List of rivers of Africa

The list of rivers of Africa encompasses the continent's extensive network of waterways, including 63 transboundary river basins shared across its 54 countries, which collectively drain vast areas and sustain critical ecological, economic, and cultural functions.^[1] These rivers vary from the arid north to the tropical rainforests of the Congo Basin, supporting agriculture, fisheries, hydropower generation, and transportation for millions while facing challenges like pollution, damming, and climate variability.^[2] Among the most notable are Africa's longest rivers, which rank prominently on global lists. The Nile River, at 6,650 km, is the world's longest and flows northward through 11 countries, from Rwanda and Uganda to Egypt, forming fertile deltas essential for ancient and modern civilizations.^[3] The Congo River (also known as Zaïre), measuring 4,700 km, is Africa's second-longest and the world's deepest, draining the equatorial Congo Basin across Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and others, while harboring immense biodiversity in one of the planet's largest tropical forest regions.^[3] The Niger River, 4,200 km in length, traverses West Africa through Guinea, Mali, and Nigeria, creating the expansive Inner Niger Delta, a vital wetland for seasonal flooding and agriculture.^[3] Other significant rivers include the Zambezi (2,740 km), which powers major hydropower sites like Kariba Dam and features the dramatic Victoria Falls as it crosses Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique; the Orange River (2,092 km), South Africa's longest, forming the border with Namibia and supporting mining and irrigation in arid southern landscapes; and the Limpopo River (1,800 km), which demarcates boundaries between South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique while sustaining riparian ecosystems in semi-arid zones.^[3] These waterways, often organized in lists by region (North, West, Central, East, and Southern Africa) or by metrics like length and discharge, highlight the continent's hydrological diversity and the interconnectedness of its nations through shared water resources.^[4]

Regional Classifications

North Africa

North Africa's rivers are predominantly influenced by arid and semi-arid climates, resulting in highly variable flows that are often ephemeral, with permanent rivers limited to a few major systems sustained by distant highland sources or Mediterranean rainfall patterns. These waterways support critical agriculture, hydropower, and urban water supplies in a region prone to water scarcity, where seasonal monsoons from the south and sporadic winter rains from the north dictate hydrological regimes. Desertification further compounds challenges by reducing catchment vegetation, accelerating soil erosion, and diminishing surface runoff into rivers, leading to declining base flows and increased sedimentation.^[5] The Nile River dominates the region's hydrology, stretching 6,650 kilometers as the world's longest river, with its primary North African segment flowing northward through Sudan and Egypt before forming a vast delta and emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. Its flow relies heavily on two main tributaries: the White Nile, originating from Lake Victoria in East Africa and providing steady year-round water, and the Blue Nile, rising in Ethiopia's highlands and contributing up to 85% of the annual flood volume during the monsoon season from June to September. The construction of the Aswan High Dam in 1970 has regulated these seasonal variations, storing floodwaters in Lake Nasser for controlled releases that support irrigation across Egypt's arid landscapes while mitigating downstream flooding.^[6][7][7] In the Maghreb, the Medjerda River exemplifies transboundary dynamics, spanning 484 kilometers across Algeria and Tunisia before discharging into the Gulf of Tunis in the Mediterranean. Characterized by a semi-arid climate with average annual basin rainfall of 480 millimeters, it experiences pronounced seasonal flows driven by autumn-winter rains, making it prone to flash floods that have historically impacted agriculture and infrastructure, such as the devastating 1969 event. Dams like Sidi Salem help manage these variations for irrigation and hydropower, but ongoing cooperation between the two countries addresses shared water allocation amid climate variability.^[8][9][10] The Chelif River in northern Algeria, approximately 720 kilometers long, drains the Tell Atlas mountains and flows intermittently to the Mediterranean near Algiers, serving as a key resource for regional irrigation amid semi-arid conditions. Its hydrology features high seasonal variability, with winter flows supporting agriculture in the Chelif plain, though desertification and upstream damming have reduced perennial reliability.^[11][12] Extending into North Africa's Sahel margins, the upper reaches of the Niger River—covering about 1,200 kilometers from its Guinea highlands source through Mali—navigate semi-arid terrain before forming an expansive inland delta. This segment's flow, fed by Guinean monsoons, swells dramatically in the wet season, fostering seasonal wetlands vital for fisheries and grazing, but arid evaporation leads to significant water loss.^[13][13] The Senegal River, 1,700 kilometers in length, originates in the Fouta Djallon highlands and traverses the Sahel through Guinea, Mali, Senegal, and Mauritania, ultimately reaching the Atlantic Ocean. In the North African transitional zone, it underpins agriculture in the Senegal River Valley, where dams like Manantali enable year-round irrigation for rice, onions, and other crops, countering dry-season aridity and supporting food security for millions despite monsoon-driven seasonal peaks.^[14][15][15] In contrast to the voluminous Congo River in Central Africa, North African rivers typically exhibit lower discharges due to pervasive aridity, underscoring the region's vulnerability to further flow reductions from ongoing desertification.^[5]

