Sebei Tourism Initiative is a fully registered organization with the relevant authorities in the country with a specialty area of Conservation and Sustainable Tourism Development and Promotion in Sebei Sub Region particularly in the districts of Bukwo, Kween and Kapchorwa.
Sebei Tourism Initiative is established to bring together all actors to develop and promote conservation and sustainable tourism development across the Sebei Sub region.
Our initiative encompasses professionals with a rich diversity of expertise, including conservation biologists, scientists, sociologists, wildlife veterinarians, managers, lawyers, finance experts, and communication specialists. At Sebei Tourism Initiative, our primary focus lies in the conservation and sustainable tourism development.
Among the key tourism sites for development and promotion are but not limited to Mt. Elgon Conservation Area, Sipi River, Sipi Falls, Kapkwata Forest reserve, Sungora Caves, National High Altitude Training Center in Teryet, Yatui and Mutuuso Caves in Kween and Bukwo, Joshua Cheptegei Sports Center facility in Kapchorwa, Bukwo River among other attractions.
Even when tourism is increasingly recognized as a vital strategy for balancing the economic benefits of travel with the need to protect our region’s natural resources and cultural heritage. The growth of the tourism industry has not yet fully taken off due a number of significant challenges as mentioned below;-
⦁ Absence of information, interest and skills in tourism product development and packaging: The region is lagging behind as far as service in the hospitality industry is concerned in comparison to other parts of the country that are benefiting from tourism. This has constrained the growth of tourism sector in the region.
⦁ Existing gaps in tourism infrastructure:
⦁ Roads: The roads to some tourist sites are in very poor state and are virtually impassable during rainy seasons unless one uses expensive 4WD vehicles. However, the road from the road from Kapchorwa through Kween to Bukwo up to Suam border has been fully tarmacked which has greatly reduced the hours of journey across the region but accessibility to these key sites has not been done.
⦁ Energy: Lack of access to reliable electricity and intermittent supply is constraining tourism development in some areas of the region. High energy costs from generators or alternative energy sources serve as a deterrent to would-be investors and a financial liability for those currently operating in these areas.
⦁ ICT: Inadequate ICT network also has adverse effects in the region. Business owners in these areas face either very high ICT costs or the inability to adequately respond to tourist inquiries as well as the slow connectivity of the telecommunication networks.
⦁ Inadequate conservation and preservation of key tourism sites in the region: There are indications of stagnation and even declines in some wildlife populations in the region’s conservation area, Mt. Elgon National Park. This has been attributed to increase in poaching of wild animals in the parks and game reserves. A similar trend has also been observed on other tourism sites such as falls, rocks and caves which have been encroached upon by human activities thereby compromising their tourism potential. Breeding places for rare bird species have been degraded by reclamation of those sites for cultivation and settlement. Furthermore, communities around the conservation sites are reportedly not benefitting adequately from tourism sector as it out to be.
⦁ Regional imbalances exhibited by uncomplimentary government policies: The current policies and programs on tourism tend to prioritize and promote some tourism products in other parts of the country and ignore key tourism products in the Sebei sub-region.
⦁ Shortage of funding: The tourism sector receives a very small proportion of the national budget compared to the contribution it makes to the economy. The government should prioritize and earmark funds in the coming financial year 25/26 to do tourism product development of some key sites in the Sebei region.
⦁ Region’s terrain/topography, proximity and accessibility of the region from Kampala makes it hard for the development of tourism in the region.
Above all the challenges mentioned, the initiative is established to bring together and streamline region’s tourism sector by providing long lasting and sustainable solutions for the development and promotion of tourism in Sebei Sub region.