The GIAHS of Figuig, linking the municipality of Figuig and neighbouring AbbouLakhal, is characterized by the interdependence and interconnection of pastoralist and farming communities. AbbouLakhal hosts wide grazing lands where nomadic communities have been practicing pastoralism for centuries. These populations have always traded with Figuig farmers who developed smart cities called Ksour based on water springs. Each Ksar is the starting point of an outstanding irrigation network that extends into hundreds of oasis plots surrounding the traditional dwellings.

This system hosts a wide range of agrobiodiversity including local sheep breeds and endemic date palm varieties that sustain farmers and herders’ livelihoods. Indeed, trade and agreements between the two communities have allowed the local communities to balance and absorb the variation of yields and forage availability and to sustain their livelihood.

These oasis gardens and water resource have been sustainability maintained and distributed among communities thanks to the wisdom of collective management based on customary rights. The GIAHS of Figuig has long been considered as one of the most impressive oases in the country, where local traditions have survived colonization and ensured the survival of communities in the middle of the desert since the days of trans-Saharan trade.