West Africa

The rivers of West Africa, flowing primarily westward into the Atlantic Ocean, play crucial roles in shaping coastal and savanna ecosystems across nations such as Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, and Mali. These waterways support humid, equatorial-influenced environments with high biodiversity, driven by seasonal monsoonal rains that cause significant flooding and facilitate nutrient-rich sediment deposition along their courses. Unlike the arid, low-volume rivers of North Africa, West African rivers exhibit dynamic flow regimes, with peak discharges during the wet season from July to October, transporting sediments that nourish coastal deltas and fisheries. This seasonal variability enhances agricultural productivity in floodplains but also poses challenges like erosion and habitat shifts due to human interventions. The Niger River, spanning 4,180 km, is the dominant waterway in the region, originating in the Guinea Highlands and traversing Mali, Niger, Benin, and Nigeria before emptying into the Gulf of Guinea. Its middle and lower basins in West Africa feature the Inland Niger Delta in Mali, a vast seasonal floodplain covering up to 30,000 km² during floods, renowned for its exceptional biodiversity that includes over 250 fish species, migratory birds, and aquatic vegetation sustaining local fisheries and herding economies. Historically, the Niger served as a vital east-west trade route in the Western Sudan, facilitating the exchange of gold, salt, and slaves via canoe navigation and connecting inland markets to trans-Saharan caravans as early as the 4th century CE. However, the upper basin faces pollution from artisanal gold mining, particularly mercury contamination from operations in Mali and Guinea, which introduces heavy metals into the river system, affecting water quality and downstream ecosystems. The Volta River system, approximately 1,600 km long, drains parts of Ghana, Burkina Faso, and Togo, forming a key hydrological network in the Guinea savanna. Its lower course is impounded by the Akosombo Dam, completed in 1965, creating Volta Lake—the world's largest artificial reservoir at 8,502 km²—which supports hydropower generation, irrigation, and aquaculture while altering natural flow patterns and reducing sediment delivery to the coastal zone. Seasonal flooding in the Volta Basin, peaking at over 10,000 m³/s during wet periods, transports fertile sediments to the Atlantic, bolstering nearshore fisheries and mangrove habitats in Ghana's eastern coast, though dam operations have diminished this flux by up to 70% since the 1960s. Further south, the Gambia River, extending 1,120 km from Guinea through Senegal and The Gambia, exemplifies coastal river dynamics with its meandering course and expansive floodplains that flood seasonally, inundating up to 5,000 km² and depositing silt that enriches rice paddies and wetlands. This river sustains diverse ecosystems, including gallery forests and migratory bird populations, while its sediment transport—estimated at 2-3 million tons annually—contributes to the stability of the Saloum Delta estuary. The Cross River in southeastern Nigeria, flowing approximately 490 km from the Cameroon border to the Atlantic, highlights mangrove-rich ecology as one of Africa's largest such systems, harboring endangered species like the Cross River gorilla and supporting fisheries through seasonal inundation that promotes nutrient cycling in its delta. Mining activities in upstream areas, including sand and mineral extraction, exacerbate pollution risks, introducing sediments and contaminants that disrupt these biodiversity hotspots. Overall, these rivers underscore West Africa's reliance on fluvial systems for trade, agriculture, and ecological balance, though increasing anthropogenic pressures like mining and damming threaten their sustainability.

