KAMPALA — Uganda’s mountain gorillas are playing an increasingly important role in the country’s tourism economy, generating billions of shillings in revenue while supporting businesses, jobs and community projects around Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla National Parks.
The figures come as Uganda prepares to join the rest of the world in marking World Gorilla Day on September 24, with this year’s activities highlighting the connection between gorilla conservation, tourism and the livelihoods of communities living around the forests.
World Gorilla Day was launched in 2017 and is held on September 24 to mark the anniversary of the establishment of the Karisoke Research Centre by primatologist Dian Fossey. The day is used to promote the protection of gorillas and their habitats.
Uganda is home to more than half of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas, according to the 2019 census. A new census has since been conducted, but the final population figure is yet to be released.
John Makombo, Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) Commissioner for Biodiversity Management, said preliminary indications show that the gorilla population has continued to increase, largely due to new births.
He said authorities were still waiting for the completion of DNA analysis before releasing the final results of the latest census.
The increase in the gorilla population has coincided with rising visitor numbers to the country’s two mountain gorilla parks.
UWA spokesperson Bashir Hangi said Mgahinga National Park recorded 3,601 visitors in the 2021/22 financial year. The number increased to 5,325 in 2022/23, 5,507 in 2023/24 and 6,222 in 2024/25.
At Bwindi, visitor numbers rose from 20,367 in 2021/22 to 37,360 in 2022/23. They increased further to 43,984 in 2023/24 before slightly declining to 43,716 in 2024/25.
Hangi, however, cautioned that the figures represent all tourism activities in the two parks and should not be treated as the number of gorilla trekkers alone.
Gorilla tourism generates billions
According to Makombo, Bwindi and Mgahinga generated more than Sh109.8 billion from gorilla tourism in 2022/23.
When revenue from other tourism activities in the two parks was included, total collections reached Sh147.9 billion during the same financial year.
The combined revenue fell to Sh131.9 billion in 2023/24, with gorilla tourism contributing about Sh86 billion. Makombo attributed the decline partly to negative travel advisories issued by some foreign missions.
Revenue subsequently recovered to Sh142 billion in 2024/25, including Sh93 billion from gorilla tourism.
The recovery continued in 2025/26, when the two parks generated Sh162.5 billion, with gorilla tourism contributing Sh110 billion.
The figures have strengthened the case for conservation as an economic activity, with the tourism generated by the gorillas supporting a wider chain of businesses and services.
Communities share in conservation revenue
The economic benefits also extend beyond tourism operators and government agencies.
During the financial year ending June 2025, UWA distributed Sh2.97 billion under its revenue-sharing programme to communities surrounding the Bwindi-Mgahinga Conservation Area.
The money is being used to support community projects, social enterprises and businesses in areas neighbouring the protected forests.
Tourism has also created opportunities for residents to participate directly in the industry.
The Porters’ Association in Buhoma, which was established in 1992, currently has about 100 members, while more than 50 other community members operate from the Nyamishamba outpost.
Community associations in other Bwindi tourism sectors, including Rushaga, Ruhija and Nkuringo, bring the combined membership of people providing tourism-related services to about 500.
Christine Katushabe, founder of Change A Life-Bwindi, a community organisation based in Ruhija, Mpungu Sub-county in Kanungu District, said the expansion of tourism had encouraged the growth of accommodation and hospitality businesses around the park.
She said the emergence of high-end lodges had created jobs while also providing markets for products supplied by local communities.
“Gorillas are not just an attraction for tourists. They are the reason our communities have hope for a better future. When we protect the forest, we protect our children’s livelihoods, our culture and our identity,” Katushabe said.
She said World Gorilla Day should also highlight the role of communities living closest to the gorillas in conservation.
The growth of tourism around Bwindi and Mgahinga has also been accompanied by improvements in infrastructure, including telecommunications, electricity, roads and air connectivity.
Celebrations planned in Bwindi
Although World Gorilla Day will be observed on September 24, Uganda’s main national celebrations will take place on October 1.
Activities leading up to the celebrations will run from September 19 to 21 in the Ruhija sector of Bwindi, in Mpungu Sub-county, Kanungu District.
The programme, organised by Change A Life-Bwindi in partnership with UWA, includes community cleaning exercises, tree planting, medical camps, community dialogue and gorilla tracking.
Uganda Tourism Board Chief Executive Officer Juliana Kagwa has called for sustainable tourism practices in Bwindi and Mgahinga while promoting Uganda’s gorilla-tracking experience.
Kagwa also said Uganda was developing other tourism attractions to complement gorilla tourism and broaden the country’s tourism offering.
The diversification is intended to spread tourism activity across more destinations and experiences while maintaining gorilla conservation as a key part of Uganda’s wildlife and tourism strategy.