Ask the Batwa people about the drawbacks of gorilla tourism in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. There are a plethora of benefits to gorilla tourism, including job creation, income from the selling of gorilla permits, and the preservation of the critically endangered primates.

Having said that, we will talk about the drawbacks of gorilla tourism in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park today in order to bring attention to this negative aspect of the industry. We wholeheartedly concur that, provided the majority of the concerns brought up are resolved, gorilla tourism is advantageous and need to be encouraged.

Gorilla tourism’s negative effects on the Batwa community

One cannot avoid bringing up the Batwa problem while discussing the drawbacks of gorilla tourism. The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest was formerly home to the Batwa, often known as the Pygmies, until it was declared a national park to allow gorilla tourism to thrive. Without being given land to relocate to, the pygmies were driven from the forest.

They were no longer able to employ and harness the forest’s resources for their existence, as they were used to doing. Most of them have so far been unable to settle down, and the government has not been able to assist them either.

The batwa community continues to be one of Uganda’s most endangered ethnic groups as a result, and gorilla tourism has numerous negative effects on them. Numerous non-governmental organizations have emerged to assist the Batwa community by constructing houses, schools, and hospitals for them. As a result, a large number of them are now attending school.

Gorilla tourism’s drawbacks for mountain gorillas

Gorillas must go through habituation in order to get used to human visitors before they are allowed to see them.

A particular gorilla family requires two to three years of acclimatization for researchers. Before guests are permitted to see these gorillas, practice visits are carried out. Gorilla trekking will begin once the researchers are certain the family is prepared. The risk of illness transmission to mountain gorillas increases with the frequency of human-gorilla interaction, which is one of the drawbacks of gorilla tourism.

Generally speaking, a 7-meter distance should be maintained, but my interactions with the gorillas revealed that they are unaware of this and are able to approach humans with ease. They often leave the forest and go into communal property since they are used to humans, which leads to their damaging plantations and crops. They were now in danger since the locals might easily hurt them.

The good news is that all parties involved have been collaborating to solve the majority of the gorilla tourist drawbacks, which are well acknowledged. It is important to stress that the benefits of gorilla tourism outweigh the drawbacks, making it one of the greatest industries in Uganda in terms of generating significant foreign currency earnings. Please get in touch with Katland Safaris for more details about their gorilla trekking tours.