Alexis Ngabo Karegeya’s affection for his hometown is one of the many things that distinguishes him as a unique influencer. The 26-year-old was born in Bigogwe, a sector in Nyabihu District, Western Province. Listening to him speak, you may think he’s talking about some type of paradise. You might even dismiss it as mere exaggeration. But those who have joined him on his trips, agree with his narration.

Karegeya’s ‘Ibere Rya Bigogwe’ tours include a variety of cultural tourism activities, for example; hiking, visiting Bigogwe cows, drinking instantly extracted milk from the cows in traditional cups (inkongoro, udukebe, ingare), teaching sessions on how to milk cows, teaching the right Kinyarwanda words and pronunciation in relation to cows (ikeshamvugo ry’inka), and other traditional aspects like Kwivugira inka (loosely translated as ‘Cow praising’). Other activities include playing traditional games such as urukiramende, kunyabanywa, and others, traditional dances such as ikinyemera, and eating traditionally cooked food.

‘Ibere Rya Bigogwe’

Karegeya launched ‘Ibere Rya Bigogwe’ in 2020.  It was only a young man’s twitter account back then, where he tweeted jokes and retweeted his friends’. He sells clothes and has been doing it for quite some time. He had no idea that one year later, it would have grown to 13.9k followers.

"I adore Bigogwe and know it like the back of my hand, having been born and raised here. I believe it is Rwanda’s most gorgeous place,” he says, adding that many people were unaware of its lovely charms, and there are others who are still clueless. "Except for those who reside here and others who just know the area from passing through on their way to Gisenyi, which is generally regarded as a vacation spot,” he says.

If you like cows and anything related to them, Bigogwe is the place for you, he says. "Bigogwe is the only region where you can observe cows that aren’t in cowsheds and aren’t in the bushes either. But grazed in the pasture, in a lovely setting created specifically for that,” he adds.

He set out on a mission to persuade everyone to know more about his cherished birthplace by publishing pictures and videos of its attractions. "I wanted to share my day-to-day life in Bigogwe with my Twitter followers, from cattle rearing to farming operations, as well as other popular characteristics like ‘Ibere Rya Bigogwe’. And it was from this that I got the name for my brand,” he says.

‘Ibere rya Bigogwe’ is a high mountain in Nyabihu District. In Rwanda’s history, it is one of the most well-known mountains. It is said to have been one of the deadliest places for Rwanda’s young soldiers during the time of Juvenal Habyarimana’s presidency, owing to the element that it was where they were trained.

It has a breast-like shape, and from a distance, the small lone tree at the summit of this hilled rock resembles a nipple of a breast, thus the name ‘Ibere rya Bigogwe’, which can be translated as ‘Bigogwe’s breast’. Karegeya adopted the name since it was the only thing popular about Bigogwe at the time, in his opinion.

"People sent me several messages asking what is required to visit the place, and I would simply tell them to come and I would be pleased to show them around without asking for money,” he explains.

He grew in fame as a result of people posting about their experiences and tagging him, so he decided he could profit from it. "However, the idea was to persuade people to pay money so that the experience might be improved,” he says. This year, ‘Ibere rya Bigogwe’ was formally registered as a culture tourism enterprise, with a visit from Edouard Bamporiki, the States Minister in charge of culture in the Ministry of Youth and Culture.

Alexis Ngabo Karegeya milking a cow. 

His two-day travels take place at the end of each month, and registration is done through links provided on his Twitter account. When a person does not bring their own tent and makes an individual request, they are normally charged Rwf40, 000. If they do, it’ll be Rwf30, 000. It costs Rwf30, 000 per person and Rwf 50,000 for couples to participate in the tours. The money includes transportation, a tent, food, and touring activities.

Challenges and way forward

"As much as Bigogwe has started to gain attention, there are still many challenges that obstruct the tours,” Karegeya remarks.

Lack of an official camping site, suitable infrastructures such as hotels in Bigogwe, roads, unknown or unrecorded Bigogwe history, and financial support are among the issues he mentions.

"I’d like to request the government’s assistance in establishing an official camping site. If they could lend us land, as they do with other businesses, we’d be more stable, and people would know exactly where to go if they wanted to use our services,” he says.

At one of the camping sites where many people post about their experience. 

Even if it is part of Karegeya’s plan to write a book about his adventures so that the information can be useful to future generations, he asks historians for support and anyone who knows more about Bigogwe’s undocumented past to share it

"I want to see ‘Ibere rya Bigogwe’ featured in ‘Visit Rwanda’, and I’ll keep working hard to achieve that dream. But, in the meanwhile, I need people to believe in us and Bigogwe, and to invest in this cause,” he says.