It is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and is situated along the Democratic Republic of the Congo border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge of the Albertine Rift.

It is a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization-designated World Heritage Site.

Fourteen mountain gorilla groups live in four different sectors of Buhoma, Ruhijja, Rushaga and the Nkuringo in the districts of Kanungu, Kabale and Kisoro respectively, all under the management of Uganda Wildlife Authority.

[2]: 7  This new protected area covered 298 square kilometres (115 sq mi)[1] and was under the joint control of the Ugandan government's game and forest departments.

[3]: 43  The national park was declared in part to protect a range of species within it, most notably the mountain gorilla.

[7] In March 1999, a force of 100–150 former Rwandan Interahamwe guerrillas infiltrated across the border from the DRC and kidnapped 14 foreign tourists and their Ugandan guide from the park headquarters, eventually releasing six and murdering the remaining eight with machetes and clubs.

[8] The Interahamwe attack was reportedly intended to "destabilize Uganda" and frighten away tourist traffic from the park, depriving the Ugandan government of income.

The park was forced to close for several months, and the popularity of the gorilla tours suffered badly for several years, though attendance has since[when?]

The shape of the park is a legacy of previous conservation management, when the original two forest blocks were protected in 1932.

[10] The park's underlying geology consists of Precambrian shale phyllite, quartz, quartzite, schist, and granite.

[12] The park's forest plays an important role in regulating the surrounding area's environment and climate.

[4]: 233 [10] High amounts of evapotranspiration from the forest's vegetation increase the precipitation that the region outside the park receives.

[4]: 233  Diverse species are a feature of the park,[1] and it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its ecological importance.

Among East African forests, Bwindi has some of the richest populations of trees, small mammals, birds, reptiles, butterflies, and moths.

[14] Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is important for the conservation of the afromontane fauna, especially species endemic to the Western Rift Valley's mountains.

[12] Along with mountain gorilla, species in the park include common chimpanzee, L'Hoest's monkey, African elephant, African green broadbill, and cream-banded swallowtail,[14] black and white colobus, red-tailed monkeys, vervets,[15]: 744  the giant forest hog.

The high population and poor agricultural practices place great pressure on the Bwindi forest, and are one of the biggest threats to the park.

[4]: 233  Local people hunted, mined, logged, pit sawed, and kept bees in the park.

This closing of access caused large amounts of resentment and conflict among these local communities[4]: 233  and park authorities.

[3]: 44  The Batwa fished, harvested wild yams and honey, and had ancestral sites within the park.

Non-Batwa farmers who had cut down the forested areas in order to cultivate them, received compensation and their land rights were recognised.