Niger River

The Niger rises on the eastern side of Guinea's Fouta Djallon highlands, relatively close to the Atlantic coast. It first flows north and northeast, entering Mali, where it passes through a broad inland floodplain before continuing eastward. The river's distinctive course then curves southeast: it crosses the arid Sahel, passes through the Republic of Niger, and enters Nigeria. There it meets the Benue at Lokoja; the joined waters continue south to the Gulf of Guinea. Encyclopaedia Britannica gives the river's length as about 4,200 kilometres, making it Africa's third longest, after the Nile and Congo. Length figures are approximate and vary somewhat among references.

In central Mali, the river spreads into the Inner Niger Delta, an inland wetland network of channels, lakes, swamps and seasonally inundated ground. The flood pulse follows seasonal rainfall across the upper basin: as river levels rise, water spreads into floodplains and connected lakes, then recedes. The Food and Agriculture Organization describes the delta as an important point in the river's hydrology, where seepage and evaporation reduce downstream flow. Wetland conditions vary from year to year, linking livelihoods and ecosystems to changing water levels.

Downstream, the Niger turns toward Nigeria and receives water from multiple tributaries. Its most substantial tributary, the Benue, joins at Lokoja. From the confluence the river flows south and divides into many channels as it approaches the coast. The Niger Delta is a large, branching coastal landscape of waterways, wetlands and mangroves that meets the Gulf of Guinea. The Niger's course connects inland and coastal environments over a vast distance, but the coastal delta is distinct from the inland Inner Niger Delta in Mali.

Communities along the river depend on its water and floodplains in different ways. The river supports fishing, farming and transport, and water is also used for irrigation and power generation. The basin extends beyond the river channel and across national borders; the Niger Basin Authority promotes cooperation among countries that share its waters and associated ecosystems. Dams, water withdrawals, land use and seasonal variability can affect water availability and the wetlands and livelihoods that depend on it, making basin-wide monitoring and coordination important.