Koda River (South Sudan)

The Koda River,[1] locally called Khor Koda,[2] is a seasonal tributary of the White Nile in the state of Jubek, South Sudan.[3]

Course

The river begins approximately at 4°41′13″N 31°03′47″E / 4.687°N 31.063°E / 4.687; 31.063, south of the Miri Hills, approximately 7 km north of the village of Mussikidolk and 60 km west of the state capital Juba.[2] It runs mostly in the northeast direction, being joined by major tributaries from the same general source region at 4°45′19″N 31°06′04″E / 4.7554°N 31.1012°E / 4.7554; 31.1012 and 4°51′23″N 31°10′37″E / 4.8564°N 31.1769°E / 4.8564; 31.1769.[2] Near 5°04′48″N 31°18′43″E / 5.080°N 31.312°E / 5.080; 31.312 it changes to an eastward general direction. After about 32 km (beeline; near 5°02′49″N 31°36′14″E / 5.047°N 31.604°E / 5.047; 31.604, about 20 km due north of Juba, and 6 km northwest of Luala) it makes a broad curve 6 km south and southeast of Mount Lado, an isolated hill with peak at 1006 m altitude, that dominates the landscape of the area.[4]

From there it flows northeast for about 14 km, almost parallel to the White Nile, until a point 0.5 southwest of the village of Lado Koda (5°08′20″N 31°42′32″E / 5.139°N 31.709°E / 5.139; 31.709). There the course bends sharply to the southwest for another 2.5 km, ending on the White Nile, about 35 km downstream (north) of Juba 5°07′49″N 31°43′43″E / 5.1302°N 31.7286°E / 5.1302; 31.7286.[5][6] The annual flow has been estimated at 60 million m3.[7]

For the last 18 km, the river is flanked by a strip of floodplains about 0.5 km wide,[5] with a total area of 3159 ha, including the riverbed. Along that valley, the altitude drops from 470 m (at 5°02′49″N 31°36′14″E / 5.047°N 31.604°E / 5.047; 31.604) to 435 m.[8]

The river flows near the villages of Wulikare, Logogvi, Ludo Kenyi, Luala, and Lado Koda. Wulikare is located 0.5 km south of the river and 29 km northwest of Juba.[6][8][5]

History and demographics

The area near the White Nile is the historic homeland of Bari-speaking people.[9]

The Nyangwara tribe in the Miri Hills, Mongalla province believed that Lotome, the first remembered ancestor of the Gwokorongo chiefs, lived at Dogeleng near the Koda River around 1800.[9]

As of 2018, the South Sudan war was still affecting in the area.[10]

Economics

As of 2012,only about 10% of the area in the flood valley was cultivated, mostly for maize, sorghum, cassava and millet.[8]

As in most of South Sudan, the local population among the poorest in the planet. The area has been of interest to international relief agencies that produced plans for possible irrigation projects[7][8] or actually created and managed such installations and model farms.[10] For example, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) offered a study of the construction of three dams—including one on the Koda river, a couple km west of Wulikare—to collect and store water for irrigation in the region of Jalang.[7]

Flora and fauna

Much of the area has natural vegetation consisting of grasses, bushes, and sparse trees.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ US Army: "Sheet NB36, Series 1301, Edition 2 AMS 3: Mongwalla". Maps for the World site, Map txu-oclc-6654394-nb-36-3rd-ed. Accessed on 2019-03-24.
  2. ^ a b c Russian Army: "Map E36 X 83-T6" Maps for the world website, Map 500k--b36-3. Accessed on 2019-03-24.
  3. ^ (2016): "South Sudan: Central equatoria - Base Map (as of 15 December 2016)". Médecins Sans Frontières. From the ReliefWeb.int site, accessed on 2019-03-24.
  4. ^ View of the CEDASS farm project with the Koda River, South Sudan and Mount Lado in the background. (Archived) Accessed on 2019-06-04.
  5. ^ a b c Google Maps: "Koda River". Accessed on 2019-03-23
  6. ^ a b (2013): "Sudan: Central Equatoria State - Detailed Transport Map (as of 17 Jan 2013)". World Food Programme, Logistics Cluster. From the ReliefWeb.int site, accessed on 2019-03-24.
  7. ^ a b c d "Irrigation Development Master Plan". Online document, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), with the Water Sector of the Ministry of Electricity, Dams, Irrigation and Water Resources (MEDIWR). Accessed on 2019-03-23. Warning: The authors seem to have obtained all their geographic data from Google Earth and Google Maps, so the names and locations of the towns may be incorrect.
  8. ^ a b c d (2012): "Jebel Lado focal area". Assessment of the Irrigation Potential in Burundi, Eastern DRC, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda - Final Report, Appendix South Sudan, Section 3, pages 98-121. Report 114, FutureWater consultants, Wageningen, Netherlands. Warning: This report incorrectly calls the river "Bahr el-Jebel" ("Mountain River"), which is actually the local name of the White River; and calls its flood valley "Jebel Lado" which is the name of the nearby mountain ("Jebel" or"Jabal" being Arabic for "Mountain"). Also, while the satellite images are useful, the panoramic views may be stock photos.
  9. ^ a b L. F. Nalder (1937): A Tribal Survey of the Mongalla Province, page 193. Oxford University Press.
  10. ^ a b "The Jebel Lado Project" CEDASS website, Accessed on 2019-03-23