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- Rural tourism Uganda: Adventures transforming communities
Rural tourism Uganda: Adventures transforming communities
Rural Tourism Uganda, founded by Evelyne Ninsiima in 2009, provides visitors with a unique and immersive experience, allowing them to engage with rural communities and natural landscapes in Rubanda District. Through a remote collaboration with PUM expert Rob van Loon, the initiative has gained digital visibility and enhanced its offerings, paving the way for sustainable rural development.
Rural Tourism Uganda was founded in 2009 by Evelyne Ninsiima to provide guests with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Situated in the Bushure community, within an enclave in Mafuga Central Forest Reserve in Rubanda District, the initiative occupies a strategic location in a rural region between Queen Elisabeth National Park, Lake Bunyonyi and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.
The initiative was launched mainly to offer guests a different experience from what they are accustomed too, while also positively impacting the society and championing rural development. Their guests, whether tourists, leisure travelers, or corporate visitors, are invited to be part of their local community for a day or longer. This makes Rural Tourism Uganda an incredibly good experience for a wide target group.
Online collaboration
Evelyne Ninsiima reached out to PUM to get her initiative promoted and enhance digital visibility. PUM’s sector coordinator ‘Hospitality: tourism and recreational services’, Patty van der Kleij, matched PUM expert Rob van Loon with Evelyne. Rob brings extensive knowledge in the field of hospitality, start-up coaching and travel management. Together, they decided to collaborate remotely, focusing not only on promotion and digital visibility, but also on sharing expertise in tourism- and congress industry, and preparing market-proof offers for potential clients.
Most of their time and energy was spent on creating activities and itineraries for visitors. But also to price them in a competitive way and make them accessible for a wide target group. Think of forest walks, homestead visits, volunteering at a rural school, and coffee plantation tours, and other experiences.
Self-sufficient team
The next important step is to prepare the local team, including the guides and marketeer(s) from Rural Tourism Uganda, to build up their digital visibility themselves, and to reach potential clients. Rob will visit the initiative in Bushure in January 2025 to ensure the team is self-supporting in managing their own sales and marketing. This will further strengthen the community growth and rural development in the area.
Interested in this project? Get in touch with
Cuthbert Tukundane
Representative Uganda, Mbarara
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