Central Africa

The rivers of Central Africa are predominantly those draining the vast Congo Basin and adjacent interior plateaus, characterized by equatorial rainforests that support exceptional biodiversity and complex hydrological systems largely isolated from coastal influences. This region encompasses the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, and parts of surrounding nations, where dense vegetation and high precipitation drive perennial flows through swampy lowlands and forested uplands. Unlike more arid or savanna-dominated systems elsewhere, these rivers navigate through some of the world's most humid and biodiverse ecosystems, facilitating nutrient cycling essential for regional ecology.^[16] The Congo River, the basin's central artery, stretches approximately 4,700 kilometers from its headwaters in the highlands of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean in the Republic of the Congo, making it Africa's second-longest river after the Nile. Its drainage basin covers about 3.7 million square kilometers, spanning nine countries and representing roughly one-eighth of Africa's land area, with the river's flow sustained by heavy equatorial rainfall that results in an average discharge of around 41,000 cubic meters per second at its mouth—second only to the Amazon worldwide. This immense volume supports navigation over much of its course but is interrupted by formidable barriers, including the Livingstone Falls, a series of 32 rapids and cataracts spanning 354 kilometers between Kinshasa and Matadi, where the river drops over 270 meters and creates one of Africa's most challenging navigational obstacles.^{[17][18][19][20]} Key tributaries contribute significantly to the Congo's volume and ecological diversity, including the Ubangi River from the northeast, which forms part of the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic and drains savanna regions into the main stem; the Kasai River from the south, a 2,150-kilometer waterway originating in Angola that meanders through rainforests and delivers sediment-rich waters; and the Sangha River from the north, flowing 2,600 kilometers from the Central African Republic and Cameroon through swamp forests before joining the Congo near its central reach. These tributaries, each exceeding 1,000 kilometers in length, enhance the basin's connectivity and support transboundary water management challenges among multiple nations.^[16][21] The Congo Basin's rivers harbor high levels of endemism, particularly among fish species adapted to the varied habitats of rapids, floodplains, and forested streams, with over 700 fish species recorded, including endemics like the Ubangui loach catfish (Tetracamphilius angustifrons) in the Ubangi and diverse cichlids and catfishes in the Kasai's lower reaches. These aquatic communities thrive in the nutrient-poor blackwaters of rainforest tributaries, contributing to the basin's status as a global hotspot for freshwater biodiversity. Additionally, the rivers and associated wetlands play a vital role in carbon sequestration, as the Congo Basin overall functions as the world's largest tropical carbon sink, absorbing approximately 1.5 billion tons of CO2 annually through flooded forests and riverine transport of organic matter that stabilizes atmospheric carbon levels.^[22][23][24] At the Livingstone Falls, the Inga Dams represent a cornerstone of the region's hydroelectric potential, with existing Inga I and II facilities generating about 1,775 megawatts since the 1970s and proposed expansions under the Grand Inga project aiming for up to 42,000 megawatts—enough to power much of sub-Saharan Africa—by harnessing the Congo's unparalleled hydraulic head and flow. This development could transform energy access in Central Africa but requires careful environmental management to preserve the basin's biodiversity and hydrological balance.^[25]

