The White Nile (Arabic: النيل األبيضan-nīl al-'abyaḍ) is a river in Africa, one of the two main
tributaries of the Nile; the other is the Blue Nile. The name comes from colouring due to clay
carried in the water.[4]
In the strict meaning, "White Nile" refers to the river formed at Lake No, at the confluence of
the Bahr al Jabal and Bahr el Ghazal Rivers. In the wider sense, "White Nile" refers to all the
stretches of river draining from Lake Victoria through to the merger with the Blue Nile.
These higher stretches being named the "Victoria Nile" (via Lake Kyoga to Lake Albert), the
"Albert Nile" (to the South Sudan border) and then the "Mountain Nile" or "Bahr-al-Jabal"
(down to Lake No).[5] "White Nile" may sometimes include the headwaters of Lake Victoria,
the most remote of which being 2,300 miles (3,700 km) from the Blue Nile.[3]
The 19th-century search by Europeans for the source of the Nile was mainly focused on the
White Nile, which disappeared into the depths of what was then known as "Darkest Africa".
The White Nile's true source was not discovered until 1937, when the German explorer
Burkhart Waldecker traced it to a stream in Rutovu, at the base of Mount Kikizi.[6]
A map showing the White Nile and the Blue Nile in East Africa.
Contents
1 Headwaters of Lake Victoria
2 In Uganda
o 2.1 Victoria Nile
o 2.2 Albert Nile
3 In South Sudan and Sudan
o 3.1 Mountain Nile
o 3.2 White Nile proper
4 Inland waterways
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Headwaters of Lake Victoria
Rusumo Falls
The Kagera River, which flows into Lake Victoria near the Tanzanian town of Bukoba, is the
longest feeder river for Lake Victoria, although sources do not agree on which is the longest
tributary of the Kagera, and hence the most distant source of the Nile itself.[7]
The source of the Nile can be considered to be either the Ruvyironza, which emerges in
Bururi Province, Burundi,[8] near Bukirasaz or the Nyabarongo, which flows from Nyungwe
Forest in Rwanda.[9]
These two feeder rivers meet near Rusumo Falls on the border between Rwanda and
Tanzania. These waterfalls are known for an event on 28–29 April 1994, when 250,000
Rwandans crossed the bridge at Rusumo Falls into Ngara, Tanzania, in 24 hours, in what the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees called "the largest and fastest refugee
exodus in modern times". The Kagera forms part of the Rwanda–Tanzania and Tanzania–
Uganda borders before flowing into Lake Victoria.
In Uganda
Rafters flipping in Bujagali Falls near the mouth of the Victoria Nile
The White Nile in Uganda goes under the name of "Victoria Nile" from Lake Victoria via
Lake Kyoga to Lake Albert, and then as the "Albert Nile" from there to the border with South
Sudan.
Victoria Nile
The Victoria Nile starts at the outlet of Lake Victoria, at Jinja, Uganda, on the northern shore
of the lake.[10] Downstream from the Nalubaale Power Station and the Kiira Power Station at
the outlet of the lake, the river goes over Bujagali Falls (the location of the Bujagali Power
Station) about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) downstream from Jinja town. The river then flows
northwest through Uganda to Lake Kyoga in the centre of the country, thence west to Lake
Albert.
At Karuma Falls, the river flows under Karuma Bridge (2°14′45.40″N 32°15′9.05″E) at the
southeastern corner of Murchison Falls National Park. During much of the insurgency of the
Lord's Resistance Army, Karuma Bridge, built in 1963 to help the cotton industry, was the
key stop on the way to Gulu, where vehicles gathered in convoys before being provided with
a military escort for the final run north. In 2009, the government of Uganda announced plans
to construct a 750-megawatt hydropower project several kilometres north of the bridge,
which was scheduled for completion in 2016.[11] The World Bank had approved funding a
smaller 200-megawatt power plant, but Uganda opted for a larger project, which the
Ugandans will fund internally, if necessary.[12]
Just before entering Lake Albert, the river is compressed into a passage just seven meters
wide at Murchison Falls, marking its entry into the western branch of the East African Rift.
The river then flows into Lake Albert opposite the Blue Mountains in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo.
The stretch of river from Lake Kyoga to Lake Albert is sometimes called the "Kyoga Nile".[13]
Albert Nile
Bridge on Albert Nile
The river draining from Lake Albert to the north is called the "Albert Nile". It separates the
West Nile sub-region of Uganda from the rest of the country. A bridge passes over the Albert
Nile near its inlet in Nebbi District, but no other bridge over this section has been built. A
ferry connects the roads between Adjumani and Moyo, and navigation of the river is
otherwise done by small boat or canoe.
