The city of Bujumbura hosted on December 08, 2022, the tenth conference of ministers of the Lake Tanganyika Authority. Delegations from the contracting countries of the convention on the sustainable management of the waters of Lake Tanganyika took part, in the presence of the Vice-President of the Republic of Burundi, Mr. Prosper BAZOMBANZA.  The contribution of the Lake Tanganyika Water Management Project “LATAWAMA”, which is jointly implemented by the Belgian Development Agency Enabel and the Lake Tanganyika Authority, and funded by the European Union, is recognized by most stakeholders. The partners maintain their support for the protection of the waters of Lake Tanganyika.

In his statement, the Vice-President of the Republic of Burundi reiterated the Government of Burundi’s unwavering support for the Lake Tanganyika Authority and the implementation of coordinated actions aimed at the sustainable management of Lake Tanganyika.

The Ambassador of the European Union in Burundi, Claude Bochu, indicated that the European Union is committed to the protection of nature and the fight against climate change at the level of its bilateral cooperation with Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, and the DRC, as well as at the regional level in particular in transboundary water basins, such as Lake Tanganyika. He then recalled that in 2019, the European Union financed the Lake Tanganyika Water Management (LATAWAMA) project and plans to engage a new substantial budget envelope in 2023 which will enable to finance of a new phase of the LATAWAMA project.

The Resident Representative of Enabel in Burundi, Mr. Abou El Mahassine Fassi-Fihri, emphasized that the LATAWAMA project contributes to the implementation of the strategic action plan of the Lake Tanganyika Authority, specifically for the priorities related to Information management through the development of the water quality monitoring network and the fight against pollution through the management of solid and liquid waste.

The Minister of Fisheries and Livestock of the Democratic Republic of Congo also appreciates the actions of the LATAWAMA project. Various interventions recalled the commitment of the partners for the financing of actions aimed at the sustainable protection of the waters of Lake Tanganyika.

The Conference of Ministers constitutes a formal framework to monitor the implementation of the Strategic Action Plan of the Lake Tanganyika Authority and allows decision-making on the sustainable management of the waters of Lake Tanganyika. It is composed of the four ministers of the contracting countries bordering the Lake in charge of the environment with a rotating presidency. This year, Professor Sanctus Niragira, Burundian Minister of the Environment, Agriculture, and Livestock, chaired this conference.