Is the basin wide management the best approach for restoring and conserving Lake Victoria environments?

Session: Interacting Threats on the African Great Lakes

Agembe Simon, University of Eldoret, [email protected]
Achieng' Otieno, University of Eldoret, [email protected]
Masese Frankline, University of Eldoret, [email protected]

Abstract

Lake Victoria basin is endowed with natural resources including agricultural land, water, fisheries, minerals, wildlife, forests among others. Anthropogenic activities around the lake have continued unabated and resulted in various environmental threats and stresses to the ecosystem including receding water levels, nutrient enrichment, sedimentation, solid waste pollution, over-fishing, species introduction and loss of habitats. The ecosystem transition to its current state brought some economic benefits from the resulting productivity in its fisheries but unsustainable in the long term since its ecological functions, processes and general ecosystem well-being are dependent on and impacted by intriguing complex and interactive elements not limited to the lake but operate at basin wide level. Several projects have addressed various aspects of ecosystem functioning and services with varying degrees of success, due to lack of agreed overall management policy with a multisectoral approach where stakeholders are engaged to effectively manage a transboundary resource with socio-economic significance to the riparian communities. The riparian states in the Lake Victoria region have recognized these threats. We discuss pertinent environmental issues around Lake Victoria basin and recommend a multisectoral strategy where responsible environmental champions and agencies work together to sustain and guarantee future ecosystem functions and services.