Lake Kyoga

Lake Kyoga is a large shallow lake complex of Uganda, about 1,720 km² in area and at an elevation of 914 m. The Victoria Nile flows through the lake on its way from Lake Victoria to Lake Albert. The main inflow from Lake Victoria is regulated by the Owen Falls Dam in Jinja. Another source of water is the Mount Elgon region on the border between Uganda and Kenya. While Lake Kyoga is part of Great Lakes system, it is not itself considered a Great Lake.

The lake complex is nowhere deeper than about 5.7 meters, and most of it is less than 4 m in depth. Areas less than 3 m deep are completely covered by water lilies, while much of swampy shoreline is covered with papyrus and water hyacinth. The papyrus also forms floating islands that drift between a number of small permanent islands. Extensive wetlands fed by a complex system of streams and rivers surround the lakes.

46 species of fish have been recorded in Lake Kyoga, and crocodiles are numerous.

Excessive El Niņo rains in 1997-1998 have resulted in exceptionally high water levels, causing large islands of papyrus and water hyacinth mats to become dislodged on the lake and to accumulate at the lake's outlet into the Victoria Nile. This blockage has caused the water level to become even higher, flooding about 580 km² of the surrounding land (DWD 2002) and resulting in population displacement and severe socioeconomic damage. In 2004, the Egyptian government granted Uganda a gift of 13 million USD to streamline the flow the Nile at Lake Kyoga. As of 2005, the outlet is still for a large part blocked.

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