Hollywood actor, Idris Elba and wife, Sabrina, were part of a ceremony in Kinigi, Rwanda, where 23 baby gorillas were named by key figures, including former Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper, Bernard Lama, and US comedian, Kevin Hart, who participated virtually.
The gorilla naming ceremony which was in its 19th edition, took place on Thursday, and was part of events lined up by the eastern African country to promote conservation and tourism.
The naming ceremony, known as Kwita Izina, is an annual event which has been taking place in Kinigi, a small town beneath Rwanda’s gigantic volcanoes and home to rare mountain gorillas, with top personalities and celebrities from the worlds of activism, sport, politics, film, philanthropy and the fashion world attending every year.
Hosted at the foothills of the Volcanoes National Park in Kinigi, Musanze, the event normally attracts the big names in every industry, including conservation champions, celebrities, leaders, and sports legends.
According to the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), in 2022, Rwanda’s gorilla tourism was the best-performing segment, with the latest figures showing that the sector’s growth is expected to grow further.
The baby gorilla assigned to the British-Sierra Leone Elba and his wife was named “Narame”, which means “long life” while Lama named his baby gorilla “Ramba”, meaning “sustainable.”