Nile-How is ti compared with other rivers?

In spite of its great length and large drainage basin (3,000,000 km2, or about 10% of Africa, and affecting 9 nations), it carriers relatively little water. Yearly flows over the past century ranged from a low of 42 km3 in the drought year of 1984 to a high of 120 km3 for 1916. This relatively low flow for such a long river is because no water is added to it north of its confluence with the Atbara River, and much is lost by evaporation. Most other great rivers join with other large streams as they approach the sea, joining their waters into an ever-swelling stream. Instead, the Nile wanders through the largest and most arid region on earth, the Sahara Desert.