Rwanda Safety

Introduction

From a tourist’s perspective, Rwanda ranks as one of the most crime-free countries in Africa. Kigali is a very safe city, even at night, provided you follow the same kind of commonsense rules - avoid walking alone in unlit dark alleys, or overt displays of wealth - you would in any large city. Ideally, you should leave any expensive jewellery at home, and avoid leaving valuables such as cash, mobile phones, and electronic devices lying around openly in your hotel room. Padlocking your luggage will not prevent a determined thief from slashing it open, but it is a strong deterrent to casual light fingers.

It’s a good idea to carry a scan and/or electronic version of all important travel documents, in case they are lost or stolen. You might also want to email all such backups to a webmail address you can access anywhere on the road.

With the recent threat of Ebola in Congo and the considerable size of a fully grown silverback, we usually receive questions regarding security and safety during gorilla trekking. Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo receive considerable revenue from the money collected for gorilla trekking. A gorilla permit in Congo costs $450, in Uganda $700, and in Rwanda $1500. About 200 people track mountain gorillas in these countries each day. The total amount collected is quite considerable for developing countries. To protect this important source of foreign exchange, the countries are willing to go to great lengths to protect the primates and tourists that come to see them. To that end, gorilla conservation programs have been initiated to protect the gorillas using some of the money collected from tourists. Most national parks employ armed rangers to look out for poachers. The government also deploys the military to flush out any rebel elements using the parks as a refuge. Border patrols by the army help monitor any security incidences that could jeopardize the security of tourists.