Africa

Rivers Africa

The longest river in Africa is the Nile with a length of 6,671 km, which drains practically the entire north-eastern region of Africa. It is not only the longest river on the continent, but on the whole earth. Another important river is the Congo with a length of 4,374 km, Central Africa, BC. a. the Congo Basin, drained. The third largest river is the Niger, which has a length of 4,160 km, but can only be used for shipping in the rainy season. Also worth mentioning is the Zambezi, which is dammed several times in its middle course. forms the Caribbean Sea. Its course is punctuated by waterfalls and rapids, including the well-known Victoris Falls.

Africa is the continent with the lowest precipitation to runoff conversion factor. On average, less than 20% of precipitation ends up in rivers, the rest evaporates and/or insures. Most of Africa's major rivers, with the exception of the Zambezi and Congo, cross arid to semi-arid areas on their way to the coast, where much of the water evaporates. Of the great rivers on earth, the Nile has the lowest discharge volume per km² catchment area. Due to the low water levels in the rivers, the water balance in the African lakes is also in a precarious situation.