wright wanted it and the board thought they could give it to him in compensation for the Semliki safari lodge in Semliki national park which Jonathan Wright owned and had suffered losses due to the activities of the ADF rebels at the time.

Mr. Kasenene caused laughter at one point when he told the Commission that he and the board visited Mr. Jonathan’s safari lodge and slept in it when they were doing the re-evaluation to award him concession. Justice Kanyeihamba who is heading the Commisson laughed and jokingly told him that was the danger with visiting Mr. Jonathan’s lodges when evaluating him.

The witness Prof. Kasesene was Uganda Wildlife Authority’s head of Planning, Research and Monitoring committee. However he only led tow visits to the 10 national parks found in Uganda during his 6 years from 2002 – 2008. Uganda wildlife safari

Documents availed to the commission shows that $500,000 was spent by the Planning Research and Monitoring committee of the Protected Areas Management Sustainable Use project. When Mr. Denis Bireije asked Prof Kasenene how they spent the money he had no answers for the Commission.

However Prof Kasenene disapproved the testimony of Mr. Kalanguka Kayondho who was also a witness about there being borehole in Kidepo national park as a project of PAMSU.

During the investigations it also emerged that the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary which is a rhino breeding ranch was staffed by personnel from Uganda Wildlife Authority. The Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary was setup as a private breeding ground for rhino that have been facing extinction. However according to Prof. Kasenene the facility did not meet the expectations of the Uganda Wildlife Authority board and that the population needs to be re-located. It was at this point that the Commission asked the media to leave the room as things got a little heated up.

More on the Uganda wildlife commission of inquiry

There are a number of other safari lodges located in Kidepo national park however most are mid-range and budget accommodation options. One of these is Katurum safari lodge which is in a dilapidated state. The President of Uganda, Mr. Yoweri Museveni issued a directive to the Uganda Wildlife Authority – UWA the body responsible for running Uganda’s wildlife resources to hand over management of the safari lodge to Mr. Cornelius Kodet a local businessman in the tour and travel industry.

Katurum safari lodge was constructed in the 1970s but was later run down and vandalized when Amin was overthrown. The roof was completely vandalized by the locals  who vandalized the roofing materials. Mr Kodet is the proprietor of Aero beach in Entebbe, Mount Moroto Hotel in Moroto and Apule Safari Lodge in Mbale.

This was directive was in a letter dated May 14^th to the Minister of Trade Tourism and Industries Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire through the former President’s Principal Private secretary Ms. Amelia Kyambadde. The letter authorized the Minister to give the safari lodge to Mr. Cornelius Kodet to carry out renovations and management.

This was in accordance to a meeting between the president and Mr. Cornelius Kodet at the State House in Entebbe in which Mr. Cornelius requested the President to allow him carry out renovations and take possession of  Katurum Safari lodge.

The Minister of Trade Tourism and Industries, Mr. Kahinda Otafiire carried out the directive allowing Mr. Cornelius to take over the safari lodge. However, the Uganda Wildlife Authority rejected the offer saying Mr. Cornelius cannot take over the control of the safari lodge as the hand over did not follow proper procedures.

In a letter dated Oct. 26^th 2010 to Mr. Kodet,  the management of Uganda Wildlife Authority – UWA said they could not agree to a concession arrangement with Mr. Kodet due to the fact that the transactions to acquire the land did not follow the proper Public Procurement regulations.

The Uganda Wildlife Authority in the letter acknowledged the different correspondences between Mr. Kodet and the Minister of Trade Tourism and Industry but said they couldn’t go ahead with the transactions as the business man had not furnished them with a proper business plan.

Ms. Lilian Nsubuga the spokesperson for the Uganda Wildlife Authority said she was aware of the situation however she did not have any updated information. She said Katurum safari lodge is one of Uganda Wildlife Authority properties which was advertised via the International Tender of Joint Ventures.

When asked Mr. Kodet said that he was told by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade Tourism and Industry, Mr. Julius Onen that the presidential directive was not binding. He however said that he had submitted his investment plan to the president and would start working on the property immediately.

Uganda has a lot to offer visitors  to the Country including Mountain gorilla tours, birding safaris and other adventure sporting activities like white water rafting on the Nile river in addition to Rwanda safari packages like gorilla trekking as well as Kenya safaris like Masai Mara tour. Uganda gorilla tours and gorilla trek in Uganda

Tour operators and other stakeholders in the tourism industry are expectant given that his reign at Safaricom was such an illustrious period with record earnings for the leading mobile phone firm. Kenya safari packages

One of the stakeholders Ms. Millicent Odhiambo who is the Executive office of Mombasa and Coast Tourist Association said that they are looking forward expectantly to working with him closely as they believe that Mr. Michael Joseph is bound to bring the same driving force he had during the time he worked at Safaricom.

The Kenya Tourist Board as way of creating a niche in the tourism of Kenya has tried hard to look beyond the traditional wildlife as well as sun and sand as Kenya’s selling points. The East Africa region has seen a tremendous increase in the number of conference tourism with Uganda hosting the 2007 CHOGM conference, the African Union Summit among the major international conferences. Kenya in 2009 has hosted the African Growth and Opportunity Act as one of the major conferences. Conference tourism falls under the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions segment of the tourism industry. Kenya hotels

However most of the conferences are held in Nairobi with specific hotels taking a large share of the conferences such as the KICC, in addition to Intercontinental Hotel and Safari Park hotel. This has caused other stakeholders like Bonfire Adventures s tour operator in Nairobi to cry foul. Mr. Simon Kabu the director said that Mr. Joseph Michael needs to engage more private sector stakeholders with emphasis on hotels development by facilitating and creating incentives.

It was published in November last year that there were to be about eight additional hotels were to be setup in Nairobi due to the increased need for accommodation as there’s an increased number of tourists. The proprietors of these hotels are both local and international at various stages of development from planning and building.

Mr. Joseph Michael took over from Mr. Jake Greeves-Cook who held the position for two years as Kenya’s Tourism Board chairman. Uganda tourism

“I’m honoured to serve in this position and will work to make Kenya a truly magical destination that it is,” said Mr Joseph at the reception hosted at a Nairobi hotel.

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