SASSANDRA RIVER

river in western Africa, rising as the Tienba in the highlands between Odienn and Boundiali, northwestern Cte d'Ivoire, and becoming the Sassandra 36 miles (58 km) east-northeast of Touba at its confluence with the Frdougouba (Bagb) River from eastern Guinea. It then follows a 400-mile (650-kilometre) south-southeasterly course through Cte d'Ivoire and empties into the Gulf of Guinea at Sassandra, an Atlantic port. Its upper reaches flow through a savanna region and have been panned for diamonds; its lower course marks the eastern boundary of the 1,641-square-mile (4,250-square-kilometre) Ta Reserve (known for pygmy hippopotamuses) and flows through an area noted for timber (sipo and mahogany), coffee, and bananas. Frequent rapids impede the navigability of the river, but small craft can penetrate 50 miles (80 km) upstream.