AUTO-UWA and Uganda Tourism Board held a consultative meeting to resolve and discuss issues surrounding and affecting the Uganda tourism industry. This AUTO-UWA meeting was held on 18th January 2016 at Uganda Museum. About fifty tour operators were represented, The director of tourism development at UWA, The president Uganda Tourism Association plus the deputy executive director, were all present and discussed matters to do with tourism

AUTO-UWA

The Director of Tourism development at Uganda Widlife Authority assured members that AUTO-UWA signed a memorandum where certain gorilla permits were to be given to AUTO for every 30 permits bought by AUTO members. He said that this has ben a success and that the second banch was yet to be out. That this had strengthened AUTO-UWA relationships through negotiations rather than fighting.

The director of Tourism business and development also highlighted new developments that were to benefit AUTO-UWA. He told us that they had acquired road equipment with funding from UNDP to improve roads within the national park. He said that roads in Murchison Falls National Park and Lake Mburo National Park were almost done. He also informed members present that UWA had created a track on the southern part of Murchison Falls National Park near the top of the falls to enhance tourism activities on the southern bank. Still during AUTO-UWA consultative meeting, members were told that UWA has started relocating giraffes from the northern bank to the southern banks so as to boost activities on the south as well as save guarding from the effects of oil exploitation happening on the northern bank. Earlier on in the year, giraffes had been reallocated from Murchison Falls National Park to Lake Mburo National Park something that has boosted the level of tourism activities in Lake Mburo which is the closest National Park from Kampala.

AUTO-UWA Issues

Other issues affecting AUTO-UWA relationship were the fees introduced for night game drives. According to the new tariffs, all tour operators intending to do night game drives in Uganda National Parks must register their vehicles at a fee of USD200.00 per vehicle something that has not gone well in the ears of Uganda Tour operators. UWA has also purchased buses that will be transporting tourists to National Park something that has affected AUTO-UWA relationship since tour operators say that UWA is supposed to concentrate on conservation while Business should be left to the private sector