Mr. Edwin Sabuhoro, the founder and owner of Rwanda Eco-Tours was
honored by the country's Rwanda Development Board/Tourism and
Conservation due to his contribution to conservation and sustainable
development of the tourism industry to name a baby gorilla on a
spectacular gorilla naming event that takes place every year, and which
took place on 18th of June 2011. The baby from Amahoro family by mother
Kubaha was named Ibyiza Sabuhoro, with the second name after him. This
was all news and an excitement to all who have seen what Mr. Sabuhoro
has done over the years for the development of Rwanda's tourism industry
and for the survival of the mountain gorillas and having been
successful to turn poachers into gorilla friends through incentive based
projects where he invested his time, energy and money to see that local
communities benefit from tourism and conservation and to have them on
board as part and stakeholders of and in conservation to ensure
sustainable conservation of the gorillas and their habitat
Some of the successful projects so far have been the Iby'Iwacu Cultural
Village that brings into the community 20,000 USD annually to the
village neighboring gorillas and who were poachers, and the GOATS FOR
GORILLAS projects, where every tourist who visits through Rwanda
Eco-Tours gives a goat to a community family through a giving back to
community celebration at the village. We hope to have every household to
get a get a goat from tourism as an incentive for conservation, and
that way the communities will know the importance of protecting and
conserving the gorillas and their habitat. This is in addition to the
10% of annual profits contribution from Rwanda Eco-Tours back to the
community. Excitingly has been small scale individual businesses
developed by former poachers in crafts and agriculture that bring much
needed income at the household level.
From Rwanda Eco-tours
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