Which one of the following is a part of the Congo Basin?
- (a) Cameroon ✓ UPSC's answer
- (b) Nigeria
- (c) South Sudan
- (d) Uganda
Why the answer is (a)
• The Congo Basin, the world's second-largest rainforest after the Amazon, spans six countries: Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.
• Cameroon's southern forests drain into the Congo system through the Sangha river, making it part of the basin — option (a).
• Nigeria lies to the west in the Niger basin; South Sudan drains to the Nile; Uganda lies on the Nile headwaters and Lake Victoria, east of the Congo watershed.
• The basin stores vast carbon in forests and peatlands and is protected under the Central African Forest Initiative.
• Hence option (a).
Why the other options are wrong
- (b) Nigeria
- Nigeria lies in the Niger basin, not the Congo basin.
- (c) South Sudan
- South Sudan drains to the Nile.
- (d) Uganda
- Uganda lies in the Nile basin, east of the Congo watershed.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2023, held on 28 May 2023. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.