Lake Victoria, through its single outlet to the north, the Victoria Nile, is a lifeline to Sudan and Egypt. The lake touches the Equator in its northern reaches. The countries of Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya, border the lake and control 49%, 45%, and 6% of the lake surface, respectively.

The lake's fisheries are currently dominated by three commercial species: the Nile perch, tilapia and dagaa. The Nile perch has a lucrative market abroad, particularly in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Over 80 per cent of the fish in Lake Victoria is the Nile perch, a non-native species introduced in the lake a few decades ago. Tilapia is the only indigenous fish species left as food for the local communities in Mwanza region and many parts of Tanzania.

In addition to fishing, economic activities in the basin include agriculture, livestock, forestry, tourism, floriculture, hydropower generation, and transport. Crops grown in the watershed include maize, cotton, sisal, tobacco, beans, sugarcane, and coffee.

The human population in the catchment has been increasing at the rate of 3%-4% per year.

Phosphorus sedimentation has doubled over the last century and is probably mainly responsible for 7-fold increases in algae communities since the mid 1960's. Blue-green algaes began forming large dense pathces on the lake surface in the mid 1980's, and may be the cause of fish kills in the lake's open waters.