10 countries in the world without rivers

• Over 10 countries worldwide have no permanent natural river, with Saudi Arabia being the largest — covering 2.15 million km² of mostly desert landscape.

• These nations survive through remarkable ingenuity — from Bahrain's desalination plants supplying 90% of its freshwater, to Oman's ancient falaj irrigation system still channelling groundwater to farms today.

• The riverless world is a glimpse into our future — as climate change worsens global water scarcity, the innovative water solutions pioneered by these nations may become a blueprint for the rest of the world

Some nations have no rivers at all. Here's what that means for millions of people — and how they've found remarkable ways to thrive.

Water is life. We've all heard that phrase, probably so many times that it has lost its weight. But spend a moment thinking about what it actually means to live in a country with absolutely no river, no flowing stream, no winding waterway and no natural source of moving freshwater, and suddenly that phrase hits differently.

You might assume every country on Earth has at least one river tucked somewhere within its borders. Most do. But a surprising number do not.

According to current geographic records, 19 countries and 22 territories have no permanent natural river flowing within them.

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These are nations where the land is too dry, too small, or too geologically unique for rivers to form and survive. And yet, their people live, work, farm, and, in many cases, thrive.

Here are the top 10 countries without rivers — and the extraordinary stories behind how they manage without one of nature's most essential gifts.

Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world without a single permanent river, spanning approximately 2.15 million square kilometres. That is roughly the size of Western Europe, and almost all of it is desert. Summer temperatures regularly soar to around 45°C, and some parts of the country have gone years without seeing a drop of rain.

So how does one of the world's wealthiest nations keep its 35 million people hydrated? Saudi Arabia supplies 50% of its drinking water through desalination of seawater, 40% from non-renewable underground aquifers, and 10% from surface water in mountain regions. It has invested billions in becoming a world leader in water technology — because it has had absolutely no choice.

Libya is the second largest country without a river, covering around 1.76 million square kilometres. Most of it is Saharan desert, baking under relentless sun with virtually no rainfall in the interior.

Libya's solution is one of the most ambitious engineering projects in human history – the Great Man-Made River (GMR), a vast network of underground pipelines that deliver fossil water from ancient Saharan aquifers deep beneath the desert to coastal communities.

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Begun in the 1980s, it remains one of the largest irrigation projects ever built. It is a remarkable reminder that where nature does not provide, human determination sometimes does.

Niger covers approximately 1.27 million square kilometres, and, while it has some seasonal rivers, they are not perennial; they dry up completely during the hot months. For one of the world's poorest countries, water scarcity is not an abstract problem. It is a daily, lived reality for millions of people.

Niger has made strides in accessing underground water sources and has benefited from international water access initiatives. But the challenge remains immense, especially as climate change makes dry seasons longer and more brutal.

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Over-extraction driven by desperation has caused water tables to drop dramatically, making an already dire situation worse. Layered on top of years of devastating conflict, water scarcity in Yemen has reached crisis levels — a silent emergency unfolding alongside the more visible one.

Oman lacks rivers and is largely dependent on subterranean aquifers and seasonal precipitation. But what makes Oman's story remarkable is how it has historically managed this challenge.

Omani culture developed a traditional irrigation system called the 'falaj', an intricate network that directs groundwater to agricultural areas. These ancient channels, some thousands of years old, are still in use today and are recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of engineering heritage.

Kuwait is one of the wealthiest nations per capita on the planet. It is also almost entirely desert. With an area of around 17,818 square kilometres, Kuwait relies on desalination and underground aquifers for its entire water supply. The country has poured its oil revenues into building world-class water infrastructure — turning what could be a fatal geographic weakness into a manageable engineering challenge.

Qatar shares much of its story with its Gulf neighbours – a small, hot, waterless landscape transformed by extraordinary wealth and technology.

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Qatar has no rivers and relies heavily on desalination plants for its freshwater needs. It is one of the highest per capita water consumers in the world, a striking paradox for a country with no natural freshwater source to speak of.

Bahrain is a small island nation that has no rivers and relies on natural springs and desalination plants, which supply about 90% of the country's freshwater.

Those natural springs, once abundant, are increasingly depleted. Bahrain sits on a geographic knife-edge — a tiny island nation in a warming Gulf, with fewer natural reserves every passing year.

The Maldives is one of the most beautiful places on Earth and one of the most water-vulnerable. Its coral atoll structure and limited elevation changes prevent the development of flowing waterways.

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The island nation relies on rainwater collection, desalination plants, and water imports to meet its freshwater needs. With rising sea levels already threatening the islands themselves, the water challenge here is existential in more ways than one.

Vatican City is the world's smallest independent state, covering just 0.44 square kilometres within Rome. It has no river, no lake, no mountain and no room for any of them.

The tiny city-state depends entirely on Italy for its water supply. It is a charming footnote in the story of riverless nations a place too small to need a river, surrounded by a city with one of Europe's greatest.