Ngamba Island
- Entebbe, Uganda
- Available: All Week
- [email protected]
- +256 414 320662
- Features: Group Size : 5, You must be between 18-69 years
- Comes with: Accommodation at the Resource center at Ngamba Island and Budget Twin rooms at field project in Hoima, 3meals a day (Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner), Airport Transfers on arrival and departure day as a group., Transport around Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary, Hoima and around the different areas in the field, English speaking driver/guide, Bottled mineral water, Entrance fees, Activities and excursions mentioned in the program
- What you need: International flight, Visa (USD $50 per person), Meals and drinks apart from Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, Items of personal nature, Other Trips
About 4 Week Volunteer Program
In addition to the activities included in the one week program, you will also gain experience with chimpanzees in their natural habitat and witness the very real issues threatening their survival. The thrill of this fully immersive program is an experience that lasts a lifetime! Volunteer Work and Contribution During your time volunteering, you will participate in a variety of tasks, all vital to the continuation and sustainability of the Chimpanzee Trust and Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary. There are five main areas that you will have the opportunity to become involved with: Behavioral Observation: Volunteers will work alongside caregivers at the sanctuary, studying chimpanzee social dynamics around food distribution and collecting data. Behavioral Enrichment: Volunteers will be involved in creating permanent or temporary behavioral enrichment structures (such as tire swings and shaking boxes) as well as organize temporary challenges in order to further the behavioral enrichment of the chimps. Infrastructure Improvements: Volunteers will help with whatever current enrichment projects are taking place during their placement and may include tasks such as building picnic sites and shaded viewing shelters, or putting up information boards to educate visitors. Daily Caregiver Schedule: Preparation of chimp foods, clean chimp holding facility, recording chimp data, and health monitoring.
About Ngamba Island
Ngamba Island is currently home to 49 orphaned and confiscated chimps, rescued from the illegal pet and bushmeat trade. Despite their initial trauma, chimps living at Ngamba have a safe and semi-natural environment in which to recover and eventually thrive over their long lives of up to 60 years. Founded in 1998, the island offers 95 acres of natural forest where the chimps roam and forage daily. Their diet is supplemented multiple times per day much to the delight of visiting tourists who are able to observe the feeding from a viewing platform. The chimps also have the freedom to stay in the forest at night or return to nighttime enclosures where they can build nests and receive an evening meal. The goals of the sanctuary are to: Provide a safe home for rescued chimpanzees while also caring for the environment & other wildlife on the island; Provide a high-quality educational experience for visitors Benefit local communities. Caring for the chimps is a 24/7, year-round commitment provided by a dedicated team of more than 22 care givers, veterinarians, volunteers and island staff. The Island is part of the Koome group of islands located in Lake Victoria (which also includes Kiimi, Nsazi, Koome, Bulago and Damba Islands). Ngamba Island is approximately 23 km south-east of Entebbe, which lies on the mainland at 0.06’S, 32.39’E. It consists of approximately 100 acres, of which 95 acres is forested and separated from the human camp by an electric fence. The northern part of the island is generally flat, rising gently to an altitude of approximately 3800 feet above sea level to the south. The island is largely forested with gaps of grassland covering approximately 10% of the island. A trail system was cut just prior to the chimpanzees’ arrival in October 1998. Trails span from east to west and north to south creating 50 x 50m blocks. Ngamba Island provides an excellent secondary forest habitat for the chimpanzees and other wildlife species including fruit bats, spiders, fish eagles, otters, and monitor lizards.
