The 24 mountain gorillas born within the last year in Volcanoes National Park were given their names during the annual Kwita Izina ceremony on September 5th in Kinigi, Rwanda. In the last 11 years, 197 babies have been named in the annual gorilla-naming celebration! With only an estimated 880 mountain gorillas alive today (according to the most recent 2010 census), this is an astounding number! According to the research, Gorilla Doctors veterinary care is responsible for 40% of the 26.3% growth of the mountain gorilla population in the Virunga Massif.

Hosted by the Rwanda Development Board, Kwita Izina is a traditional Rwandese naming ceremony where a new baby is given his Kinyarwanda name. Naming each of the gorillas allows both the government and conservation partners to protect and closely monitor the health of each individual in the park.

Director Dr. Mike Cranfield, Regional Manager Dr. Joost Philippa, Rwanda Field Vet Dr. Jean Bosco Noheri, and Regional Lab Technician Dr. Methode Bahizi represented Gorilla Doctors at the Kwita Izina festivities this year. The week preceding the naming ceremony is filled with activities from community project launches, photo exhibitions, traditional dancing, and presentations by country and conservation leaders. The culmination of the week fell on Saturday, where over 30,000 people, including 500 foreign guests representing 26 countries gathered at the base of Mount Sabyinyo outside of Volcanoes National Park to celebrate the new baby gorillas.

This year marked the first year RDB delivered awards to “recognize local conservationists for their lifetime achievements and contributions to the wildlife conservation and tourism”. The Kwita Izina Awards were given to six Rwandans for their role in conserving Rwanda’s biodiversity. Those awarded were Tarasin Nyiranizeyimana and Furaha Godfrey from the Eastern province, Agnes Nyiramanzi and Bandorayingwe from the Western Province, Marie Louise Mukeshimana and Jean Rwiyadaganza from the Northern Province.. Also at the 11th annual Kwita Izina, the Kinigi Community Complex was created to showcase local businesses and products, such as honey, crafts, and other souvenirs.

President Paul Kagame attended the 11th Kwita Izina ceremony, themed ‘Conserving now and for the future’. Since 2005, local communities have received 5% of gorilla tourism revenue through RDB’s tourism revenue-sharing program. Through this program, over $1.8 million has gone towards building roads, supporting small businesses, water and sanitation, and other community projects in Rwanda.

“Conservation efforts have shown that the first beneficiaries of protecting the environment are citizens” said President Kagame. “We want to be the ones leading our development and lift ourselves out of poverty. This event is about local communities being the first to benefit from resources.”

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