On Thursday July 8, 2010, USAID-STAR assisted Uganda’s Ministry of Tourism Trade and Industry (MTTI) to launch a domestic tourism promotion campaign at Kyambura Game Lodge. The launch was presided over by the US Ambassador to Uganda, Jerry Lanier, and included a panel discussion between the Government of Uganda and the USAID mission on general tourism and conservation issues in Uganda—with a particular focus on the Albertine Rift.
The USAID-STAR program has built momentum among partners in the tourism industry to strengthen domestic and community tourism enterprises through engagement with media houses, tour operators, and facilitating meeting between the public and private sector. The domestic tourism launch is a culmination of many domestic tourism interventions by the program—including support of the Friend-a-Gorilla campaign and an Easter road trip to five key national parks involving 30 people. In addition to increasing economic benefits, promoting domestic tourism will help to raise awareness among Ugandans of the importance of their natural heritage and participation in biodiversity conservation.
The launch of this campaign is a landmark in promoting domestic tourism as part of government policy to ensure that Ugandans learn more about the culture and natural resources found in their country. This initiative focuses on supporting private sector and community initiatives that provide accommodation and transport facilities for the Ugandan market in and around the national parks. The initiative by Kyambura Game Lodge in organizing and offering domestic packages reinforces the importance of the private sector in the tourism industry. It should be noted that this was also the first time a lodge has offered and promoted a tourism package specifically for the Ugandan market. Following the launch, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Trade, and Industry (PS/MTTI) took the US Ambassador and team for a game drive and boat ride on Kazinga channel (courtesy of the Uganda Wildlife Authority).
The USAID-STAR program has built momentum among partners in the tourism industry to strengthen domestic and community tourism enterprises through engagement with media houses, tour operators, and facilitating meeting between the public and private sector. The domestic tourism launch is a culmination of many domestic tourism interventions by the program—including support of the Friend-a-Gorilla campaign and an Easter road trip to five key national parks involving 30 people. In addition to increasing economic benefits, promoting domestic tourism will help to raise awareness among Ugandans of the importance of their natural heritage and participation in biodiversity conservation.
The launch of this campaign is a landmark in promoting domestic tourism as part of government policy to ensure that Ugandans learn more about the culture and natural resources found in their country. This initiative focuses on supporting private sector and community initiatives that provide accommodation and transport facilities for the Ugandan market in and around the national parks. The initiative by Kyambura Game Lodge in organizing and offering domestic packages reinforces the importance of the private sector in the tourism industry. It should be noted that this was also the first time a lodge has offered and promoted a tourism package specifically for the Ugandan market. Following the launch, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Trade, and Industry (PS/MTTI) took the US Ambassador and team for a game drive and boat ride on Kazinga channel (courtesy of the Uganda Wildlife Authority).
Delegation after the launch of domestic tourism
Ambassador and PS/MTTI cruise along the Kazinga Channel
