A great project set up by Rwanda Eco-Tours to provide legitimate employment for about 1000 former poachers at the foot of the Virunga Volcanoes.
The Iby'iwacu Cultural Village is next to the car park for the Sabyinyo and Agasha Groups of gorillas' trail heads, so fits in nicely after the trek or in the afternoon as an additional activity.
The project was set up in 2004 to improve the lives of those living around the park and raise money through tourism and awareness of community farming and life in the region. The tour takes around two hours and the mock 'village' includes a replica of the traditional Rwandan palace of the king, a display of traditional Intore dancing and drumming, consultation with the witch doctor, shooting bows and arrows with a local Batwa pygmy hunter and other demonstrations of things such as sorgum grinding, banana beer production and harvesting.
The cultural village is entirely owned by local communities and the entry fee is split with 40% going to members who perform there and 60% going to a village fund managed by a committe which sends it to various charitable parts of the project such as buying farmers seeds and sponsoring school children.
