The Minister for Sports and Culture Ms. Julienne Uwacu disclosed the government commitment to boosting cultural tours in Rwanda while paying a courtesy visit to the Red Rock’s Backpackers.
At Nyakinama Village approximately 7km from the town of Musaze, there lies Red Rocks Backpackers Campsite which offers accommodation to the travelers including those on gorilla safaris in Rwanda. The roots of the facility are truly grounded on community development and though it stands as a private entity, it is surely at the center of community transformation through cultural tourism.
The facility attracted the Minister’s attention due to its unique practices that bring along the community to share the joy of tourism. The local people are champions of basket weaving, traditional meal preparation, art and craft making, community walks and banana beer preparation to the experience and satisfaction of Rwanda Safari tour undertakers.
With its slogan Where Cultural tourism leads to community development, the Red Rock Backpackers presents volunteer opportunities for the guests at the local schools, hospitals and other development projects in the area. The Minister’s visit to the facility was marked with great excitement and deep interaction between the facility staff, the local people and the guests. Many activities were carried out including live art paintings, the traditional dance, playing of board game and the banana beer making.
The minister at the end noted that such visits were an initiative of the ministry to get close to the investors in cultural tourism in destination Rwanda. The collaboration intends to devise means on how the cultural tourism product can be improved upon and professionalized without compromising its authenticity.
Culture and heritage is noted to be among the popular products sought after by travelers on safari in Rwanda and thus has got the potential to generate more revenue and jobs if tapped very well.
