GIAHS pilot systems and sites

Oases of the Maghreb (Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia)

Summary information	Photo gallery
Detailed information	References
Partners	Annexes

The oases of the Maghreb region are green islands flourishing in a constraining and harsh environment. They are home to a diversified and highly intensive and productive system, which has been developed over millennia. Sophisticated irrigation architectures, supported through traditional local resource-management institutions which ensure a fair water distribution, constitute a crucial element of the oasis systems.

Dominated by the date palm, intertwined with trees and crops, these ancient systems produce a surprising variety of fruits and vegetables, cereals and forages, medicinal and aromatic plants. The palm groves offer shade and lower the ambient temperature, making it the best place to live in the Sahara and an important place of recreation.

The systems of production and irrigation and the culture of the oases vary between the different locations in correspondence to their environment. There are oases in continental, mountainous, as well as in littoral areas. With their rich diversity these oases systems constitute an agricultural and cultural heritage.

top