What we do to make your tour sustainable!

WHY IS SUSTAINABLE TOURISM CONTRIBUTING TO YOUR TOUR?

It is our responsibility to do as much as we can for fascinating Uganda

Matoke Tours is owned and run by three young Dutch men, all of whom have a passion for Uganda, its people and its nature. We want to show it off to the rest of the world! To ensure that generations of people can continue to enjoy the natural beauty of the 'Pearl of Africa', we feel that it is our responsibility to do as much as we can to preserve this fascinating country. "Sustainable Tourism" isn't just a term to us; we see it as the main ingredient for running a successful operation in Uganda: The place we have made our home!

Matoke Tours is also involved in several community based projects. Read on for more information on our own initiatives and those which we support.

Dairy Farmers Project

This is one of our direct initiatives (in co-operation with a Dutch Tour Operator called Sawadee), which is based in the small village of Namwendwa, in Kamuli District (Eastern Uganda). If you'd like an authentic Ugandan experience, we strongly recommend that you join one of our hiking and cycling tours through the village. During your visit, you will learn how to cook the local food (such as Matoke), brew your own Ugandan Gin (Waragi), and of course meet the local people and experience how they live day-to-day. You can choose either to stay at a local homestead or camp on the farmer's land. Our trained guides (resident villagers) will accompany you and introduce you to the members of the community. All proceeds from the trip (approximately $30 per person) will go towards supporting the community's milk production. This is a great opportunity to mix with local people and experience the true flavour of Uganda!

Matoke Art Studio

Uganda is full of talent; We are more than proud to promote the most talented young artists in Uganda's Art scene. These people considered the future big artists. We give them a stage, so they can show their talent and skills. We welcome you in our office to have a look at their exhibitions in the Matoke Art Gallery. You can have a look at their work and be surprised by their techniques, color use and creativeness. You can buy their art work as well; Not only to bring a great souvenir from Uganda back home, but as well to have some unique piece of professional Ugandan art in your home, be an ambassador of Ugandan art and to support Ugandan talent!

Micro Finance

All of our drivers and guides and the majority of our office based staff are Ugandan. Not only do they know their country well, they are hard working professionals who help to make Matoke Tours into the successful business it is today. We provide our drivers/guides with micro-credits to build up their own income-generating businesses like car rentals. This means that they can eventually purchase our safari vehicles and then rent them out to us or other companies for their own profit.

Other ways Matoke Tours opperates sustainable

We supply our clients with information on all of the 'dos and don'ts' on a trip to Uganda. Please read our article on 'What can I do to make my trip sustainable?' for more information.

We work with Ugandan owned hotels and lodges, thereby supporting local businesses. Please visit: www.ucota.org.ug for more information.

We support the Jane Goodall institute, which provides a sanctuary to orphaned or rescued Chimps on Ngamba Island, near Entebbe. As part of your tour you can visit the island and interact with the Chimps, which is a true delight! For more information, please visit: www.janegoodall.nl. and www.ngambaisland.org

We support the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Both Kidepo Valley and Murchison Falls National Parks once had both black and white rhinos; however widespread poaching during the Idi Amin era resulted in the disappearance of these majestic animals from the wild. Founded in 1998, Rhino Fund Uganda works to reintroduce black and white rhinos into Uganda and runs a breeding programme, as well as work to educate communities on endangered rhinos, poaching and environmental conservation. In 2009 three baby rhino's were born at the sanctuary! If you choose to visit the sanctuary, you will be able to track the rhinos and have the opportunity to view them at very close range. With this visit you are not only completing your sightings of the 'Big Five', but you will also be contributing to this lovely initiative! www.rhinofund.org.