Rwanda’s Greatest Natural Resource

Friend of IT Molly Feltner is traveling through Africa, and just came face-to-face with mountain gorillas in Rwanda.

I’ve witnessed cheetahs hunting gazelle in the Serengeti, spent hours watching monkeys play in the Amazon, and swam with wild dolphins off the coast of Brazil, but no wildlife experience I’ve had can compare to coming face-to-face with a 500-pound silverback mountain gorilla, an animal that shares about 98% of my DNA. I met Kurira, the leader of Susa group, a 38-member gorilla family, while trekking in Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, and found him to be a rather hospitable fellow. He didn’t mind me or the seven other members of my gorilla trekking party wandering among his charges–he’s been visited every day by tourists for years. After giving my group a good look over from a sunny patch of vegetation about 20 feet away, he stretched out on his back, arms folded behind his head, and let a baby crawl up on his big belly. The two played together for nearly 20 minutes.

Other gorillas gathered around us as we stood still. A big black-back male made a nest of leaves and settled in for a nap to my right. On my left a mother plucked and peeled wild celery, her twins playing nearby. After an hour, our guide signaled it was time to go–tourists only get one hour with the gorillas to limit the apes’ exposure to human germs. It was a short time but the chance to see such rare creatures (there are only about 700 in the world) in so intimate a setting was well worth the $500 price tag and the effort of trekking up the volcano to find them.

Fifteen years after the genocide, Rwanda

is hoping foreigners will start associating the country with another “G” word–gorillas. As I’ve discovered talking to park wardens, tour operators, and regular Rwandans during my travels here,  this poverty-stricken country has recognized that the gorillas are one of its chief natural resources. The country has invested a great deal in protecting the mountain gorillas and their habitat, and is using some of money generated by gorilla tourism to help the communities surrounding the park. In the past, poaching, tree cutting, and other illegal activities were major threats to the park, but thanks to education programs and community development projects sponsored by the park and affiliated NGOs, conflict between the locals and the park has been greatly reduced. Last year, five percent of the park income, or about $150,000 USD, was used to build schools and fund health initiatives, alternative agriculture projects, and vocational training programs.

Community Conservation Warden Janvier Kwizera told me that although there’s a long way to go, he’s seen enormous changes in the attitude of the locals towards the park in the six years since the park started working with the nearby communities. In fact, some of the park’s best allies are former poachers who now work as conservation educators.

The Facts: I booked my gorilla trek through Amahoro Tours, a company which can arrange for gorilla permits, transportation to the park, and visits to the surrounding communities. To learn more about the Rwandan gorillas, visit National Geographic’s site and Great Apes blog dedicated to their protection.

Photos: Molly Feltner