AFLANET

The lake is shared between Rwanda and DRC.
It is the youngest among African great lakes (100,000 years old).
It has a narrow shallow inshore zone and has an average depth of 240m and a maximum depth of 485m with the zone below 63m with large quantities of methane and carbon dioxide and no oxygen.
It has several small river inlets with one main outlet (River Ruzizi).
The water into the lake is from rainfall (50%), river inflow (30%), and ground water discharge (20%), and is lost through evaporation (55%), and river outflow (45%).
The lake has had periodic mass biological extinction about every 1,000 years which has led to low biodiversity.

The population densities especially on the Rwanda side of the lake is very high with a basin population density of 41-500 person/km2.
Much of the population lacks clean water and have poor sanitation facilities

The lake had an impoverished fish fauna with ~28 fish species, 50% of them endemic cichlids.
The Lake Tanganyika sardine, Limnothrissa miodon was introduced, got well stablished and created the fishery.
Annual fishery yield is ~10,000 tons, dominated by the small introduced pelagic sardine which contributes ~60% to commercial catches.
Three tilapia species were also introduced but did not become as well established as the sardines probably due to the lake having only a narrow shallow nearshore area.
Fishery supports ~6,600 fishers
The sardine fishery is threatened by over-exploitation.
The lake has a high number of fish cages (>200) which provide an alternative fishery livelihood. This is expected to become a major source of fish on the lake.

The lake is meromictic with a shallow eutrophic zone.
It is oligotrophic but localized eutrophication is expected from the increased number of towns and settlements along the shores of the lake.
Increase in temperature, decrease in wind speed, relative humidity and lake levels over the last part of the 20th century have reduced nutrient recycling and lake productivity processed which have contributed to decline in especially of the introduced clupeid.
In addition to fish the lake is rich in biodiversity (142 plant species, 80 species of birds, 52 invertebrates, 6 mammals, 6 reptiles, 5 species of amphibian).

There are some conflicts in the lake basin between fishers from Rwanda and DRC.
There are heavy agricultural activities in hilly areas around the lake leading to heavy deposits of silt in the lake.
Deforestation, especially on the Rwandan side, is high due to the pressure from rapidly increasing human population and contributes to siltation, eutrophication, pollution.
The lake shores are densely populated with settlements including Kabare, Goma, and Bukavu, Gisenyi, Kibuye, and Cyangugu in Rwanda.
There are four hydropower dams along the Ruzizi which flows from the lake to Lake Tanganyika.
The area around the lake is important in tourism with game parks famous for gorilla and chimpanzee tracking and suitable for swimming, water skiing and wind surfing.

The Belgium Hydrobiological Expedition of 1952-1954 to lakes Albert and Edward also included Lake Kivu.
There have been some projects like Decentralization and Environmental Management Project (DEMP) that have been involved in rehabilitation of the lake ecosystem and protection of the lake shore and river banks.

There are national policies and regulations to guide development and conservation of natural resources of the lake

There are research and management institutions to generate information and implement management measures.
The lake has a regional organization (ABAKIR) that coordinates harmonization of management actions especially of the Ruzizi River basins but its mandate may need to be strengthened to address issues of Lake Kivu.

Determine sustainable exploitation levels for the sardine fishery and put in place appropriate management measures.
Develop and apply a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable cage aquaculture.
Determine impacts of climate change on the lake resources and put in place adaptation and mitigation measures.
Promote sustainable land management practices to reduce siltation and pollution of the lake.
Ensure that methane is exploited in a manner that does not harm people and the environment of the lake.
Strengthen the role of ABAKIR in management of the environment of the lake and its basin.
Promote community participation in conservation and development of natural resources of the lake.
Develop sustainable funding mechanisms for implementation of measures in sustainable use of the lake