ELEVATING THE BATWA PEOPLE LIVELIHOODS
Batwa are indigenous people also known as the forest pygmies who originally lived in Mgahinga and Bwindi rain-forests. After God created the lot blessed them with the shortest statured height and gifted them with their pride rain-forests where they survived as wild hunters until Mgahinga and Bwindi were gazetted into a national park. Batwa are alleged to be the oldest indigenous lived in Uganda before the Bantu and Nilotic arrived 4000 years ago.
Batwa are approximately 88,000 in number problems of landless, no income, illiteracy and poor health are frustration. Though Uganda has ratified in the international convention for recognition little effort had featured for government to start program to eliminate such. However, NGOs and cultural activist have done a lot to ensure uplifting of the voiceless to attract the government intervention. In 2011 with the support of civil society organization like Minority Rights Group International through United Organization for Batwa Development Uganda (UOBDU) has helped to initiate education to eliminate illiteracy and involving them in different developmental programs.
In 1991, Batwa people were evicted from Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National parks and received no compensation. The government of Uganda through Uganda Wildlife Authority and United Organization for Batwa Development (UOBDU) started an initiative aimed at helping them to earn income to enable them meet their basic needs. The Batwa tourism trail product was developed to diversify tourism activities in two Parks and improving their livelihood, the trail transforms Batwa people with skills, exposure and are able to earn them income through the handcrafts they make. UOBDU is now trying hard to guarantee that these people fully participate in the initiative planning, implementing and evaluation of different programs to eliminate challenges that are pursuing them.
Did the conservation of Mountain Gorillas turned into conservation of Batwa? Definitely due to their little number and likely extinction, it raised concerns to conserve the beautiful culture of these forest people. As constitution demands for any indigenous tribe having a right to exist, this turned out when the two forest where turned into national parks to protect and conserving the Mountain Gorillas. “Without Gorilla conservation there is no Batwa protection”.
Batwa tourism trails is a gentle hike in the slopes and peaks that takes about 5/6 hours, this brands the Batwa part in management, conserving and UWA gives the community 30% of the revenue from park revenue. The community owns the initiatives to take tourist around to comprehend life in the forest and demonstrating their life experiences of hunting, gathering, fire making and dances. UWA has engaged the Batwa people directly in conservation by employing them as potters to escort tourists on a gorilla trekking walk where they earn directly from the tourists, they do this by assisting clients carry their backpackers, push them where they need a push, pull them and also providing local ambulance service tourists where they feel cannot continue with the trek, they carry them back to the starting point. The project is a milestone in providing jobs for the locals still earning them income to improve their standards of living.
Community initiative for conservation were introduced to contribute in nature conservation through mobilization and sustainable agriculture like mushroom cultivation to reform poachers, youth, women and Batwa at large. The project of bee keeping in Batwa communities with over 100 bee hives and over 1,000,000 bees has help to pollinate trillions of plants which has facilitated in maintenance of biodiversity of flora in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park which is home to over half a population of world’s Mountain Gorillas.
Batwa Homestead inside Bwindi Impenetrable rain-forest
Community Initiative for Biodiversity Conservation (CIBIC) presented a pro-poor tourism activity in Bwindi through a successful relationship between local producers, tourism lodge owners and tour agencies. The initiative focuses on supplying food for tourists from local farmers. Currently, about 70% of total food served to tourists comes from locals around these protected areas.
However, the Batwa dream remains going back in their previous ancestral forest to co-exist with Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable national park and Mgahinga Gorilla national park. But every now and then the dream is vanishing away due to continuing government program to resettle them permanently out of the gorilla forests.
Once forgotten people, the government through its organ UWA handed over 7.5 acres of land worthy 180 million Uganda shillings to a group of 35 people in the community around Mgahinga Gorilla National Park who are working with UWA to enhance tourism. On (April 26, 2019) the Minister of Tourism and Wildlife Antiquities Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu handed over the land of two pieces and said, “The purchase of the land for the Batwa is the beginning of the government interventions to address challenges of Batwa that have been exerting pressure on the park and its resources”. He paid tributes to all partners including Bwindi and Mgahinga conservation trust who over the years invested heavily to improve the welfare of Batwa including the acquisition of this land.
Kamuntu farther said the existence of the protected area comes along with projects that helps in improving the livelihood of the community. Projects such as constructions, electricity, water and road extensions to the park and surrounding areas. The executive director of UWA Sam Mwandha said the beneficiary have been working together with UWA in giving a memorable experience such Gorilla tours to tourist in the park and to the communities around the parks who have been facing with challenges of inadequate land for settlement and cultivation.
In the same way traveling to any of the two parks is a milestone everyone can contribute to elevate lives of Batwa people, visiting their communities to comprehend and appreciate their cultural settings and practices doesn’t only stops there but it earns them with a living. Gorilla Hub Tours is our pleasure to reach every partner and life changer to such people who can participate in uplifting their lives, through our team of experts inquire now for your gorilla trekking trip and encounter the Batwa pygmy forest hunter.