The CIA World Factbook Edition 1998 Transportation

Waterways In 35 editions of 36.

Waterways was published in 35 editions of the CIA World Factbook, from 1990 to 2024. The 1998 edition carries it in 128 entries, in its Transportation section. Every entry is shown as that edition published it.

entries in the 1998 edition
128
the first edition with it
1990
the latest edition with it
2024

Published as “Waterways” (1996 to 2024) and “Inland waterways” (1990 to 1995).

the entry has the field in that editionnot in that editionthe open editionEach entry below ends in its editions with Waterways, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down; choose one in a row to read that edition’s text there.

Entries with Waterways in each edition

19902000201020202025

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Africa

33 entries

Angola

1,295 km navigable

Benin

navigable along small sections, important only locally

Burundi

Lake Tanganyika

Cameroon

2,090 km; of decreasing importance

Central African Republic

  • 800 km;
  • traditional trade carried on by means of shallow-draft dugouts;
  • Oubangui is the most important river

Chad

2,000 km navigable

Congo, Democratic Republic of the now Democratic Republic of the Congo

15,000 km including the Congo, its tributaries, and unconnected lakes

Congo, Republic of the now Republic of the Congo

the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) Rivers provide 1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; other rivers are used for local traffic only

Cote d'Ivoire

980 km navigable rivers, canals, and numerous coastal lagoons

Egypt

  • 3,500 km (including the Nile, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in the delta);
  • Suez Canal, 193.5 km long (including approaches), used by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 16.1 m of water

Gabon

1,600 km perennially navigable

Gambia, The now The Gambia

400 km

Ghana

Volta, Ankobra, and Tano Rivers provide 168 km of perennial navigation for launches and lighters; Lake Volta provides 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways

Guinea

1,295 km navigable by shallow-draft native craft

Guinea-Bissau

several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping

Kenya

part of Lake Victoria system is within boundaries of Kenya

Libya

none

Madagascar

of local importance only; isolated streams and small portions of Canal des Pangalanes

Malawi

Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi); Shire River, 144 km

Mali

1,815 km navigable

Mauritania

mostly ferry traffic on the Senegal River

Mozambique

about 3,750 km of navigable routes

Niger

Niger river is navigable 300 km from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March

Nigeria

8,575 km consisting of the Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks

Rwanda

Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft

Senegal

897 km total; 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river

Sierra Leone

800 km; 600 km navigable year round

Sudan

5,310 km navigable

Tanzania

  • Lake Tanganyika,
  • Lake Victoria,
  • Lake Nyasa

Togo

50 km Mono river

Uganda

  • Lake Victoria,
  • Lake Albert,
  • Lake Kyoga,
  • Lake George,
  • Lake Edward,
  • Victoria Nile,
  • Albert Nile

Zambia

2,250 km, including Zambezi and Luapula rivers, Lake Tanganyika

Zimbabwe

the Mazoe and Zambezi rivers are used for transporting chrome ore from Harare to Mozambique

Asia

15 entries

Afghanistan

1,200 km; chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to about 500 DWT

Armenia

NA km

Bangladesh

5,150-8,046 km navigable waterways (includes 2,575-3,058 km main cargo routes)

China

138,600 km; about 110,600 km navigable

India

16,180 km; 3,631 km navigable by large vessels

Japan

about 1,770 km; seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas

Kazakhstan

4,002 km on the Syr Darya and Ertis Darya

Korea, North now North Korea

2,253 km; mostly navigable by small craft only

Korea, South now South Korea

1,609 km; use restricted to small native craft

Kyrgyzstan

600 km (1990)

Mongolia

397 km of principal routes (1988)

Russia

  • total navigable routes in general use 101,000 km;
  • routes with navigation guides serving the Russian River Fleet 95,900 km;
  • routes with night navigational aids 60,400 km;
  • man-made navigable routes 16,900 km (1 January 1994)

Sri Lanka

430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft

Turkmenistan

the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway

Uzbekistan

1,100 (1990)

Central America and the Caribbean

9 entries

Belize

825 km river network used by shallow-draft craft; seasonally navigable

Costa Rica

about 730 km, seasonally navigable

Cuba

240 km

El Salvador

Rio Lempa partially navigable

Guatemala

260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season

Haiti

NEGL; less than 100 km navigable

Honduras

465 km navigable by small craft

Nicaragua

2,220 km, including 2 large lakes

Panama

800 km navigable by shallow draft vessels; 82 km Panama Canal

Europe

35 entries

Albania

  • 43 km plus Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990)

Austria

356 km (1996)

Belarus

NA km; note-Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems

Belgium

2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use)

Bosnia and Herzegovina

NA km; Sava blocked by downed bridges

Bulgaria

470 km (1987)

