Africa Drainage Boundary Dataset (AfDBD): Systems

The Africa Drainage Boundary Dataset (AfDBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of drainage unit (DU) data for the African Continent. The dataset defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal, endorheic, or lakefront areas where there could be multiple outlets. In the AfDBD, the continent is divided and subdivided into successively smaller drainage units, classified into six levels: systems, regions, subregions, basins, subbasins, and catchments, primarily determined by topology, location, type, and size of DUs. DUs are consistently assigned identification codes that show their location and classification level. The characterization provides a high-resolution DU boundary dataset that improves data compatibility and accuracy and is expected to support catchment-based research and application on the continent.