Sassandra River

The Sassandra River is a river of western Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa. It is formed by the confluence of the Tienba River, which originates in the highlands of northwestern Côte d'Ivoire, and the Gouan River (also known as the Bafing Sud River), which originates to the west in the highlands of Guinea. The Sassandra flows south-southeast to empty into the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean. The Buyo Dam was constructed across the middle stretch of the river in 1980, just below the confluence with the Nzo River, to create the reservoir called Lake Buyo. The Davo River joins the Sassandra just before it meets the sea. The port town of Sassandra lies on the seacoast where the river meets the sea.

The Sassandra and its tributaries flow through terrestrial ecoregions. The northern, or upper, part of the watershed lies in the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic ecoregion. Further south, it forms the boundary between two tropical moist forest ecoregions, the Western Guinean lowland forests and the Eastern Guinean forests.

Sassandra

Sassandra is a town in southern Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of and the seat of Sassandra Department. It is also a commune and the seat of Gbôklé Region in Bas-Sassandra District.

Sassandra lies on the Gulf of Guinea at the mouth of the Sassandra River. The town was founded by the Portuguese as Santo André and was later run by the British, then the French as a seaport for timber. The town declined in the 1960s after San Pédro's port was completed. Sassandra's main industry is now fishing.

Sassandra is known for its beaches and lighthouse, while the Gaoulou National Park lies nearby. It is served by Sassandra Airport.

Climate

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