Rwanda’s Kwita Izina Kicks Off in Kigali

The 2017 Rwanda Kwita Izina ceremony officially kicked off on Sunday with a two day conservation and tourism exhibition at the Kigali Conference and Exhibition village.

The event was opened to the public yesterday amid strong emphasis of the tourism industry to the Rwandan economy.

Kwita Izina is an annual special event in the neighboring country held to give names to new born gorillas. It is named after the ancestral baby naming ceremony that happened after the birth of a newborn.

The ceremony’s main goal is in helping monitor each individual gorilla and their groups in their natural habitat.

Speaking at the opening exhibition event, François Kanimba, the Rwandan Minister of Trade and East Africa Community Affairs, said the exhibition is meant to show case culture and the national treasures Rwanda has.

“This is yet another year for us to show the rest of the world what we have to offer from culture, infrastructure (new hotels), tradition and new products,” he said.

The minister said that such opportunities will help create a platform for key business relationships and elevate the fast rising tourism industry.

Some of the exhibitors are the Rwanda Development Board who are also the hosts, Serena Hotel, Uganda Tourism Board, Kenya Tourism Board and many others.

“We are proud to have our regional counterparts take part in the exhibition as we market East Africa as one destination; I am sure the exhibition this year will have a great response,” He said.

Other activities lined up for the week will include taking international and local journalists for tracking, game drives in national parks and the climax will be the naming of gorillas on Friday 1 September 2017.