Urgent Action to curb COVID to people and gorillas

This report provides an update on Conservation Through Public Health’s (CTPH) project (#52950) on GlobalGiving, titled “Urgent Action to Curb COVID to People and Gorillas.” The last report was issued in November 2024. At that point, the project had received 207 donations totalling to $30,329.86 towards its $35,000 fundraising target. To date, the project has received 216 donations amounting to $30,602.02 of the $35,000 goal.

Background

In 2020, the Ministry of Health introduced a Community Engagement Strategy of creating Village COVID-19 Taskforces (VCTFs) when the country was in Phase IV of the pandemic, with widespread community transmission and a lack of hospital beds. The strategy sought to engage communities, beginning with individuals at the household level, to act in the fight against the pandemic. CTPH collaborated with Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), health and conservation partners, local leaders, schools, and religious institutions to set up 59 Village COVID-19 Taskforces (VCTFs) around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The main aim of this was to support community surveillance, contact tracing, isolation, shielding of vulnerable individuals, management of home-based care cases, and raising awareness about prevention and vaccination through peer communication. The VCTFs have continued to be instrumental in sensitizing the community about emerging and reemerging diseases in their respective villages. 

What we have done

Gorilla Health Monitoring

We continued our routine gorilla health monitoring program in partnership with Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) rangers of Bwindi and Mgahinga Conservation Area (BMCA). In this reporting quarter, we successfully collected 822 gorilla faecal samples from all 28 habituated gorilla groups of the Bwindi and Mgahinga Conservation Area. These samples were analyzed at the Gorilla Health and Community Conservation Centre’s (GHCCC) field laboratory in Bwindi, where intestinal helminth parasites, including Ascaris, Trichuris, and Strongyloides species, were identified, strengthening an early warning system to protect gorillas from diseases. Some samples are preserved for further tests for other respiratory illnesses, including SARS-CoV-2 which causes coronavirus disease.

Engagements with Village COVID-19 Taskforce (VCTF) members.

In this quarter, we have been actively engaging with members of the Village COVID-19 Taskforce (VCTF) to apply the lessons we've learned since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic to reduce future suffering from COVID-19 and other infectious disease threats. We recognize that COVID-19, along with other emerging and reemerging infectious diseases, continues to pose a significant public health concern. In the next quarter we will carry out 1 refresher training on related topics so that we keep VCTFs informed with the latest information and statistics.

Gorilla Births

In this quarter we share some exciting news regarding the births of new gorilla infants. 
In October 2025, the adult female Migogo of the Mucunguzi gorilla family in the Rushaga Sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park gave birth. The new birth brought the number of the Mucunguzi gorilla family to 15 gorillas. 

In December 2024, adult female Bashekura from the Tindatine family in the Rushaga sector of Bwindi welcomed a new baby! The new birth brought the number of family members to 8 members. 

 On January 19th, 2025, adult female Nyakiruka from the Mucunguzi family, was seen with a newborn baby. This brings the total number of individuals in the group to 16, under the strong leadership of Mucunguzi the Silverback. Both baby, mom, and dad are in good health, a promising sign for the future of this remarkable family!

We congratulate these families on welcoming their new bundles of joy, which contribute to the growing mountain gorilla population.

GlobalGiving Little by Little Campaign

This project is participating in the GlobalGiving 2025 Little by Little campaign, which will take place from Tuesday, March 25, 2025, to Friday, March 28, 2025. This four-day crowdfunding initiative will help to help GlobalGiving partners worldwide cultivate a strong network of small-dollar donors. During the campaign, all eligible donations of up to $50 per unique donor for each organization will be matched at 50% until funds are exhausted.

We would like to appreciate you for your continued support to Conservation Through Public Health. 

Links:

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