Ecotourism in Uganda A Case Study of the Mgahinga National Park

Abstract

This is a case study of Mgahinga gorilla national park in Western Uganda. It is an attempt to investigate the importance and relevance of ecotourism and assess the awareness and understanding of ecotourism among the local population. The purpose of the study are listed below: 1. To assess the awareness and understanding of local community towards ecotourism. 2. To assess the contribution of ecotourism to the local population. 3. To find out whether the local population has been sentisised on ecotourism and environment. 4. To find out whether people with higher education have better understanding of Ecotourism. The results show that, despite a low number of respondents employed in the tourism industry, the local population supports the idea of conservation of wildlife . All the respondents interviewed unanimously answered that they support the idea of nature conservation. All 120 respondents asked whether they benefit from ecotourism, answered unanimously that the benefit either directly through employment in the tourism industry or indirectly through the sale of goods and services to the tourists and other employees within the tourism sector. Illegal activities still go on in the park despite several international interventions. Respondents had mixed opinion some agreed gave various reasons to justify their claims, while others respondents did not agree and justified their opinion. A small number of respondents would not give their opinion by insisting they are not aware of any illegal activities in the park.