Transport > Waterways > A note: Countries Compared
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DEFINITION:
The individual names of navigable rivers, canals, and other inland bodies of water.
| COUNTRY | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| Afghanistan | chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to 500 DWT (2001) |
| Albania | includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |
| Bangladesh | includes 3,058 km main cargo routes |
| Burma | 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels |
| Cambodia | navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m or less; 282 km navigable to craft drawing as much as 1.8 m |
| Central African Republic | traditional trade carried on by means of shallow-draft dugouts; Oubangui is the most important river, navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m or less; 282 km navigable to craft drawing as much as 1.8 m |
| Congo, Republic of the | the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) rivers provide 1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; other rivers are used for local traffic only |
| Croatia | (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |
| Czech Republic | (the Labe (Elbe) is the principal river) (2000) |
| Egypt | including the Nile, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in the delta; Suez Canal (193.5 km including approaches), used by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 16.1 m of water |
| Fiji | 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges |
| Finland | includes Saimaa Canal; 3,700 km suitable for large ships |
| French Guiana | 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |
| Germany | major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999) |
| 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 |
| Greece | 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; there are also three unconnected rivers |
| Guatemala | 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during highwater season |
| Guyana | Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km, respectively |
| India | 3,631 km navigable by large vessels |
| Indonesia | Sumatra 5,471 km, Java and Madura 820 km, Kalimantan 10,460 km, Sulawesi (Celebes) 241 km, Irian Jaya 4,587 km |
| Iran | 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 | Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use; Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft boats; Shatt al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991 because of the Gulf war |
| Italy | serves various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value (2002) |
| Japan | seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas |
| Kazakhstan | on the Syr Darya (Syrdariya) and Ertis (Irtysh) rivers |
| Kenya | part of the Lake Victoria system is within the boundaries of Kenya |
| Laos | primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m |
| Madagascar | of local importance only |
| Malawi | on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |
| Malaysia | Peninsular Malaysia 3,209 km, Sabah 1,569 km, Sarawak 2,518 km |
| Mauritania | ferry traffic on the Senegal River |
| Mexico | navigable rivers and coastal canals |
| Netherlands | 47% of total route length is usable by craft of 1,000-metric-ton capacity or larger |
| New Zealand | of little importance in satisfying total transportation requirements |
| Niger | the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |
| Nigeria | consisting of the Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks |
| North Korea | mostly navigable by small craft only |
| Norway | navigable by 2.4 m maximum draft vessels |
| Panama | 800 km navigable by shallow draft vessels; 82 km Panama Canal |
| Peru | 8,600 km of navigable tributaries of Amazon system and 208 km of Lago Titicaca |
| Philippines | limited to vessels with a draft of less than 1.5 m |
| Portugal | relatively unimportant to national economy, used by shallow-draft craft limited to 300 metric-ton or less cargo capacity |
| Republic of Macedonia | lake transport only, on the Greek and Albanian borders |
| Russia | 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 (Jan 1994) |
| Rwanda | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft |
| Senegal | 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river |
| Serbia and Montenegro | the Danube River, central Europe's connection with the Black Sea, runs through Serbia; since early 2000, a pontoon bridge, replacing a destroyed conventional bridge, has obstructed river traffic at Novi Sad; the obstruction is bypassed by a canal system, the inadequate lock size of which limits the size of vessels which may pass; the pontoon bridge can be opened for large ships but has slowed river traffic (2001) |
| South Korea | restricted to small native craft |
| Suriname | most important means of transport; oceangoing vessels with drafts ranging up to 7 m can navigate many of the principal waterways |
| Sweden | navigable to small steamers and barges |
| Switzerland | The Rhine carries heavy traffic on the Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee stretches; there are also 12 navigable lakes |
| Tanzania | Lake Tanganyika, Lake Victoria, and Lake Nyasa are principal avenues of commerce between Tanzania and its neighbors on those lakes |
| Thailand | 3,701 km are navigable throughout the year by boats with drafts up to 0.9 meters; numerous minor waterways serve shallow-draft native craft |
| Ukraine | 1,672 km are on the Pryp'yat' and Dniester (Dnister) (1990) |
| United States | navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes |
| Venezuela | Rio Orinoco and Lago de Maracaibo accept oceangoing vessels |
| Vietnam | more than 5,149 km are navigable at all times by vessels up to 1.8 m draft |
| Zambia | includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers |
