Fluvial deposits, which include calcreted conglomerates, gravels, sands and silts can be found for up to 50 km west of the present end point of the Tsondab river in the central Namib desert. They provide evidence for at least eight periods of variably increased fluvial activity in the area during the late Cenozoic. Paleoclimatic interpretations of the deposits suggest that all periods of fluvial deposition took place in arid or semi-arid environments and indicate that, although fluctuations in rainfall and runoff have occurred in the central Namib during the Quaternary, they have mostly been of limited extent. Trends in the character of the deposits suggest that the fluctuations that have occurred have been superimposed upon an overall increase in the aridity of the region.