Abstract:
Degradation of Lake Victoria Basin (LVB) resources due to deforestation, illegal fishing and unsustainable
farming practices is among the major challenge to the natural resources managers and the livelihood of
surrounding communities. Several measures have been proposed to mitigate the situation. These measures range
from policies, laws, regulations to technical options. Despite these efforts, adherence to these regulations and
adoption of the proposed technologies is low. Among the factors that can influence household adoption of a
particular technology is perception of the problem and the technology itself. This has not been thoroughly
investigated and integrated in development and promotion of mitigation options. This research assessed the local
community perception on the LVB resources, levels of degradation and the causes. The research was done in
selected sites within LVB in Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda. Data was collected through questionnaire
interviews and focused group discussion to 334 respondents. Collected data was descriptively analyzed using
means, frequencies, percentages and ranking. Results indicate that majority of community members perceive
LVB resources to be currently more degraded than past twenty years. However, specific types of resources and
levels of degradation do differ between countries. Degradation factors are personal, administrative, technical and
policy related. Lack of alternatives is among the major driving forces to degradation activities. It is
recommended that intervention efforts to reverse degradation situation need to consider local community
perception and be of multiple nature to address technical, administrative and policy issues.
