ABSTRACT
Like many freshwater systems around the world, Lake Victoria has changed dramatically since the start of the 20th century due to opportunities and challenges associated with open-access, competition for common-pool resources, environmental degradation (Njiru et al. 2008), introduction of exotic species (Njiru et al. 2005), eutrophication (Njiru et al. 2008), and overfishing (Mkumbo et al. 2007). Exacerbating the stresses on freshwater resources is climatic changes (Winfield et al. 2016) leading to high human migration rates toward this water resource as previous arable lands turn into desolate lands, forcing migration towards cities and lakes (WWAP 2012). 131The human population surrounding Lake Victoria, thus, is growing in many of the basin’s cities as a result of erratic rains, poor soils, crop failures and high unemployment throughout the region (Odada et al. 2009). This migration threatens the integrity of Lake Victoria and other water-scarce areas of the world where populations are beginning to lose access to clean, freshwater resources, thus exacerbating already stressed resources, the ability to govern them, and highly unequal access to these resources.
