Dushinimana (left) with her friend Jonah Akandunda enjoy a game ride at Murchison

By Joseph Kariuki

THE Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has launched a new drive to promote wildlife conservation and local tourism. The campaign, targeting the youth, aims at popularising Uganda’s rich wildlife heritage among students.

The authority is hoping to reach the more than 30,000 students at Makerere University alone, Eunice Nyiramahoro, the director of tourism and business development, declared last week.

She was speaking during the close of a two-week sensitisation outreach at the institution.

Nyiramahoro said UWA has already put incentives in place to attract students to the parks. She said some of the incentives include free entry for students with valid identity cards.

During the function, more than 2,500 students, visited the stalls and got copies of Uganda games posters and CDs.

The climax of the day was a raffle won by Judith Dushimimana, a second year student of Psychology for a three-day tour of Murchison Falls Game Park.
Nyiramahoro asked the Government to give incentives to the industry to allow easy access to the parks.

“People are constrained because tour companies are expensive but the tourism ministry is working on ways to make accessing the national parks easier,” said Nyiramahoro.

“We need to put infrastructure in place to attract more local tourists.”

She regretted that many locals believe that the national parks were only for white tourists.