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Lake Victoria is located in East Africa. The Lake drains
areas within Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and
Tanzania, as shown in Figure 1.1. The Basin is linked to
the Nile River Basin through the White Nile (Abtew and
Melesse 2014) and contributes much of the headwaters
of Africa’s longest River.
The basin
The largest portion of the Lake Victoria Basin (LVB) is
in Tanzania – 44 per cent (85,448 km
2
) of the Basin’s
drainage area; while Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi
make up 22 per cent (42,724 km
2
), 16 per cent (31,072 km
2
),
11 per cent (21,362 km
2
) and 7 per cent (13,594 km
2
),
respectively (Lake Victoria Basin Commission 2007a).
Figure 1.1: The Lake Victoria Basin
Kigali
Bujumbura
Kampala
Nairobi
Kisumu
Nakuru
Eldoret
Kitale
Kakamega
Jinja
Entebbe
Lira
Bukoba
Musoma
Mwanza
Mbale
Mbarara
Ruhengeri
Kibuye
Butare
Gitarama
Kibungo
Ngozi
Gitega
M o n t s
B l e u s
R u w e n z o r i
V i r u n g a
B u g a n d a
R i
f
t
V a l
l e y
KENYA
UGANDA
DEMOCRATIC
REPUBIC OF THE
CONGO
RWANDA
BURUNDI
TANZANIA
Lake
Albert
Lake
Kyoga
Lake
Baringo
Lake
Bogoria
Lake
Naivasha
Lake
Kivu
Lake
Tangayika
Lake
George
Lake
Kyanebalola
Kagera
Lake
Ikimba
Lake
Burigi
Simiyu
Mbalageti
Mara
Nzola
Sondu
Victoria Nile
Katonga
Lake
Kachira
Lake
Wamala
Lake
Edward
Lake Victoria
Copyright©2016GRID-Arendal ·Cartografare ilpresente/NievesLópez Izquierdo
100 km
Lake Victoria Basin
Tertiary river systems
Secondary river systems
Lake Victoria basin
Altitude
4 000
3 000
2 000
1 500
1 000
500
200
5 000 m
Capitals
Other cities
Main road
Major settlements
More than 25 000 inhabitants
Table 1.1: Lake Victoria surface area, catchment area and shoreline statistics
Country
Kenya
Uganda
Tanzania
Burundi
Rwanda
Total
Source: Lake Victoria Basin Commission 2002
Km
2
4,128
29,584
35,088
0
0
68,800
Km
2
42,724
31,072
85,448
13,594
21,362
194,200
Km
550
1,750
1,150
0
0
3,450
%
6
43
51
0
0
100
%
22
16
44
07
11
100
%
16
51
33
0
0
100
Catchment area
Lake shoreline length
Lake surface area