Three quarters of Africa’s water resources are concentrated in just 8 major river basins. Of these, the five longest rivers are the Nile, the Congo, the Niger, the Zambezi, and the Orange. The sheer nature of Africa means that many parts of these rivers remain untamed and wild. They hold many world records between them, as you’ll discover as you read on.

1. The Nile, at 6,600 km, is not only the longest river in Africa, but it is also the longest river in the world and arguably the best-known waterway in Africa. It drains about 10 percent of all of Africa, about 3 million square kilometers, and has two main tributaries: the White Nile, which rises in the Great Lakes region and has its most distant source in Rwanda, the other tributary is the Blue Nile, its source is in Ethiopia.

They are located near Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. From there, the river flows north through the Sahara desert and finally empties into the Mediterranean Sea through a large delta. The Nile is the life blood of most Egyptians and most of them live in or near the river. Major settlements on the river include Khartoum, Aswan, Luxor, and Cairo.

2. The second longest river in Africa, the Congo flows west through central Africa for 4,700 km, nearly 2,000 km shorter than the Nile, but what it lacks in length it makes up for in volume. Being located in the largest rain belt in Africa, it discharges 34,000 cubic meters of water per second into the Atlantic Ocean, second only in terms of water flow to the Amazon.

It has the largest catchment basin in Africa covering 4.1 million square kilometres, and thanks to some of its canyons, it is the deepest river in the world. The source is considered to be the Chembeshi River in northern Zambia, not far from the source of the east-flowing Zambezi River.

The rest of the river is within the Democratic Republic of the Congo or forms part of its border. Major settlements along the way include Kisangani, Mbandaka, Kinshasa, and the capital Brazzaville.

3. The Niger River is the third longest river in Africa at 4,180 km and is the main river in West Africa. Its boomerang shape confused Europeans for 2000 years, as its source is only 240 km from the Atlantic Ocean, in the Guinean highlands, but the river flows from the sea into Mali’s Sahara desert, then turns near from the ancient city of Timbuktu. (Timbuktu). From here it heads southeast through Niger along the border with Benin and finally into Nigeria.

Its main tributary is the Benue River, which is 1,400 km long. The Niger flows into the Atlantic Ocean in an area known as the Gulf of Guinea through the densely populated Niger Delta, an area of ​​approximately 70,000 square km.

An unusual feature of the river is the inland Niger Delta. This forms where the river suddenly becomes less steep. This creates a region of connected streams, swamps and lakes on a tract of land the same size as Belgium. Annual flooding makes the delta very good for fishing and agriculture. It is also an important stopover for migratory birds. The Niger drains an area of ​​approximately 2.1 million square kilometers.

4. No less impressive but 640 km shorter is the Zambezi River. At 3,540 km, it is the fourth largest river in Africa, but it is the largest east-flowing river in the Indian Ocean. Its catchment basin is 1.4 million square kilometres, about half the size of the Nile. The source of the Zambezi River is located at about 1,500 m above sea level, very close to the border where Zambia, Angola and the Congo. From there it flows through Zambia, Angola, Namibia and Botswana, returns to Zambia and Zimbabwe and then discharges into its delta in Mozambique.

Its best-known feature is the Victoria Falls, the world’s largest curtain of water and one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It boasts one of the largest conservation areas in the world, the Zambezi Transfontier Conservation Area. It covers 280,000 square km.

There are two major hydroelectric dams on the Zambezi that provide power to several African countries.

5. Apart from a couple of tributaries from the Congo, the Orange River counts as the fifth longest river in Africa. It rises in Lesotho and flows 2,200 km west through South Africa, forming the border between that country and Namibia before exiting Alexandra Bay into the Atlantic Ocean.

Its catchment area is approximately 973,000 square km and its main tributary is the Vaal River. The Orange River is a major source of hydroelectric power and irrigation water. At least 29 dams have been built in its basin, the largest of which is Gariep.

It also supplies water to the Eastern Cape via the 83 km long Orange Fish Tunnel, the second longest supply tunnel in the world. As it moves west, it flows through the semi-arid regions of the Kalahari and Namib deserts, which receive less than 50mm of rainfall per year and thus contribute little water to its volume.