Volta

Volta, river, Ghana, formed by the confluence of the Black Volta and White Volta rivers, and flowing in a southerly course through Lake Volta, Ghana (a large reservoir and hydroelectric project created by damming the river at Akosombo), to Ada, on the Gulf of Guinea. Both the Black and White Volta rise in Burkina Faso (previously known as Upper Volta, after the river). The name Volta (Portuguese, “turn”) was given by Portuguese explorers because of the river's winding course. The two sources formerly met at Yeji at a point that is now part of Lake Volta. The total length, including the Black Volta, is about 1,448 km (900 mi). The Volta's main tributaries are the Oti and the Afram. The system as a whole drains 398,000 sq km (153,000 sq mi), and the average discharge at the river's mouth is 1.2 million litres (256,000 gallons) per second.