Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is home to a fantastic diversity of flora and fauna. This includes both unique plants and rare endangered apes.
Tourists that want to make use of their time after a successful gorilla tracking experience usually embrace the Batwa cultural experience.
The “twa” or Batwa are an indigenous ethnic pygmy tribe that used to call the Bwindi forest home.
The Batwa are believed to be the original dwellers of the ancient Bwindi forest and they were referred to as the ‘keepers of the forest’.
The Batwa lived in harmony with the forest and survived by hunting small game using bows and arrows and gathering honey and plants for both food and medicinal purposes.
Unfortunately, the lives of the Batwa changed forever when the government of Uganda gazetted Bwindi forest both a national park and a world heritage site in 1992.
This action was in order to protect the endangered mountain gorillas that reside within the Bwindi forest boundaries.
The Batwa became conservation refugees In a world that was very unfamiliar to them, due to eviction from the park(home).
The Batwa’s skills and means of subsistence were not useful in this modern environment out the forest and they began to suffer.
It was in 2001 when the Batwa tribe was on the edge of extinction that American medical missionaries, Dr. Scott and Carol Kellermans came to their rescue.
They purchased land and established programs to improve the conditions and lives of the Batwa;
This included the building of a school, hospital, and housing. The Kellermans also developed water and sanitation projects and found ways that the Batwa could generate income and sustain themselves.
These projects are now managed and operated by the Batwa Development Program (BDP) which works closely with the Batwa community, trying to ensure that their indigenous rights are respected and they also benefit from the forest being a national park and tourist attraction.
Cultural Encounters
This community-owned initiative will allow you to meet the Batwa and see how they lived in the forest. Activities include; beekeeping, mushroom gathering, hunting demonstrations, and crafts. Stories from the “Twa” legend are told alongside traditional songs and dances.
The Batwa cultural experience was created by the displaced Batwa pygmies to educate their children and to share their amazing heritage and traditions with the world.
A day spent with the Batwa gives you the opportunity to enjoy the following:
See how the Batwa lived and hunted in the traditional manner. You will enjoy trying out your hunting techniques as the Batwa teaches you how to shoot with a bow and arrow.
Hike in the forest with the people of the forest. You will have a Batwa guide and he will provide you with the chance to see the forest and its inhabitants through their eyes.
A visit to a traditional Batwa homestead will enable you to learn from the Batwa women how they prepare, cook and serve a meal. You will also have the opportunity to taste the Batwa cuisines.
Talk to the medicine men and learn about the medicinal properties of the forest flora.
Hear traditional songs and ancient legends.
Let us take you on a tour to Batwa land, one that you will never forget. come embrace and meet a new culture that you did not think existed.
Book with us today and live to tell your story for a lifetime.
