In preparation for ITB Berlin, SW Associates worked through the USAID-sponsored Nyungwe Nziza project to help the Rwanda Development Board prepare for the fair, which is one of the largest fairs of its kind. The following information is part of that effort.

Rwanda is actively working to sustainably grow its tourism sector and the efforts are succeeding. Developments in Nyungwe National Park in the southern part of the country are helping to expand Rwanda’s eco-tourism and cultural tourism experiences.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Nyungwe is home to about 400 chimpanzees and 13 species of other primates, including large troops of Colobus monkeys, gray-cheeked mangabeys and L’Hoest moneys.
• The Thousand Hills Trail opened in November 2011 near Nyungwe National Park.
• Nyungwe includes the Congo-Nile Divide Trail and the Source of the White Nile.
• Several other trails ready for hikers throughout the Park with names such as Imbaraga, Bigugu, Igishigishgi, Irebero, Isumo and Karamba.
• World class birding with 310 species, including 27 Albertine Rift endemics.
• The only Canopy Walk in East Africa – suspended 60 meters above the forest floor, a spectacular way to visit the Forest.
• One of richest centers of plant diversity in East Africa with over 1100 species of flora, 250 of which are Albertine Rift Endemics and over 140 species of orchids.