The Kagera River, also known as Akagera River, or Alexandra Nile, is an
East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historica ...
n river, forming part of the upper headwaters of the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest riv ...
and carrying water from its most distant source.
[Stanley, H.M., 1899, Through the Dark Continent, London: G. Newnes, ] With a total length of from its source located in
Lake Rweru in Rwanda.
The section of river named Kagera begins in
Burundi
Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Gr ...
, flowing out from
Lake Rweru. From the lake, it flows east along the
Rwanda
Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...
-Burundi and Rwanda-
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
borders to a confluence with the
Ruvubu River
The Ruvubu River (also spelt Rurubu and Ruvuvu) is a river in central Africa whose waters gather from the most distant, southern portion of the Nile basin. With a total length of and has a drainage basin of . It rises in the north of Burundi, n ...
. The waters of the Kagera are thus provided by two major tributaries, the
Nyabarongo
The Nyabarongo (or Nyawarungu) is a major river in Rwanda, part of the upper headwaters of the Nile. With a total length of , it is the longest river entirely in Rwanda. It is extended in Lake Rweru including a upper course of Kagera River befor ...
of Rwanda, which feeds Lake Rweru, and the Ruvubu of Burundi. It is unknown which of these two feeder rivers is the longer and hence the ultimate source of the Nile. From the confluence, the Kagera flows north along the Rwanda-Tanzania border, over
Rusumo Falls and through
Akagera National Park. It then takes a turn to the east, following the Tanzania-
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...
border and emptying into
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
in Uganda. In 1898,
Richard Kandt
Richard Kandt (17 December 1867, in Poznań, Posen – 29 April 1918, in Nuremberg; original name Kantorowicz) was a German physician and List of explorers, explorer of Africa.
Life
Richard Kandt started as a psychiatrist in Bayreuth and Munich ...
discovered the source of the Kagera.
The river has featured prominently in the histories of the countries it runs through, particularly Rwanda. In 1894, German
Gustav Adolf von Götzen
Gustav Adolf Graf von Götzen (12 May 1866 – 2 December 1910) was a German colonizer and Governor of German East Africa. He came to Rwanda in 1894 becoming the second European to enter the territory, since Oscar Baumann’s brief expedition in ...
crossed the Kagera at Rusumo Falls, marking the Rwandan colonial era that officially started in 1899. And in 1916, during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, the Belgians defeated the Germans, entering Rwanda by the same route. The river gained international notoriety in 1994 for carrying bodies from the
Rwandan genocide
The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...
into Lake Victoria, causing a state of emergency to be declared in areas of Uganda, where these bodies eventually washed up.
Geography
The Kagera rises in Burundi and flows into Lake Victoria. It is the largest single
inflow into the lake, contributing approximately 6.4 billion cubic metres of water a year (about 28 per cent of the lake's
outflow).
The Kagera is formed by the confluence of the
Ruvuvu and the
Nyabarongo
The Nyabarongo (or Nyawarungu) is a major river in Rwanda, part of the upper headwaters of the Nile. With a total length of , it is the longest river entirely in Rwanda. It is extended in Lake Rweru including a upper course of Kagera River befor ...
, close to the northernmost point of
Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika () is an African Great Lake. It is the second-oldest freshwater lake in the world, the second-largest by volume, and the second-deepest, in all cases after Lake Baikal in Siberia. It is the world's longest freshwater lake. T ...
.
It forms parts of the Burundi–
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
,
Rwanda
Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...
–Tanzania, Burundi–Rwanda, and Tanzania–
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...
borders. It lends its name to
Akagera National Park in northern Rwanda, as well as to the
Kagera Region of Tanzania. On the river are the
Rusumo Falls, an important crossing point between Rwanda and Tanzania. It is near the town of
Rusumo.
Fish
The Kagera River basin is rich in fish. , there were at least 55 species known from the Rwandan section alone and the actual number is likely higher.
Additionally, there are at least 15
undescribed species of
haplochromine
__NOTOC__
The haplochromine cichlids are a tribe of cichlids in subfamily Pseudocrenilabrinae called Haplochromini. This group includes the type genus (''Haplochromis'') plus a number of closely related genera such as ''Aulonocara'', ''Astatot ...
cichlids that are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to some of the lakes in the upper parts of the river basin.
Because of the many waterfalls and rapids, the various sections of the Kagera River basin are clearly separated, making movements by fish between them difficult or even impossible.
Genocide
During the Rwandan genocide
The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...
of 1994, the Kagera was used to dispose of corpses as thousands of Tutsi
The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic g ...
s and Hutu
The Hutu (), also known as the Abahutu, are a Bantu ethnic or social group which is native to the African Great Lakes region. They mainly live in Rwanda, Burundi and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they form one of the p ...
political moderates were murdered on the river banks. The river brought the massacred bodies into Lake Victoria, creating a serious health hazard in Uganda.
See also
* Ruvuvu River
The Ruvubu River (also spelt Rurubu and Ruvuvu) is a river in central Africa whose waters gather from the most distant, southern portion of the Nile basin. With a total length of and has a drainage basin of . It rises in the north of Burundi, n ...
- Right tributary of the river
* Nyabarongo River - Left tributary of the river
References
Notes
Sources
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External links
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{{Authority control
International rivers of Africa
Nile basin
Rivers of Burundi
Rivers of Rwanda
Rivers of Tanzania
Rivers of Uganda
Border rivers
Rwanda–Tanzania border
Tanzania–Uganda border
Burundi–Tanzania border
Burundi–Rwanda border
Tributaries of Lake Victoria