COVID-19: Ruparelia Foundation donates UGX10 million to feed starving Ngamba Island chimps Despite being hit hard by Covid-19, the Ruparelia Group has once again reached out to save the at-risk 49 orphaned chimps at the cash-starved Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary. The group has previously donated 5,000 food rations and two pick-up trucks to national Covid-19 relief efforts.

The Ruparelia Foundation, yesterday, May 29^th 2020, donated UGX10 million to the Chimpanzee Sanctuary & Wildlife Conservation Trust (Chimpanzee Trust) at Ngamba Island.

The UGX10 million cheque was handed over by Valentina Ajay, a Ruparelia Foundation executive. The money is to be used to among others feed the chimps at the island.

The Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary is home to 49 orphaned chimpanzees rescued from across East Africa and is run by the Chimpanzee by Sanctuary and Wildlife Conservation Trust (Chimpanzee Trust), an NGO. 

Last week the Trust made an SOS call to well-wishers to come to the aid of the Ngamba Island chimps home which other than being flooded by the rising levels of water on Lake Victoria, has been starved of any tourist revenue due to Covid-19 travel restrictions.

Before Covid-19 the chimps sanctuary used to host about 6,000 international tourists which would earn them about $300,000 (about Shs1 billion) in a year. With the rising water levels and Covid-19 travel restrictions to domestic and international tourism all that is gone.

Accepting the donation, Dr. Joshua Rukundo, the Trust’s Executive Director thanked Dr. Sudhir Ruparelia, the Foundation’s Founder and co-director, for his continued generosity to animal welfare in Uganda.

“On behalf of the management of Chimpanzee Sanctuary & Wildlife Conservation Trust (Chimpanzee Trust) and my behalf, we would like to acknowledge and send our sincere appreciation for your generous contribution of UGX 10,000,000 (ten million shillings) towards the feeding of the chimpanzees on Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary. These funds will go a long way to ensuring the survival of the rescued and orphaned chimpanzees in our care, as we navigate the effects of lockdown brought about by the COVID-19 global pandemic. Your generosity and support is what motivates us to do what we do for the welfare and conservation survival of endangered species like the chimpanzee, man’s closest relative,” wrote Dr. Rukundo.

“On behalf of the Board of Trustees, management and staff and, the chimpanzees, I take this opportunity to thank you,” he added.

Dr. Sudhir Ruparelia is already a guardian to Ruparelia, an orphaned chimp that he named after himself.

The Ruparelias are avid animal lovers. In 2009, the family through Kabira Club, sponsored Kabira a female Rhino named after one of their businesses from Kenya that was reintroduced at the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre and later transferred to the Ziwa Rhino & Wildlife Ranch.

Dr. Sudhir was in 2018 appointed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) as an honorary wildlife ambassador in recognition of his conservation efforts. In March 2019, the businessman was also recognised as a Lifetime Tourism Achiever by the organisers of the Ekkula Pearl of Africa Tourism Awards.