Kwita Izina, Rwanda’s gorilla naming ceremony is back as they mark 20 years of mountain gorilla conservation. This year’s naming is scheduled for 18th October at the gorilla naming grounds near Volcanoes National Park. Rwanda is among the three countries home to the rare mountain gorillas. Mountain gorillas are primates of the apes family that live in the forested mountains of the Virunga massif and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Their population is estimated at 1100 individuals with Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park having one of the highest populations.
The park has 12 fully habituated gorilla families that are open to tourism. Mountain gorilla conservation is vital as mountain gorillas are threatened by habitat loss and poaching. The gorilla naming ceremony is among the most successful gorilla conservation approaches as the named baby gorillas are closely monitored as they grow. It makes it easy for the gorilla doctors and rangers to notice when a gorilla is missing or sick.
The Rwandan government expanded the Volcanoes National Park’s land area to create more space for the gentle giants. This came at a time when the stability in the region saw more mountain gorilla conservation efforts that made a haven for mountain gorillas. Kwita Izina proves this conservation success as only newly born mountain gorillas are named annually.
About the Gorilla Naming Ceremony
Kwita Izina was derived from the Rwandan traditional culture of naming newborns. It was adapted to name mountain gorilla babies as the rare primates are among man’s closest relatives. Mountain gorillas have over 95% DNA similar to humans and share characteristics with us.
They live in families of up to 20 individuals led by a dominant male called Silverback. The Silverback monitors its family’s territories and often determines the general routine of the subordinate gorillas. Female mountain gorillas have monthly menstrual periods like humans do and their gestation period is also 9 months. After giving birth, female gorillas breastfeed their infants that remain under their care until three years old.
It is newly born gorillas that are named during the Kwita Izina Ceremony. The gorilla naming goal is to monitor newborn for their safety as they grow in the untamed wilderness. It helps monitor population growth and come up with conservation strategies to ensure the mountain gorilla habitat is well preserved.
Where to stay During the Gorilla Naming Ceremony
Kwita Izina attracts wildlife enthusiasts and conservation players worldwide and getting accommodation becomes a challenge. The Volcanoes National Park area has several accommodation facilities with enough bed capacity. It is however advisable to secure your accommodation in advance for convenience and easy access to the event grounds.
Notable high-end luxury lodges you can opt for include Bisate Lodge, Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, Oneandonly Gorillas’ Nest Lodge, and Amakoro Songa Lodge. Deluxe lodging options include the Five Volcanoes, Da Vinci Lodge, and Mountain Gorilla View Lodge.
The Kwita Izina naming grounds can also be directly accessed from Kigali. It takes a 3-hour drive from Kigali to Volcanoes National Park and one can still have an overnight in Kigali.
Other Rwanda Tourism Events
Rwanda is an amazing safari destination famous for mountain gorillas and other wildlife. The country has over the years positioned itself as a leading tourist destination for wildlife, culture, and sports. Kwita Izina is the most successful wildlife tourism event with positive environmental impacts.
Tour Du Rwanda is a cycling event that covers iconic Rwanda safari destinations including the Congo Nile Trail. The event attracts professional cyclists from all over the World who eventually take on exclusive journeys of Discovery in the land of a thousand hills.
Ironman Triathlon is another adventurous Rwanda tourism event to look out for. It involves a series of long-distance triathlon races including swimming, bike races, and running. This year’s Ironman Triathlon was held in Rubavu District along the shores of Lake Kivu. Rwanda has several other sports events including Basket Ball, and Football that you can be part of.
Discovery Journeys Packages
Volcanoes National Park is home to golden monkeys, an old Monkey species endemic to the Virunga Mountains. The park has 5 of the eight Virunga Mountains that can be hiked. Mount Bisoke has a crater on its summit and offers one of the best mountain hiking experiences. Our 3-day gorilla tour features mountain gorillas and a golden monkey trek. The 6-day Tour features hiking Mount Karisimbi and an up-close encounter with mountain gorillas.
Akagera National Park is the country’s only savanna park in the eastern part. It is home to the Big Five Mammals including elephants, lions, buffaloes, Rhinos, and leopards. Our 3-day Akagera Tour is short but ideal for exploring the park on game drives, boat cruises, and balloon safaris.
Nyungwe Forest in the southwestern part is home to chimpanzees and 12 other primates. It is the country’s most important bird area because of its Bird diversity. The forested park is home to over 300 bird species including Albertine Rift Valley endemics. It is also Rwanda’s only natural World Heritage Site having been listed in 2023. Our 5-day Rwanda tour and 10-day Rwanda Safari feature Nyungwe Forest for chimpanzee trekking, birding, and more!
Rwanda is best explored alongside other featured destinations like Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. There are direct connecting flights to each destination making accessibility easy. Uganda can be accessed by road and our 8-day Rwanda Uganda safari covers that.
As you plan your trip to the gorilla naming ceremony you can have an extension to Uganda based on your preference.
English
Afrikaans
Albanian
Amharic
Arabic
Armenian
Azerbaijani
Basque
Belarusian
Bengali
Bosnian
Bulgarian
Catalan
Cebuano
Chichewa
Chinese (Simplified)
Chinese (Traditional)
Corsican
Croatian
Czech
Danish
Dutch
Esperanto
Estonian
Filipino
Finnish
French
Frisian
Galician
Georgian
German
Greek
Gujarati
Haitian Creole
Hausa
Hawaiian
Hebrew
Hindi
Hmong
Hungarian
Icelandic
Igbo
Indonesian
Irish
Italian
Japanese
Javanese
Kannada
Kazakh
Khmer
Korean
Kurdish (Kurmanji)
Kyrgyz
Lao
Latin
Latvian
Lithuanian
Luxembourgish
Macedonian
Malagasy
Malay
Malayalam
Maltese
Maori
Marathi
Mongolian
Myanmar (Burmese)
Nepali
Norwegian
Pashto
Persian
Polish
Portuguese
Punjabi
Romanian
Russian
Samoan
Scottish Gaelic
Serbian
Sesotho
Shona
Sindhi
Sinhala
Slovak
Slovenian
Somali
Spanish
Sudanese
Swahili
Swedish
Tajik
Tamil
Telugu
Thai
Turkish
Ukrainian
Urdu
Uzbek
Vietnamese
Welsh
Xhosa
Yiddish
Yoruba
Zulu