LAKE VICTORIA BASIN

Acknowledgements

The Lake Victoria Basin Commission acknowledges the work of many individuals and institutions that provided the content and analyses for the Lake Victoria Basin: Atlas of Our Changing Environment . The atlas is the first such publication for the Lake Victoria Basin, which is not only one of the largest single ecosystems in East Africa, but also a shared resource that has the potential to promote sustainable development and regional cooperation. The Lake Victoria Basin Commission is thankful to its partners and individuals for their many contributions towards the preparation of the atlas. The East African Community (EAC), from which the Commission derives its mandate, supported the initiative, while the past Lake Victoria Basin Commission Executive Secretary, Dr. Cannissius Kanangire, provided guidance to the atlas production process. The Lake Victoria Basin Commission secretariat is acknowledged for having the fine mix of professional and people skills that were relevant to the production of the atlas. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), especially the Regional Office for Africa, provided access to some of its networks, including the Environmental Pulse Initiative, through which some satellite datasets were accessed. GRID-Arendal provided technical and training support, as well as coordinated the design and printing of the atlas. Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs contributed financially towards the production of the atlas. The preparation of this atlas benefited from experiences from similar initiatives within and outside the Lake Victoria Basin. The Kenya Environment Management Agency, Zambia Environment Management Agency and Rwanda Environment Management Agency’s experience in producing their national atlases provided valuable knowledge and guidance to the Lake Victoria Basin: Atlas of Our Changing Environment .

formation of a consultative group from representatives of the Lake Victoria Basin partner states. Initial consultations that were jointly coordinated by the Lake Victoria Basin Commission and GRID-Arendal, resulted in an annotated outline for the atlas, as well as identified sites where significant environmental change had happened and could be visualized. Thereafter a training and drafting workshop was convened in Kigali, Rwanda, at which the draft copy was presented and reviewed. Guidance from this workshop, and peer reviews later on were useful in improving and updating the content of the atlas. Design and printing of the atlas was done by GRID- Arendal in consultation with the Lake Victoria Basin Commission. Both GRID-Arendal and the Lake Victoria Basin Commission host the internet version of the atlas, which is available at www.grida.no with links to https:// www.lvbcom.org The atlas was produced with technical backstopping from UNEP as well as from Environmental Pulse Initiative. The Lake Victoria Basin Commission thanks GRID-Arendal for their creativity in the production of visual materials such as maps and graphics, as well as for designing and printing the final product. To Dr. Ally-Said Matano and Mr. Telly Eugene Muramira, the Commission and GRID-Arendal acknowledge your spirit of partnership and shared vision for the Lake Victoria Basin as well as your personal commitment to the preparation of the atlas. Our gratitude also go to Dr. Peter Harris and his management team at GRID-Arendal for the enormous encouragement and oversight they had to the process. There are many organisations and individuals who have contributed directly and indirectly to this process. While efforts have been made to acknowledge their input, it may be that not everyone has been credited by name. Please accept this acknowledgement of your role in this important publication.

The preparation of the Lake Victoria Basin: Atlas of Our Changing Environment started in 2014 with the

Eng. Omari Mwinjika, Lake Victoria Basin Commission

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