Rusumo Falls, Waterfall on Kagera River, Tanzania.

Rusumo Falls is a cascade on the Kagera River at the border between Tanzania and Rwanda. The water drops over a series of steps and forms a wide white curtain as it flows over the rocks.

European explorers reached the region in 1894 and used the falls as an important passage. In later decades, the location became a strategic site for bridge building and power generation.

The falls are known in Kinyarwanda as Isumo rya Rusumo. On 24 October 1966 Rwanda issued a commemorative postage stamp depicting them. The water turns muddy brown seasonally, carrying sediment from the Kagera basin, which drains most of Rwanda.

The best views of the falls come from the bridge or from viewpoints along the riverbank. Visitors should wear sturdy shoes as paths can be slippery and the mist from the water soaks everything nearby.

The falls drop over Precambrian schists and quartz-phyllites, and the Kagera carries water from almost all of Rwanda except the far west. In April 1994 an estimated 500,000 people crossed the Rusumo bridge into Tanzania, about half of them within 24 hours. A new bridge and border post opened here in 2014; the older, smaller bridge stands nearer the falls.