East Africa

East African rivers are characterized by their origins in the tectonically active East African Rift Valley and the Great Lakes region, where faulting and volcanic activity create steep gradients and fragmented drainage patterns that direct flows toward the Indian Ocean. These hydrological systems support diverse ecosystems and human livelihoods, but their courses are frequently altered by rift-related processes such as uplift and subsidence, leading to unique geomorphic features like waterfalls and narrow gorges. The region's rivers exhibit high seasonal variability driven by the Indian Ocean monsoon, with wet seasons from March to May and October to December delivering intense rainfall that swells flows, while dry periods reduce discharges significantly.^[26] Prominent among these is the White Nile, which emerges from Lake Victoria—the largest lake in Africa and chief reservoir for the Nile system—and exits at Jinja in Uganda, initiating its approximately 3,700 km African segment through rift-influenced terrains.^[27] Flowing northward across Uganda and into South Sudan, this river's upper reaches are shaped by the rift's volcanic highlands, providing vital water for agriculture and hydropower. In contrast to the more stable, high-discharge Congo River in Central Africa, the White Nile's flow is moderated by lake outflows and seasonal rains, averaging around 1,000 cubic meters per second at Jinja.^[28] The Tana River, Kenya's longest at about 1,000 km, originates from the southern slopes of Mount Kenya and the Aberdare Range, draining a basin of approximately 100,000 km² (38,600 square miles) that captures monsoon runoff from the central highlands.^[29] It supports over half of Kenya's hydroelectric power and supplies nearly all of Nairobi's water, but its lower reaches traverse semi-arid zones prone to flooding and siltation.^[30] Further south, the Rufiji River in Tanzania stretches over 600 km from the Kilombero and Great Ruaha tributaries, forming a expansive delta that hosts East Africa's largest continuous mangrove forest, spanning approximately 480 km² and serving as a critical carbon sink and fishery habitat.^[31] These mangroves thrive in the delta's brackish waters, buffering coastal communities against erosion and storms.^[32] The Jubba and Shebelle rivers, often considered together as the Jubba-Shebelle system, arise in Ethiopia's highlands and extend through Somalia for over 1,000 km combined, forming the Horn of Africa's only perennial waterways with average discharges of 186 m³/s and 75 m³/s, respectively, at the border.^[33] These rivers sustain fertile floodplains for sorghum and maize cultivation in otherwise arid landscapes, though upstream diversions in Ethiopia pose risks to downstream flows.^[34] Tectonic influences from the East African Rift have driven river captures and course reversals, as evidenced by Holocene shifts in the Kenya Rift where faulting redirected ancient bidirectional river systems from Lake Nakuru-Elmenteita and Naivasha, altering drainage patterns and influencing sediment distribution.^[35] Such events highlight the rift's role in creating unstable fluvial networks, contrasting with more uniform basins elsewhere. In semi-arid eastern zones, irrigation from these rivers faces challenges like erratic monsoon timing, soil salinization, and overexploitation, limiting expansion despite high potential in basins covering 22% of Kenya's land.^[36] Climate variability exacerbates these issues, with reduced wet-season reliability threatening food security for millions dependent on riverine agriculture.^[37]

Southern Africa

Southern Africa's rivers are characterized by their adaptation to semi-arid climates, with many exhibiting variable flows influenced by seasonal rainfall and underlying geology. These waterways often feature interior drainage systems or outlets to the Indian Ocean, supporting diverse ecosystems amid drought-prone environments. Key examples include the Zambezi, Limpopo, Orange, and Okavango rivers, each demonstrating unique hydrological traits shaped by the region's arid conditions.^[42] The Zambezi River, stretching 2,574 kilometers from its source in Zambia to the Indian Ocean, is a vital artery renowned for Victoria Falls, a dramatic cataract where the river plunges over a 1,708-meter-wide basalt cliff, creating one of the world's largest waterfalls by volume.^[43][42] Its extensive floodplains, spanning thousands of square kilometers, seasonally inundate grasslands and wetlands, fostering rich biodiversity that includes large herbivores such as elephants and buffalo, which rely on the nutrient-rich sediments for foraging during wet periods.^[44][45] The river's flow regime, however, is increasingly regulated by structures like the Kariba Dam, completed in 1959, which mitigates extreme floods but exacerbates drought vulnerability by trapping water upstream, leading to reduced downstream inundation and ecosystem stress during low-rainfall years.^[42][46] The Orange River, South Africa's longest at approximately 2,200 kilometers, originates in the Lesotho Highlands and traverses the arid Karoo Desert, carving through rugged landscapes before reaching the Atlantic Ocean.^[47][48] Its course supports sparse vegetation and sporadic oases in the otherwise barren Karoo, where it facilitates irrigation for agriculture despite high evaporation rates that limit perennial flow in downstream sections.^[49] In contrast, the Okavango River exemplifies endorheic drainage, an internal basin system where water does not reach the sea but evaporates or infiltrates locally, differing from exorheic systems like the Zambezi that discharge to oceans.^[50] Flowing 1,600 kilometers from Angola's highlands, it fans into the Kalahari Desert of Botswana, forming a vast inland delta covering about 15,000 square kilometers that swells with seasonal floods, creating a mosaic of channels, lagoons, and islands teeming with aquatic life and migratory birds.^[51][52] The Limpopo River, approximately 1,750 kilometers long, borders South Africa, Botswana, and Zimbabwe before entering Mozambique and emptying into the Indian Ocean, sustaining savanna ecosystems and human settlements in a region prone to prolonged dry spells.^[53] Its intermittent nature highlights the drought resilience of southern African rivers, where deep aquifers and seasonal tributaries buffer against aridity, though dams and abstractions intensify water scarcity during extended droughts.^[54]

