Four countries border Lake Tanganyika: the Democratic Republic of the Congo (45%), Tanzania (41%), Burundi, and Zambia. It is the second largest lake in Africa, after Lake Victoria, and is also located along the western portion of the Great Rift Valley, which stretches from Mozambique to Lebanon. Here the African Continental Plate is being split in two. Lake Tanganyika is the source of the Congo River. It first became known to the west in 1858, and it was the site of an Allied victory in World War I. One of the German ships, renamed the MV Liemba, was sunk in the battle, but was recovered and repurposed as a ferryboat that is still in use today. Tourist facilities are limited, but because of the region’s biodiversity, it has potential as an eco-tourism destination.
