The Komoé River or Comoé River is a river in West

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. The river originates on the Sikasso Plateau of

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

, flows through the

Cascades de Karfiguéla The Cascades de Karfiguéla or the Banfora Cascades (also Karfiguela Falls, Tagbaladougou Falls, or Banfora Falls) are a series of waterfalls along the Komoé River in Southwestern Burkina Faso. They are located about 12 km northwest of Banfora ...

, forms a short section of the border between Burkina Faso and

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

before entering Ivory Coast. It serves as the major drainage for the northeastern portion of that country before emptying into the Atlantic. The banks of the Komoé are shaded by

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. In some regions, the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, riparian corridor, and riparian strip are used to characterize a ripar ...

forests along most of its length, providing an important habitat for wildlife and a source of agricultural water. Where reliable

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...

s form in Ivory Coast,

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

may be grown. A portion of the river in northern Ivory Coast is the source of the vegetative richness that earned that area a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

designation, Comoé National Park.

Course

The Komoé River is approximately 759 km long. It rises on the Sikasso Plateau and in the Sindou Hills flowing south over several cataracts with several falls including the "Chutes de la Komoé" and Karifiguela Falls. Upstream of the Karifiguela Falls it is known locally as the Koba River. At it is joined from the right (west) by the Léraba River, whereafter it flows southeast and forms the border between Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast for some , before it enters Ivory Coast four kilometres southwest of the village of Balanfodougou. In Ivory Coast, it continues southeast, past the Comoé National Park, forming the border between its

Zanzan District Zanzan District (, ) is one of fourteen Districts of Ivory Coast, administrative districts of Ivory Coast. The district is located in the northeast of the country. The capital of the district is Bondoukou. Creation Zanzan District was created in ...

and

Savanes District Savanes District (, , " Savannahs") is one of fourteen administrative districts of Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. It ...

. At it turns south flowing through eastern Ivory Coast and emptying into the far eastern end of the

Ébrié Lagoon The Ébrié Lagoon lies in Ivory Coast, separated for almost all of its length from the Atlantic Ocean by a narrow coastal strip. The long lagoon is linked to the sea by the Vridi Canal, while the Comoë River flows into it. The lagoon averages ...

complex and ultimately the

Gulf of Guinea The Gulf of Guinea (French language, French: ''Golfe de Guinée''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Golfo de Guinea''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Golfo da Guiné'') is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez i ...

near the port of

Grand-Bassam Grand-Bassam () is a town in southeastern Ivory Coast, lying east of Abidjan. It is a sub-prefecture of and the seat of Grand-Bassam Department; it is also a commune. During the late 19th century, Grand-Bassam was briefly the French colonial ...

Tributaries

* Léraba River at a right tributary from the west, * Boin River at a left tributary from the north in Comoé National Park.

References

Rivers of Burkina Faso Rivers of Ivory Coast Burkina Faso–Ivory Coast border International rivers of Africa {{IvoryCoast-river-stub