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Home  »  The World Factbook, 2008  »  Waterways

The World Factbook. 2008.

Waterways

CountryWaterways
Afghanistan1,200 km (chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to 500 DWT) (2007)
Albania43 km (2007)
Angola1,300 km (2007)
Argentina11,000 km (2006)
Australia2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2006)
Austria358 km (2007)
Bangladesh8,370 km
note: includes up to 3,060 km main cargo routes; network reduced to 5,200 km in dry season (2006)
Belarus2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
Belgium2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2006)
Belize825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Benin150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)
Bolivia10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2007)
Bosnia and HerzegovinaSava River (northern border) open to shipping but use limited (2006)
Brazil50,000 km (most in areas remote from industry and population) (2007)
Brunei209 km (navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m) (2007)
Bulgaria470 km (2007)
Burma12,800 km (2007)
Burundimainly on Lake Tanganyika (2005)
Cambodia2,400 km (mainly on Mekong River) (2005)
Cameroonnavigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2005)
Canada636 km
note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with United States (2007)
Central African Republic2,800 km (primarily on the Oubangui and Sangha rivers) (2006)
ChadChari and Legone rivers are navigable only in wet season (2006)
China124,000 km navigable (2006)
Colombia18,000 km (2006)
Congo, Democratic Republic of the15,000 km (2005)
Congo, Republic of the1,125 km (commercially navigable on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2006)
Costa Rica730 km (seasonally navigable by small craft) (2007)
Cote d’Ivoire980 km (navigable rivers, canals, and numerous coastal lagoons) (2006)
Croatia785 km (2007)
Cuba240 km (2007)
Czech Republic664 km (principally on Elbe, Vltava, Oder, and other navigable rivers, lakes, and canals) (2006)
Denmark400 km (2007)
Ecuador1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2006)
Egypt3,500 km
note: includes Nile River, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in delta; Suez Canal (193.5 km including approaches) navigable by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 17.68 m (2006)
El SalvadorRio Lempa partially navigable for small craft (2007)
Estonia320 km (2006)
European Union52,332 km (2006)
Fiji203 km
note: 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2006)
Finland7,842 km
note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2006)
Francemetropolitan France: 8,500 km (1,686 km accessible to craft of 3,000 metric tons)
French Guiana: 3,760 km (460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft) (2006)
Gabon1,600 km (310 km on Ogooue River) (2007)
Gambia, The390 km (on River Gambia; small ocean-going vessels can reach 190 km) (2006)
Germany7,467 km
note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2006)
Ghana1,293 km
note: 168 km for launches and lighters on Volta, Ankobra, and Tano rivers; 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways on Lake Volta (2007)
Greece6 km
note: Corinth Canal (6 km) crosses the Isthmus of Corinth; shortens sea voyage by 325 km (2007)
Guatemala990 km
note: 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season (2007)
Guinea1,300 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2005)
Guinea-Bissaurivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2007)
GuyanaBerbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2006)
Honduras465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Hungary1,622 km (most on Danube River) (2007)
India14,500 km
note: 5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels (2006)
Indonesia21,579 km (2007)
Iran850 km (on Karun River; additional service on Lake Urmia) (2006)
Iraq5,279 km
note: Euphrates River (2,815 km), Tigris River (1,899 km), and Third River (565 km) are principal waterways (2006)
Ireland956 km (pleasure craft only) (2007)
Italy2,400 km
note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2006)
Japan1,770 km (seagoing vessels use inland seas) (2007)
Kazakhstan4,000 km (on the Ertis ((Irtysh)) River (80%) and Syr Darya ((Syrdariya)) River) (2006)
Kenyapart of Lake Victoria system is within boundaries of Kenya (2006)
Kiribati5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) (2007)
Korea, North2,250 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Korea, South1,608 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Kyrgyzstan600 km (2007)
Laos4,600 km
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,900 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2007)
Latvia300 km (2006)
Liechtenstein28 km (2006)
Lithuania425 km (2005)
Luxembourg37 km (on Moselle River) (2007)
Madagascar600 km (2006)
Malawi700 km (on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire River) (2007)
Malaysia7,200 km
note: Peninsular Malaysia 3,200 km; Sabah 1,500 km; Sarawak 2,500 km (2005)
Mali1,800 km (2007)
Mexico2,900 km (navigable rivers and coastal canals) (2007)
Moldova424 km (on Dniester and Prut rivers) (2007)
Mongolia580 km
note: only waterway in operation is Lake Hovsgol (135 km); Selenge River (270 km) and Orhon River (175 km) are navigable but carry little traffic; lakes and rivers freeze in winter, are open from May to September (2004)
Mozambique460 km (Zambezi River navigable to Tete and along Cahora Bassa Lake) (2007)
Netherlands6,183 km (navigable for ships of 50 tons) (2005)
Nicaragua2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (2007)
Niger300 km (the Niger, the only major river, is navigable to Gaya between September and March) (2005)
Nigeria8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2007)
Norway1,577 km (2007)
Panama800 km (includes 82 km Panama Canal) (2007)
Papua New Guinea11,000 km (2006)
Paraguay3,100 km (2007)
Peru8,808 km
note: 8,600 km of navigable tributaries of Amazon system and 208 km of Lago Titicaca (2007)
Philippines3,219 km (limited to vessels with draft less than 1.5 m) (2007)
Poland3,997 km (navigable rivers and canals) (2006)
Portugal210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2006)
Romania1,731 km
note: includes 1,075 km on Danube River, 524 km on secondary branches, and 132 km on canals (2006)
Russia102,000 km (including 33,000 km with guaranteed depth)
note: 72,000 km system in European Russia links Baltic Sea, White Sea, Caspian Sea, Sea of Azov, and Black Sea (2006)
RwandaLac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2006)
Senegal1,000 km (primarily on Senegal, Saloum, and Casamance rivers) (2005)
Serbia587 km (primarily on Danube and Sava rivers) (2005)
Sierra Leone800 km (600 km year round) (2005)
Slovakia172 km (on Danube River) (2005)
Spain1,000 km (2003)
Sri Lanka160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2006)
Sudan4,068 km (1,723 km open year round on White and Blue Nile rivers) (2006)
Suriname1,200 km (most navigable by ships with drafts up to 7 m) (2005)
Sweden2,052 km (2005)
Switzerland65 km (Rhine River between Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee) (2003)
Syria900 km (not economically significant) (2005)
Tajikistan200 km (along Vakhsh River) (2006)
TanzaniaLake Tanganyika, Lake Victoria, and Lake Nyasa principal avenues of commerce with neighboring countries; rivers not navigable (2005)
Thailand4,000 km
note: 3,701 km navigable by boats with drafts up to 0.9 m (2005)
Togo50 km (seasonally on Mono River depending on rainfall) (2005)
Turkey1,200 km (2005)
Turkmenistan1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2006)
Ugandaon Lake Victoria, 200 km on Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, and parts of Albert Nile (2005)
Ukraine2,253 km (most on Dnieper River) (2006)
United Kingdom3,200 km (620 km used for commerce) (2003)
United States41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce)
note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with Canada (2007)
Uruguay1,600 km (2005)
Uzbekistan1,100 km (2006)
Venezuela7,100 km
note: Orinoco River (400 km) and Lake de Maracaibo navigable by oceangoing vessels (2005)
Vietnam17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2005)
World671,886 km (2004)
Zambia2,250 km (includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers) (2005)
Zimbabweon Lake Kariba (2005)