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ARUSHA - Lake Victoria Basin Commission, a specialized institution of the East African Community (EAC), a regional bloc, in collaboration with Maasai Mara University in Kenya, will convene a conference on the conservation of the Mara Basin ecosystem.

The conference will be held at the Maasai Mara University in Kenya on Sept. 14, featuring a theme of "Flowing Forward Together: Conserving the Mara Basin Ecosystem for Sustainable Biodiversity and Climate Resilience," said the commission in a statement issued Saturday.

Lake Victoria Basin Commission, with headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania, aims to promote, facilitate, and coordinate activities of different actors towards sustainable development and management of the natural resources of Lake Victoria.

According to the statement, the upcoming conference will focus on various themes, including environmental conservation and climate resilience in the Mara Basin ecosystem, natural resource management for inclusive socioeconomic development, and relevant knowledge, innovation and technology in the conservation of the Mara Basin ecosystem. 

It will be open to all researchers, students, and government officials from the EAC member states of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, and Somalia, as well as international researchers.

The Mara Basis ecosystem covers 13,325 square kilometers, of which, about 65 percent is located in Kenya and 35 percent in Tanzania.