CONSTRUCTION OF ZIPLINE TO BOOST TOURISM IN RWANDA’s NYUNGWE NATIONAL PARK

Protais Niyigaba, the park manager, said that a zipline will be available in Nyungwe National Park next year.

Zipline is expected to attract tourists and boost revenues generated by Nyungwe national park. Last year in December alone, he said, the park was visited by 2,628 tourists.

The park recorded 21, 564 visitors in 2022 , an increase from 4,810 visitors in 2008.

“We target to be self-financed at 80 per cent in the next 10 years thanks to products that will help to attract more tourists,” he said.

He said that procurement has been launched to secure an investor who will establish the Zipline.

“In the middle of the year we will have also completed an eco-lodge inside the park. This is part of the package that includes Ziplining to attract tourists,” he said.

Niyigaba said that the number of nationals visiting Nyungwe park is expected to increase by between 45 per cent and 50 per cent while internations will increase by 35 and 40 per cent.

Nyungwe is one of the oldest tropical rainforests in Africa which Rwanda seeks to list on UNESCO World Heritage site.

In 2020, the Government entered a 20-year agreement with African Parks to manage and conserve Nyungwe National Park.

Nyungwe forest accommodates 1, 068 flowering species, 322 bird species, over 85 mammal species including 13 species of primates, over 32 amphibian species and 38 reptile species.

Niyigaba said that the planned park management cost was estimated to $ 4.6M for 2022, with a bigger portion going to the new park infrastructures (including the new Park Headquarters and new tourism infrastructure) and added that there are currently 80 ground rangers, 18 security guards, 35 posts’ aids and 33 primates’ trackers.

A report on the State of the Wildlife Economy in Rwanda, in 2021 disclosed that the value of Nyungwe National Park was estimated at $4.8 billion.

The park feeds two of the world’s largest rivers, the Congo and the Nile, and provides 70 per cent of the country’s freshwater.

Zipline- a thrilling adventure tour that will allow tourists to soar through the tree tops of the Nyungwe forest will soon be constructed.

Suspended by strong steel cables strategically placed within the jungle, ziplining will help to get an eye view soaring over Nyungwe rainforest.

Suspended above a ravine in the lush montane rainforest of Nyungwe National Park, the canopy walkway provides an exhilarating perspective on the ancient treetops and wildlife.

SOURCE: NewsTime