Rwanda hosted the 10th Sectoral Council of Ministers for lake Victoria Basin

10th Council of Ministers discussed sustainable management of 
Water Resources in the basin

Friday, 4^th May, 2012, at Hotel Umubano, Rwanda hosted the 10^th Sectoral Council of Ministers for Lake Victoria which brought together Environment Ministers and permanent secretaries  from Burundi, Uganda, Kenya Tanzania and Rwanda.

The meeting was an opportunity to consider several reports on the status of implementation of decisions of the 9th Sectoral Council of Ministers; and the Annual Report 2010-2011 of the Lake Victoria Basin Commission.

Delivering his remarks, Hon. Minister for Natural Resources, Stanislas Kamanzi said that one of the most important endeavors for the region and for the continent is to engage East African countries sharing the Lake Victoria Basin in discussing issues related to environment and natural Resources.

Hon. Minister Stanislas Kamanzi added that the management of shared resources like Lake Victoria plays a role in building an enabling environment towards the improvement of social economic conditions among the Basin community.

Dr. Canisius Kanangire, the Executive Secretary for Lake Victoria Basin noted that the LVB Member countries are working tirelessly to transform EAC agenda into a reality, adding that regional cooperation and support to LVBC are needed in order to continuously fight against challenges occurring in the basin.

The council pointed out that the region is facing challenges of poverty, environmental degradation and climate change

Hon. Minister Stanislas Kamanzi said the degradation of environment in one place will affect others living downstream so that there is a need to ensure good stewardship of the water resources in respective boundaries.

“In Rwanda we view issues relevant to the Environment and Natural resources as deserving strong consideration for there to be unshakable grounds for sustainable development.” Said Kamanzi

Dr. Canisius Kanangire added that the responsibility of Lake Victoria Bassin Commission is to formulate policies which support environment sustainability and ensuring that outputs impact positively on the livelihood of population.

Speaking to journalists, Kanangire said the Basin is actively participating in addressing problems affecting the wellbeing of population.

He mentioned that water hyacinth has become a problem especially for those who are looking for food from fishing in lake Victoria, however, revealed Kamanzi, there are ongoing activities of removing hyacinth in an environmentally sound way and stop them from spreading to Lake Victoria and River Nile.

Regarding other programs of the Basin both Minister Kamanzi and Dr Canisius mentioned that there are different programs being implanted and which are expected to have positive impact on the livelihoods of population within the region.

Briefly, those projects include: Maritime Communication and safety on Lake Victoria (MSCLV), the Mount Elgon Regional Ecosystem Conservation Programme (MERECP), Lake Victoria Environment Management and Lake Victoria Water Supply and Sanitation among other programs.

Participating in the 1oth council of Ministers for Lake Victoria Basin was an opportunity for a Ministerial Study Tour which includes visits to selected activities of Lake Victoria Environment Management Phase II and Lake Victoria Water Supply and Sanitation Phase II.

ENDS.