The Gongola River is in northeastern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

, the principal tributary of the

Benue River The Benue River (french: la Bénoué), previously known as the Chadda River or Tchadda, is the major tributary of the Niger River. The river is approximately long and is almost entirely navigable during the summer months. The size of its bas ...

. The upper course of the river as well as most of its tributaries are seasonal streams, but fill rapidly in August and September. The Gongola rises on the eastern slopes of the Jos Plateau and falls to the Gongola Basin, running northeasterly until Nafada. At one time, the Gongola continued from here in the northeast direction to

Lake Chad Lake Chad (french: Lac Tchad) is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Central Africa, which has varied in size over the centuries. According to the ''Global Resource Information Database'' of the United Nations Environment Programme ...

. Today it turns south and then southeast until it joins the

Hawal River Hawal is a notified area of district Srinagar, the summer capital of union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is situated in the heart of the Srinagar just about from Lal Chowk. Known for Hawal is known for Hari Parbat, Islamia Coll ...

, its main tributary. The Gongola then runs south to the Benue river, joining it opposite the town of Numan. The lower reaches of the river are impounded by the

Dadin Kowa Dam The Dadin Kowa Dam is situated in Yamaltu/Deba, Yamaltu Deba local government area of Gombe State in the North East (Nigeria), North east part of Nigeria. The dam is located about 37 kilometers to the east of Gombe, Nigeria, Gombe town and 5km froD ...

near Gombe, and lower down by the Kiri Dam. After the Kiri dam was constructed, downstream flood peaks dropped from to , while flows in dryer seasons increased from to . The river downstream from the dam also narrowed and became less winding, with fewer separate channels. The Gongola's floodplains are covered with a fertile black alluvial soil. Cotton, peanuts (groundnuts), and sorghum are grown for export to other parts of the country, and millet, beans, cassava (manioc), onions, corn (maize), and rice are also cultivated. The government built the Kiri Dam on the river near Numan to provide irrigation for a sugar plantation. The basin is also used as grazing ground for cattle, goats, sheep, horses, and donkeys.

References

Gongola River Rivers of Nigeria {{Nigeria-river-stub