A waterfall in Nyungwe National Park, part of the features that qualify it as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Nyungwe National Park sits on 101,900 hectares, and stands as the largest block of a natural forest in the region. Boasting remarkable biodiversity, it is home to over a dozen species of primates, 322 bird species, 200 identified orchids, and nearly 300 butterfly species, including several endemic to the park.
Nyungwe National Park was officially designated as a natural World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee. It is the first site in Rwanda to be featured on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The inscription of Nyungwe National Park serves as a vital step in ensuring its long-term conservation, preserving its natural heritage for future generations, and promoting sustainable development for neighboring communities. Established as a natural reserve in 1933, the forest became a National Park in 2005 in a bid by the government to bolster its protection and safeguard the thousands of endangered and endemic species it harbors.
The Government of the Republic of Rwanda welcomes the decision to inscribe Nyungwe National Park on the World Heritage List. This inscription is not only a contribution to the preservation of Rwanda’s natural heritage but also of particular significance to the Rwandan people, for whom it is the first site inscribed on this universal list.
This remarkable national park also serves as the primary natural habitat for several species found nowhere else on Earth, including the globally threatened Eastern Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), Golden Monkey (Cercopithecus mitis ssp. kandti), and the critically endangered Hills Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hillorum). Additionally, Nyungwe National Park is a critical site for bird conservation in Africa, with 317 bird species recorded, including 12 mammals and seven bird species facing global threats. The UN agency underscored the park’s vital role in safeguarding 12 threatened mammal and seven bird species on a global scale, reaffirming its status as a paramount bird conservation site in Africa.
This momentous achievement follows Rwanda’s December 2021 request to UNESCO for Nyungwe’s inclusion on the World Heritage List, a move hailed by conservationists as a significant step forward.
Notably, Nyungwe National Park is the source of up to 70 percent of Rwanda’s freshwater and holds an estimated monetary value of $4.8 billion.
Prior to Nyungwe’s inscription, Rwanda was among 12 African countries without a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Rwandan government has also submitted requests for the inclusion of four memorial sites related to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
Nyungwe National Park, situated in Rwanda’s southern and western provinces, and is managed by the African Parks Network, a non-governmental organization specializing in conservation, in partnership with the Rwandan Government.