Comparative Rankings

By Length

Africa's rivers vary significantly in length, with measurements influenced by the choice of source, the definition of the main stem versus tributaries, and the methodology employed, such as traditional cartographic surveys or modern satellite-based GIS analyses.^[55] The longest rivers often span multiple countries, serving as vital transboundary waterways that facilitate trade, agriculture, and ecological connectivity across the continent.^[56] Determining precise lengths involves tracing the longest continuous channel from the farthest upstream perennial source to the mouth, though debates persist, particularly for the Nile, where historical explorations shaped early estimates.^[57] The Nile holds the distinction as Africa's longest river at 6,650 km, whose basin spans 11 countries, flowing northward through 10 of them from its debated sources in the East African highlands to the Mediterranean Sea.^[58] Its length includes the White Nile originating near Lake Victoria and the Blue Nile from Ethiopia's Lake Tana, with 19th-century expeditions by explorers like John Hanning Speke and Richard Francis Burton confirming Lake Victoria as a primary source in 1858, which extended prior estimates beyond ancient Egyptian knowledge limited to the lower reaches.^[57] It crosses borders in Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Egypt, influencing water-sharing agreements among nations.^[56] Following the Nile, the Congo River measures 4,700 km, originating in Zambia's highlands and traversing the equatorial rainforests of the DRC and Republic of the Congo before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean.^[58] Recent 2025 measurements using satellite remote-sensing propose longer figures up to 5,260 km by incorporating a more distant source beyond the Chambeshi River, though this is not yet universally accepted. A 2025 study by Chinese researcher Liu Shaochuang, using satellite remote-sensing and on-site investigations, identified this farther source.^[55][59] This transboundary giant flows through or borders nine countries, including Angola, Cameroon, and Gabon, underscoring its role in regional hydrology.^[60] The Niger River ranks third at 4,200 km, curving through West Africa from Guinea's Guinea Highlands across Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Benin to the Gulf of Guinea.^[58] Its sinuous path, often measured via central channel lines on high-resolution maps, reflects the challenges of quantifying meandering courses in savanna and delta environments.^[55] As a key transboundary feature, it supports shared basins among nine nations, though its length estimates have stabilized since 20th-century surveys.^[56] Shorter but significant rivers include the Zambezi at 2,740 km, which drains southern Africa's plateaus through Zambia, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, renowned for powering Victoria Falls along its course.^[58] The Orange River spans 2,092 km from South Africa's Drakensberg Mountains to the Atlantic, forming the border with Namibia and vital for arid region's water needs.^[60] Further examples down to around 1,000 km encompass the Senegal River (1,086 km), originating in Guinea and flowing through Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal as a critical transboundary lifeline for Sahelian agriculture.^[58]

