Chad's rivers are few. In fact, there is one river on the territory of the country - the Shari. The rest of the rivers "come to life" only during the rains. The rest of the time is just dry beds (wadis).
Bahr el-Ghazal river
It is a wadi river that originates in the waters of Lake Chad. Bahr el-Ghazal is a rather rare example of runoff near a closed lake (Chad has no runoff). But during the period of high water - this happens during the period of heavy rains - the waters of the lake flow down the channel of Bahr el-Ghazal.
The water rushes into the Bodele depression located in a natural lowland, where it gathers into a miniature and very quickly drying up lake. The rest of the year the river bed remains dry.
Logon River
Logon is a river that flows through the territory of Chad and Cameroon and is the left tributary of the Shari. The western arm of the river originates in Cameroon (eastern lands of the country). The source of the eastern branch is the territory of the CAR. In its lower reaches, the Logon serves as a natural border between the two states.
Logon flows into the waters of the Shari near the town of Kusseri (Cameroon). The total length of the river bed is about 1000 kilometers. The largest tributaries are: Mayo-Kebi; Tanjile.
Salamat river
Salamat passes through the lands of two states - Chad and Sudan. The total length of the current is 1200 kilometers. In the heat of summer, the river has no water. The river has several names. In its upper course it is called Bahr Azum, and in the lower course it is known as Bahr Salamat.
The source of Salamat is located in the Sudanese province of Darfur (Jebel Marra region). The river bed in the lower reaches runs along the African savannas to the very place where it flows into the Shari waters.
A large administrative center, the city of Am Timan, is located on the banks of the Salamat. In addition, there are two national parks of Chad on the banks of the river: Zakuma; Manda. Salamat connects with the waters of Shari in the territory of Manda Park.
Shari river
Shari passes through the territory of the CAR, Chad and Cameroon. The source of the river is at the confluence of three rivers: Uam; Baming; Gribings. The total length of the channel is 1400 kilometers. The confluence is Lake Chad (southern part). The main tributary of the river is the Logon River.
Since the Shari is the main river of the country, all the main settlements of Chad are located in the Shari valley. The minimum water level in the river falls in April - May, and the highest river water level is recorded in the period September - November. The main tributary of the Shari is the Logon, but the river also has numerous small tributaries: Bahr-Salamat; Bahr-Sarh; Bahr-Auk; Bahr-Keita. Floods occur on the river during the rainy season.
There is a lot of fish in Shari and the most valuable commercial species is the Nile perch.
