EfD-MaK Policy Brief on Changes in Lake Victoria's Hydrology, Water Quality and Livelihoods

KEY MESSAGES

Lake Victoria Basin is facing a number of challenges:

• Ecological and biodiversity degradation
• Declining fish biomass catch and exports
• Rising water levels and moving islands
• Untreated and poorly disposed wastes
• Lake sedimentation due to catchment and buffer zone encroachment.
• Reducing business activity along the lake shorelines leading to poverty, Unemployment and high crime rates.

The following are measures that would strengthen sustainable management and use of the Lake Basin ecosystem services:

• Empowering the local communities and media to protect the lake basin, biodiversity and ecosystem.
• Effective regulation of all the lake activities including fishing and waste disposal.
• Managing the lake basis as a transboundary resource.
• Efficient enforcement of existing laws such as the 200m buffer zone away from the lake.
• Finding alternative land for industries away from the lakes, rivers and wetlands.
• Incorruptible, efficient, skilled and well equipped lake regulatory body to effectively monitor all the activities on the lake.

A coherent plan for conservation and rehabilitation of the fish fauna in the Lake