The Prime Minister of Rwanda Bernard Makuza has officially baptised the 22 baby gorillas born in the Volcanoes National Park over the past year. The 7th Kwita Izina ceremony, which was celebrated at the end of June, was introduced six years ago as a way of raising awareness of the conservation efforts and to give the gorillas a higher profile. During the ceremony local children from Kinigi, the town at the edge of the national park, dressed up as gorillas, each representing one of the babies.
This year was particularly special as in both February and May sets of twins were born, a very rare occurrence with Mountain Gorillas. It also celebrated a 26% rise in the known Rwandan Gorilla population level over the course of the project, a combination of conservation, protection and better census procedures. The population of nearly 500 gorillas is growing at nearly 4% annually, reversing the trend of previous decades when extinction was the predicted outcome by the year 2000. Since the ceremony began 123 gorilla have received a name, greatly raising awareness of the Volcanoes National park in which they live.
The ceremony was attended by thousands of people, and each gorilla received a “foster parent”, a group which comprised of government officials, diplomats and conservationists. Names included Ijambo meaning “word”, symbolizing the Rwandans effort to spread the word about these endangered animals. Others were Urahirwa (prospects), Indamutso (greetings) and the twins were called Isaangano and Isango (meeting place and appointment).
Volcanoes National Park has been in existence for over 100 years, but it’s only been in the last two decades that it has been developed and afforded the protection it needs from agriculture and population pressure. This has been achieved by highlighting the economic benefits that the Gorillas bring to the local region and economy. Over 800 local people are involved in the day to day running of the park, 180 of which are guides, trackers and anti-poaching squads. There is also an adjoining cultural village run by the local community for visitors drawn by the primates to visit. The Rwanda Development board also runs a revenue sharing scheme which has led to the construction of 11 schools, 3 health centres as well as fresh water schemes.
To visit the Mountain gorillas in the Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda, contact us on 0845 299 0264 for a tailored quotation for a full Rwandan safari tour to as an extension after a safari in Kenya or Tanzania.
For more details and photos of all 22 baby gorillas, visit the official Kwita Izina website.
