A lot has already been written about the unfortunate killing of two tourists and their guide/driver in Queen Elizabeth National Park mid this past month of October, 2023. I have read in some sections of the media including digital platforms people wondering; “Why couldn’t they fly to Mweya?”
Now, that is from persons who think tourism is about a destination. Tourism is about experiences. For the uninitiated, let’s say an international tourist arrives at Entebbe Airport and are headed for the enormously endowed West of Uganda with 7 of the 10 national parks. If you flew in and took a domestic flight to Mweya, there is so much you would miss.
The old airport is grafted into the history of Israel because of the 1976 raid where several movies have been made since. That raid is one of the daring acts in Israel history that gets to be told to all visitors to Israel. I wouldn’t miss to add though that Israel’s SBI company was involved in the construction of the Airport terminal building and therefore, Israel had a spy idea. It was not new place they were so ignorant about to execute a raid and; that some of the soil on which, Israel grows its fruits was lifted from here.
On exiting Entebbe at Kitubulu, I would explain that the destination you are headed to; Mweya is a peninsula in the same way as Entebbe; all are nearly surrounded by lakes; Edward and Victoria respectively. I would also delve into the political history of Uganda to share with the tourist why Entebbe is so important. Onto the Entebbe Express, as the guests enjoy the ride, I share with them that the Express is an exhibition of Chinese power and influence in Africa. Not everything from China is fake after all.
Onto Mityana road, the tourists get to appreciate the lushness of Uganda. I would share with them that Uganda was a British protectorate than an outright colony and that the future Prime Minister of England, Winston Churchill, at the beginning of the 20th century christened it, the Pearl of Africa.
In Mubende town, you will have your first stop-over to enjoy Africa’s open barbeque with roasted plantain or cassava and goat meat on skewers. It is an experience than no other. Next stop would be the breathtaking tea plantations of Tooro and lunch say at Kyaninga, would be the ultimate experience in sampling the 52 crater lakes of Tooro. Later in the afternoon, the tourists head to Semliki National Park to the Sempaya hot springs.
Now, seeing your next meal or snack of potatoes and eggs or matooke being boiled in an active eruptive volcanic water is nothing short of a marvel. By the time the tourist reaches their destination for accommodation at the wonderfully made Mweya peninsula, they would truly be soaked in a bit of Uganda’s beauty in 8 hours.
I understand, the couple were on the 18th destined for morning game drive and on the 19th, a date with the Ishasha tree climbing lions before they get into Bwindi Impenetrable Forest for a night or two at one of the magnificent lodges in Buhoma. On the 20th, they were to come face to face with the endangered Mountain Gorillas. Now, for a week that this couple was to stay in Uganda, on average, their daily expenditure would be about US$2,000! We just need about 100,000 such couples to earn US$200M, enough to build the Entebbe Airport without borrowing the equivalent amount from a Chinese bank.
What are some of the immediate effects of the murder?
I am aware lodges and travel companies are averaging 70% cancellations for this high season. Lodges are already reducing staff by over 80% for the months of November, 2023 to probably March 2024! It cannot therefore, be business as usual.
Managers and owners have just spruced up their lodges ready to host both local and international visitors. With travel advisories for inbound travelers, the unfortunate killing is nothing but a tragedy. A reported tourist death in Queen Elizabeth sends shivers in the rest of the 9 national parks. Remember, 07 of 10 parks are fixed in south west and west of Uganda and that is where the rebels are said to be lurking. The local travelers would be so jittery to dare go out for Christmas.
It is not enough to send words of comfort. There are security assurances that need to be seen than said and I have no doubt about our security capacity. My only challenge is how do we as a country communicate in such moments of crises? But also, our branding especially when we think of influencers, cannot be with conmen such as Kanye West, Terrance Howard or A-kon.
If it were for me, I would look to the nature movie producers world over and offer free entry and offer sponsorships to ensure that the next nature-themed movie is shot on location in Queen Elizabeth National Park. More so, on the picturesque Lake Nyamunuuka close to where the murder is said to have happened. I would as a matter of urgency get in touch with the managers of actors such as Elbar, Morgan Freeman, Trevor Noah and other notable influencers to be in Uganda as soon as yesterday.
We are talking about million-dollar investment here not ‘touch here, pool there’ business as usual gimmicks. These are unusual times, we cannot be doing things the usual way. Tourism is too important to be handled casually. Its contribution to our economy is too big to be handled with shilling mindsets. It speaks volumes about how we handle things; laisez fare. We got to be intentional and that is not cheap!
Over the weekend, I spoke to a Ugandan Mountain climber. She confessed that when she hiked Mt. Kirimanjaro, a year ago, she noted with concern that that single mountain alone brings in more tourists to Tanzania compared to those that come to Uganda as a country. How is Tanzania able to market itself despite the COVID-19 debacle over a year ago that they are a serious destination, yet our Mt. Rwenzori is said to be technically attractive to mountain climbers? Do we know famous climbers that we need to bring here at this time? What if for example, my former boss Robert Kabushenga and his CEO friends were pictured having breakfast in the wild in Queen, wouldn’t that be bigger and greater than the miserable tour cars in the queen miserably captioned; “Business as usual?”
The writer is a retired journalist taking baby steps in tourism business
aggrey@kyamburasafaris.com
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