Uganda National Parks Now Fully Open For Tourism Amidst COVID 19 Crisis
Uganda just like any other country in the world was hit by the Corona Virus disease outbreak which prompted the closure of tourism and national parks. Many COVID 19 cases have been reported daily with the total cases currently standing at 3667 with 1608 recoveries and 41 deaths.
It should be remembered that Uganda lock down its economy in March this year to contain the spread of the deadly virus.
In June the Uganda Wildlife Authority started opening up slowly for tourism as domestic tourists were allowed to visit the savanna national parks. For the primates in Uganda given that the major primates (Chimpanzees and mountain gorillas) have over 95% DNA similar to humans, the primates national parks remained closed
The continued closure of the primate parks was done to ensure better standard operating procedures are put in place to ensure the safety of primates as they could easily contract the disease from humans.
After several engagements with the various stakeholders and the Ministry, all national parks in Uganda including the primates parks have been officially fully opened for tourist visitation.
Guidelines to be Followed
All national parks are mandated to do temperature screening using non-contact infra red thermometers at key tourism entry points
Its mandatory to have hand washing and sanitizing points and major park entries
All tourists are mandated to wear a face mask while inside the national parks
Social distancing will continue to be observed especially in tourist vehicles and boats in national parks as they will only be allowed to carry half capacity of the usual numbers.
With all national parks now fully open, Uganda now joins the other three East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda that opened their economies for business and tourism.
There is hope that Entebbe international airport will open up for international commercial flights on 1st October 2020 which will great improve tourism as many people having been waiting to travel and explore again.
Uganda is one of the leading wildlife destinations in East Africa with a number of wildlife attractions and a unique culture of the people. Wildlife tours in Uganda feature tourist activities like game drives, nature walks, boat cruises, balloon safaris and primate trekking. These offer great wildlife encounters and its what travel enthusiast need after several months of lock down.
