The impact of mountain gorilla tourism : perspectives of the management of the attraction

Abstract

Mountain gorilla tourism is the most unique and key asset which Uganda possesses compared to the other tourist attractions in Kenya and Tanzania. The country has two national parks where these special animals are found, namely the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. The study focuses on the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in the Butogota Town Council in the Kanungu District of Western Uganda. Gorillas are the most important and number one tourism attraction with a number of economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts. The present study found that the selected stakeholders, namely the residents, businesses owners, local leaders, educationalists, religious leaders and Government official’s perceptions are often not considered and yet they are directly involved in mountain gorilla tourism related activities. Therefore, it is very important to scrutinize the impact of mountain gorilla tourism. The aim of this study was to determine how the different selected stakeholders perceive mountain gorilla tourism in their area. The study explored if the stakeholders were aware of the management strategies and policies put in place plus their strengths and weaknesses. It further examined the impacts of mountain gorilla tourism and these covered the triple bottom-line aspects above, so as to offer solutions to continued gorilla tourism activities to benefit the management, community, tourists and the economy of the area. To achieve the aim of the study, the following objectives were formulated:  To determine the extent to which mountain gorilla tourism has created opportunities for the different stakeholders;  To identify the positive and negative economic impacts of gorilla tourism on the communities in the Butogota area;  To establish if mountain gorilla tourism related activities have socially affected the local area;  To identify environmental contributions that mountain gorilla tourism has brought to the area; and  To provide recommendations on management strategies and policies for future mountain gorilla tourism developments. The researcher made use of both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to obtain data, making use of both primary and secondary sources to meet the objectives of the study. The closed-ended section of the survey was analysed using IBM’s Statistical Package for Social Sciences, whereas the open-ended section (section D) of the survey was analysed qualitatively using conceptual categories, which were then compared, categorised and clustered accordingly. The general findings indicated knowledge and awareness of the management strategies and policies of mountain gorilla tourism by selected stakeholders. Regarding the economic impacts, the majority agreed that gorilla tourism had contributed positively to their area, meanwhile socially, the study conclusions suggested that gorilla-related activities had negatively affected the lives of the locals around the park. Environmentally, the findings showed that this tourism niche had created opportunities for environmental education and awareness. However, it is required of the Ugandan Wildlife Authority and the Uganda Tourist Board to implement current laws and policies to effectively manage the competition from Rwanda and Congo since the tourism industry is growing and changing rapidly. The need for restructuring of these laws, policies and strategies is important so that stakeholders can be kept updated on activities related to mountain gorilla tourism.