By Discharge

River discharge, a key measure of hydrological output, quantifies the volume of water flowing past a specific point in a river per unit time, typically expressed in cubic meters per second (m³/s) and measured at the mouth or major gauging stations. This metric reflects the river's capacity to transport water, sediment, and nutrients to oceans or inland basins, influencing ecosystems, navigation, and water resources across Africa. Discharge is fundamentally calculated using the formula $Q = A \times V$Q=A×V, where $Q$Q is the discharge, $A$A is the cross-sectional area of the flow, and $V$V is the average velocity of the water.^[61] In African rivers, discharges are shaped by intense seasonal rainfall, with equatorial basins yielding the highest volumes due to abundant precipitation exceeding 1,500 mm annually on average.^[62] The following table ranks select major African rivers by average discharge at their mouths, based on long-term gauging data; these represent the continent's highest volumetric contributors, with the Congo far surpassing others due to its vast, rain-fed basin. These averages derive from gauging stations operated under the Global Runoff Data Centre (GRDC), which compiles standardized hydrological records for global rivers. For instance, the Congo's discharge is monitored at Kinshasa, where long-term records confirm its dominance, though seasonal peaks during the wet season can exceed 70,000 m³/s due to heavy equatorial downpours.^[68] Similarly, the Niger's flow at Lokoja varies from minima around 500 m³/s in dry periods to over 18,000 m³/s during floods, driven by Sahelian monsoons.^[69] Hydrological factors profoundly influence these discharges, with basin precipitation showing strong positive correlations—rivers in high-rainfall zones like the Congo Basin (averaging 1,386 mm/year) sustain elevated flows year-round.^[62] In contrast, arid-zone rivers such as the Nile experience significant evaporation losses, reducing potential discharge by up to 50% across its desert stretches despite upstream inflows.^[66] The Zambezi and Volta exhibit pronounced seasonality, with wet-season peaks 3-5 times higher than dry-season lows, underscoring the role of tropical convection in flow variability. Overall, while longer rivers like the Nile often correlate with substantial discharges, volumetric rankings prioritize basin hydrology over length alone.

By Drainage Basin Area

The drainage basin area of a river refers to the total land surface from which precipitation and groundwater contribute to its flow, delineating the spatial extent of its hydrological influence across Africa. These basins are critical for understanding water resource distribution, as they encompass diverse ecosystems, human populations, and economic activities, often spanning multiple countries and requiring cooperative management. In Africa, major river basins cover approximately 64% of the continent's land area, with an average size for significant basins around 1.2 million km², exceeding global averages for non-tropical regions due to the continent's vast savannas and rainforests.^[56][70] The largest African river basins by area highlight the Congo's dominance, followed closely by the Nile, reflecting geological and climatic factors that shape water collection. The Congo Basin spans 3.7 million km², making it the second-largest river basin globally after the Amazon and a vital carbon sink supporting biodiversity and regional water cycles.^[71] The Nile Basin covers 3.4 million km², draining arid and semi-arid landscapes that sustain agriculture for over 300 million people across 11 countries.^[72] The Niger Basin extends over 2.1 million km², influencing Sahelian ecosystems and floodplains essential for fisheries and irrigation in West Africa.^[73] Further south, the Zambezi Basin measures 1.4 million km², integrating wetlands and highlands that regulate seasonal flows for hydropower and wildlife habitats.^[74] The Orange Basin, at 0.97 million km², supports arid southern ecosystems, channeling water from the Lesotho Highlands to the Atlantic despite low precipitation.^[75] Basin boundaries in Africa are primarily defined by topographic divides, such as ridges and watersheds that separate contributing areas from adjacent systems, as mapped in global hydrological datasets.^[76] For instance, the Congo-Nile Divide forms a natural barrier influencing precipitation routing between Central and East African basins. These transboundary features necessitate international agreements to manage shared resources; the Nile Basin Initiative, established in 1999, promotes cooperative development among riparian states to equitably allocate water and mitigate conflicts.^[77] Deforestation within these basins, particularly in the Congo where rates have risen 4.9% annually since 2000, reduces vegetative cover and alters hydrological connectivity, potentially shrinking effective basin areas through soil erosion and decreased infiltration.^[78] Basin area is integral to a river's water yield, as larger catchments capture more rainfall and runoff, often correlating with higher discharge volumes—though modulated by evaporation and land use.^[79] In Africa, expansive basins like the Congo yield substantial freshwater (over 40,000 m³/s on average), sustaining downstream ecosystems and human needs, while smaller ones like the Orange face yield constraints from aridity. This spatial scale underscores ecological implications, including biodiversity hotspots and vulnerability to climate variability, emphasizing the need for basin-wide conservation to maintain water security.^[80]