Ritah Niwarimpa
During a Travel Writing training at Nkumba University’s Mpanga Library on April 1, 2025, Julius Luwemba, a seasoned tourism and travel journalist, urged Journalism students to consider covering tourism events. Luwemba showcased various tourist attractions, including National parks, physical features, and culture.
Using narration and illustration, Luwemba highlighted examples of National parks, particularly Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in southwestern Uganda. He emphasized the park’s unique feature of being home to nearly half of the world’s mountain gorilla population, offering unforgettable gorilla trekking experiences.
Luwemba explained that this experience allows writers to observe the magnificent creatures, providing a profound and memorable wildlife experience. He noted that the gorillas are organized into habituated groups, led by dominant silverback males, and that crafting a story around this scenario would captivate readers.
According to Luwemba, Travel writing is about experience, and writers must be able to create different stories based on different angles, even if they visit the same place regularly. He encouraged students to participate in a travel writing competition for exposure and to win prizes.
Jona Terry Katende, an IT expert, also advised students on how to market and publish their stories using search engine optimization techniques. Students benefited from the training, with Ahairwe Lydia, a first-year journalism student, saying, “I now know how to use my writing skills to promote tourism in Uganda.”
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