CLOSURE OF ZIWA RHINO SANCTUARY IN UGANDA
Closure of Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in Uganda : Ziwa rhino sanctuary in Uganda is the only place where you can find the endangered rhinos among the reserves and national parks in Uganda if you’re interested in seeing them. Ziwa rhino sanctuary was established after the political instability which led to the death of a number of rhinos in Murchison falls and as a way as to protect the remaining species, they established the sanctuary to increase the numbers and over the years a number of rhinos have been bred there which has significantly led to the increase of their numbers and also a number of animal species have also been introduced to the sanctuary which has made it one of the notable stopovers while visiting Murchison falls national park.
Some of the attractions you will get to see when you visit Ziwa rhino sanctuary include a number of wildlife species like; the crocodiles, the endangered shoebill stork, the antelopes, hippopotamus, the black and white colobus monkeys, mona monkeys, blue monkeys and many other attractions that make the sanctuary one of the destinations to visit during your Uganda safari.
With the ongoing misunderstandings between Ziwa rhino and wildlife ranches and rhino fund Uganda, the Uganda wildlife authority announced to all the tourism stake holders the closure of the sanctuary which means there will not be any tourism activities that will be carried out until further notice. The Uganda wildlife authority closed the sanctuary as a way to protect the rhinos whose safety can be compromised with the ongoing misunderstanding hence the Uganda wildlife authority taking over full charge of the rhinos in Nakasongola district.
The temporary measure of closing the sanctuary will help both organisation that is the rhino fund Uganda and Ziwa rhino and wildlife ranches to come up with solutions that won’t put the rhinos at risk and also as a way to allow the organisations to come up with the solutions for the conflicts and land wrangles that have affected the rhinos in the long run.
As a way to protect the rhinos, the Uganda wildlife authority in the letter its issued on 16 April 2021, there has been a number of plans put in place like plans to introduce the rhinos to a number of protected Uganda wildlife areas that are yet to be confirmed. There have been number of feasibility studies carried out to ensure that the areas where the rhinos will be introduced are the most suitable locations that will not hinder with their survival after introduction to a new area.
For tourists that miss out on the opportunity of visiting Ziwa rhino sanctuary they can visit a number of other destinations in Uganda where you will get to see a number of other wildlife attractions for a memorable safari in Uganda.
You can chose to visit Ngamba chimpanzee sanctuary which was established to protect chimpanzees that were victims of smuggling, you can visit a number of national parks where you can take part in a number of activities like gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park and mgahinga national park, game drives in Murchison falls national park where you will see a number of carnivores like the lions trying to catch prey mong other carnivores, herbivores in the park like the impalas, Uganda kobs, elephants grazing in the plains for rewarding views, queen Elizabeth national park, lion tracking in queen Elizabeth national park, mountain climbing in mount Elgon national park, hiking the virunga mountains in mgahinga national park, chimpanzee trekking in Kibale national park, birding in Mabamba island that will give you the chance to see a number of wildlife species for a memorable safaris and hence give you the chance to see a variety of wildlife species as compared to the ones at the sanctuary.
