When you talk of naturally endowed and fast tourist growing destinations in the Africa Continent, Uganda is undeniably one of the top most developing tourist destinations in terms of increasing number of tourists as well as improvement in revenues received.

Christened the Pearl of Africa, Uganda is a biodiversity and natural beauty hot spot offering a medley of attractions inform of wildlife (such as mountain gorillas and the big five animals), over 1061 bird species, water resources, stunning landscapes and cultures which make it a must-visit destination in the country with more and more tourists making safaris to the small East African country. When you analyze the constant increase in number of tourists visiting the country in the past years, over 250,000 more tourists are therefore expected in 2018.

Based on Uganda’s current statistics, a tremendous increase in the number of visitors undertaking Uganda safaris has been recorded, with majority of them exploring National Parks, cultures of the people and birds that make the country a real Paradise. Notably, over 1.32 million tourists arrived the country in 2017 but the number of still expected to rise by a quarter to 1.56 million in 2018 if all the planned marketing/promotion strategies are implemented.

The expectation for more tourists was increased by the different strategies being put in place by the Government of Uganda in partnership with other tourism Organs especially the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) that is responsible for developing new tourism products and marketing, the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) in-charge of wildlife conservation and finally the Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities as the general over-seer of all tourism operations in the country.

Additionally, the possibility of achieving this target was realized during the 8^th Annual tourism sector Review where a stable increase in tourist arrivals was made known. In order to make this goal (1.56 million tourists) achievable by 2018, the Government of Uganda has embarked on tireless and heavy investment in substantial marketing and promotion to improve or change the negative image of the country especially for the past times in the International market. However, some foreign tourists still have the perception that Uganda is politically unstable (due to the LRA Rebel activities in Northern Uganda and civil wars in the past) and known as a country of drought, famine and diseases. On a positive note, there has been restoration in security and peace throughout the country with tourists traveling to different destinations without worrying about their safety. For instance northern Uganda where tourists are now able to visit so as to explore Murchison Falls Park or even Kidepo valley National Park during Uganda safaris. On top of the increased number of tourists, an increase in revenue is expected by Government from the current $1.37 billion dollars (Shs 4.5 trillion) to $1.5 billion (5.4 trillion) in 2018.

Also, investment in tourism facilities is being done and these include roads that lead to National Parks and other interesting tourist destinations within the country have been constructed and revamped to ensure safe and comfortable transportation of tourists and their luggage to their final destinations. This improvement is important because most of Uganda’s National Parks are found in remote areas of the country. For instance, Murchison Falls National Park is found in north-western Uganda, Kidepo Valley in north-eastern, Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga National Parks in south-western thus making road transport as the easiest and most commonly used mode of transport. Not only that, accommodation facilities in form of Safari Lodges, Hotels and Guesthouses have sprouted from throughout the country including the tourism sites thus guaranteeing tourists of comfortable places of stay and finger-licking yet quality foods at affordable rates.

In conclusion, Uganda is one of the top African destinations and expects to receive 250,000 more tourists (thus from 1.32 million visitors received in 2017 to 1.56 million) in 2018 as well as increased revenues from $1.37 billion to $1.5 billion. This will be achieved through increased Government expenditure in marketing/promotion, improvement in Uganda’s political atmosphere and increased investments in tourism facilities.