Croatia

785 km perennially navigable; Sava blocked by downed bridges

Czech Republic now Czechia

NA km; the Elbe (Labe) is the principal river

Denmark

417 km

Estonia

500 km perennially navigable

Finland

6,675 km total (including Saimaa Canal); 3,700 km suitable for steamers

France

14,932 km; 6,969 km heavily traveled

Germany

  • western-5,222 km, of which almost 70% are usable by craft of 1,000-metric-ton capacity or larger;
  • major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe;
  • Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea;
  • eastern-2,319 km (1988)

Greece

  • 80 km;
  • system consists of three coastal canals;
  • including the Corinth Canal (6 km) which crosses the Isthmus of Corinth connecting the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf and shortens the sea voyage from the Adriatic to Peiraiefs (Piraeus) by 325 km;
  • and three unconnected rivers

Hungary

1,622 km (1988)

Ireland

limited for commercial traffic

Italy

2,400 km for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value

Latvia

300 km perennially navigable

Lithuania

600 km perennially navigable

Luxembourg

37 km; Moselle

Moldova

424 km (1994)

Netherlands

6,340 km, of which 35% is usable by craft of 1,000 metric ton capacity or larger

Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of now North Macedonia

none, lake transport only

Norway

1,577 km along west coast; 2.4 m draft vessels maximum

Poland

3,812 km navigable rivers and canals (1996)

Portugal

820 km navigable; relatively unimportant to national economy, used by shallow-draft craft limited to 300 metric-ton cargo capacity

Romania

1,724 km (1984)

Serbia and Montenegro

NA km

Slovakia

172 km on the Danube

Slovenia

NA

Spain

1,045 km, but of minor economic importance

Sweden

2,052 km navigable for small steamers and barges

Switzerland

  • 65 km;
  • Rhine (Basel to Rheinfelden, Schaffhausen to Bodensee);
  • 12 navigable lakes

Ukraine

4,400 km navigable waterways, of which 1,672 km were on the Pryp''yat' and Dnistr (1990)

United Kingdom

3,200 km under British Waterways Board

Middle East

4 entries

Iran

  • 904 km;
  • the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km;
  • channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use

Iraq

  • 1,015 km;
  • Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km;
  • channel has been dredged to 3 meters and is in use;
  • Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft watercraft;
  • Shatt al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991 because of the Persian Gulf war

Syria

870 km; minimal economic importance

Turkey now Turkiye

about 1,200 km

North America

3 entries

Canada

3,000 km, including Saint Lawrence Seaway

Mexico

2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals

United States

41,009 km of navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes

Oceania

7 entries

Australia

8,368 km; mainly by small, shallow-draft craft

Fiji

203 km; 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges

Kiribati

small network of canals, totaling 5 km, in Line Islands

New Zealand

1,609 km; of little importance to transportation

Northern Mariana Islands

none

Papua New Guinea

10,940 km

Wallis and Futuna

none

South America

13 entries

Argentina

11,000 km navigable

Bolivia

10,000 km of commercially navigable waterways

Brazil

50,000 km navigable

Chile

725 km

Colombia

14,300 km, navigable by river boats

Ecuador

1,500 km

French Guiana

460 km, navigable by small oceangoing vessels and river and coastal steamers; 3,300 km navigable by native craft

Guyana

6,000 km total of navigable waterways; Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo Rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km, respectively

Paraguay

3,100 km

Peru

8,600 km of navigable tributaries of Amazon system and 208 km of Lago Titicaca

Suriname

  • 1,200 km;
  • most important means of transport;
  • oceangoing vessels with drafts ranging up to 7 m can navigate many of the principal waterways

Uruguay

1,600 km; used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft

Venezuela

7,100 km; Rio Orinoco and Lago de Maracaibo accept oceangoing vessels

Southeast Asia

9 entries

Brunei

209 km; navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m

Burma now Burma (Myanmar)

12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels

Cambodia

3,700 km navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m; 282 km navigable to craft drawing 1.8 m

Indonesia

21,579 km total; Sumatra 5,471 km, Java and Madura 820 km, Kalimantan 10,460 km, Sulawesi (Celebes) 241 km, Irian Jaya 4,587 km

Laos

about 4,587 km, primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional kilometers are sectionally navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m

Malaysia

7,296 km (Peninsular Malaysia 3,209 km, Sabah 1,569 km, Sarawak 2,518 km)

Philippines

3,219 km; limited to shallow-draft (less than 1.5 m) vessels

Thailand

  • 3,999 km principal waterways;
  • 3,701 km with navigable depths of 0.9 m or more throughout the year;
  • numerous minor waterways navigable by shallow-draft native craft

Vietnam

17,702 km navigable; more than 5,149 km navigable at all times by vessels up to 1.8 m draft

Cite this page

Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 1998, “Waterways”, all entries. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/fields/waterways/1998.

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