International science consortium to survey the health, economic value and social importance of Lake Victoria 

At almost 70 000 m², Lake Victoria is the third largest lake in the world. Over 200 000 fishers work its waters directly, sustaining a fishing economy worth over US$1 billion and feeding in excess of 42 million people across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.  

BGS is part of a new project, Lake Victoria 100 (LV100), which will deploy three research vessels simultaneously across Kenyan, Ugandan and Tanzanian waters, in a twelve-month, lake-wide campaign beginning in mid-2027. Led by the Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization, the project aims to survey Lake Victoria to assess fish stocks, water quality, climate, land-use impacts and community livelihoods, providing solid evidence for policymakers, business and communities to make better lake- and land-management decisions.

The planned survey will replicate the first ever survey of the lake, carried out in 1927 by naturalist Michael Graham on behalf of the then British colonial administration. The original fish and data samples taken from the lake are preserved at the Natural History Museum in London and at the offices of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science. Comparing these historic specimens to those to be collected in 2027 will tell the story of 100 years of change. 

Since the 1927 survey, environmental stressors, including the introduction of Nile perch, invasive plants and increasing pollution, have affected the waters of Lake Victoria. Researchers aim to gain insights that will help them protect the lake from future impacts such as climate change.  

BGS scientists will examine how land-to-lake processes in the region have evolved over time. We will assess how poor land management and vegetation loss contribute to increased material entering the lake, affecting fisheries through sediment build-up and nutrient pollution that promotes invasive plant growth. This in turn limits access for small boats and potentially inhibits the rapid growth of aquaculture as an essential industry to support economic and food security in the region. 

We are delighted to be part of the Lake Victoria LV100 centenary survey. It’s a welcome decision to incorporate and consider the influence of land use and its management on the future health of Lake Victoria to sustain food and economic security for the region. The project will combine more than 50 partners across the region and internationally to undertake a multidisciplinary study to define the impacts on the lake and use novel means to encourage decision makers to act in the best interests of the lake and those who benefit from it.

Michael Watts, head of BGS Inorganic Geochemistry.

Lake Victoria represents one of the most incredible sources of life, health and well-being for the people of East Africa and I’m delighted to support this locally led initiative to ensure we understand our impacts upon it and so ensure it provides for generations to come.

Mark Haviland, co-director of Lake Victoria 100.

The project aligns with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, in particular:

•  SDG 2, zero hunger
• SDG 13, climate action
• SDG 14, life below water
• SDG 15, life on land

It also strengthens partnerships for the SDG goals (SDG 17), the Convention on Biological Diversity‘s Global Biodiversity Framework and the African Union‘s Agenda 2063. Total investment in the expedition is expected to be close to US$7 million.

For more information, visit the LV100 website.