Batwa Cultural Experience in Uganda

The Batwa cultural experience was set up by the displaced Batwa pygmies in order to educate their children and to share their wonderful heritage and traditions with the world. The Experience occurs outside of the park in an old-growth forest on land adjacent to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest Park.  The Batwa experience commences with a nature-walk that entails hiking through the forest observing the woodland in a new way, through the eyes of the original people of the Forest.  When you visit Batwa, you will learn how they hunted the small animals for food, what things they collected plus how traps and nets were used among other things.

The Batwa Experience will also demonstrate to you how these primitive humans lived in grass thatched huts, trees, the use of tree-houses and caves.  You will understand the Batwa village life of the present and ancient times, their togetherness as a community and comprehensively learn the things that they valued and cared for but almost lost.

Embarking on the Batwa experience exposes you to:

During this experience, you will trek in the forest with the help of a Batwa guide and who will offer you with the chance to see the jungle and its habitations through their eyes.

Observe how they hunted and lived in the traditional style. You will enjoyably try out their hunting techniques. For instance, they will teach you expressively how to shoot with the use of a bow and arrow plus spears as well as other traditional hunting gears.

As you visit their traditional homestead, you will have an opportunity to learn from the women how to collect food, cook and serve it. Willing, you may have the chance to taste their prepared dishes.

During the experience, take time to talk to the medicine men and learn about the various curative properties of the forest vegetation.

Listening to Batwa’s traditional songs and stories about their ancient legends are things worth giving attention to during the experience.

Currently, the Batwa mainly live in the districts of Kisoro, Kabale, Kanungu, Bundibigyo, Mbarara, Ntungamo, some in Lwengo and Mubende. In other places, they stay in very small numbers and are scattered to the extent that it may be hard to identify them solidly.

Batwa cultural experience can be done during a visit to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest or Mgahinga Gorilla National Park for gorilla trekking excursions.