Community contribution to conservation

Locals that are living around the Nyungwe National Park are appreciated for their effort towards the conservation of cultures and practices during the official opening of a mini- maize grinding factory which has been constructed as part of the country’s tourism revenue sharing scheme. This has been achieved because of the fact that Rwanda Development Board (RDB) sets a side 5% of total parks revenues collected every year for community projects so that people around the three national parks like Nyungwe, Akagera and Virunga can benefit from their existence.

Francois Kanimba who is the Minister of Trade and Industry appreciated the local residents for their efforts to preserve the environment and protect Nyungwe national park. He said this during a ceremony in Buruhukiro Sector, Nyamagabe District, last week where he was the guest of honor.  He added that in the past years, these people around the parks used to kill animals in the park, cut down trees and conducted so many other illegal activities inside it with no care but now they cant do that as they now the benefits of the protecting the forest and the wildlife in them.

Incidents like those of fire outbreaks that destroyed large parts of the park were attributed to human activities like beekeeping. However today such cases have reduced at least in the recent past years as more residents are getting involved with conservation effort and the more the surface of the forest reduces, the more you feel its negative effects so said  Kanimba  before  congratulating all the residents  for  the  efforts towards protect this park.

He also cautioned them to remember that any action that might affect the ecosystem in any park could have negative impact on the national economy as well as their lives, giving an example to those around Nyungwe that the existence of Nyungwe forest is very important for regulating precipitation.

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