L'or bleu du Sahara

Terres Touareg

The blue gold of the Sahara: the precious water of the Tuaregs

Water is life, and this is even more obvious in the desert. The Tuareg, the nomadic people of the Algerian Sahara, are fully aware of the vital importance of water
and the ‘water savings’ they must make every day. In these vast arid expanses, water management, the blue gold of the Sahara, is an ancestral art for the Tuareg people.

Water in the desert: where does it come from?

In the Algerian Sahara, water comes from the mountains when the snow melts in spring, feeding the rivers. In addition, the rare rains that do fall run off the slopes and infiltrate the ground to feed the water table. It is this underground water that trees, plants and sometimes people draw on to survive in this hostile environment.

In the mountainous regions of the Sahara, rainfall can cause veritable waves to rush down the wadis, washing away everything in their path. Apart from these events, the desert contains older and deeper water reserves, often located more than 1,000 metres underground. These pockets of water, trapped beneath impermeable layers, do not renew themselves and are difficult to reach.

Water for the Tuareg: a precious commodity

For the Tuareg, water is called ‘aman’, a word often associated with ‘iman’, which means life. This symbolic association shows the importance of water in Tuareg culture. The well is at the heart of nomadic life. It is not only a source of life for people, animals and plants, but also a place where people meet and exchange ideas.

As a Tuareg proverb says: ‘Even if the valleys are full of water, stability is the well’. Each nomadic camp is organised around a well, a central point for travelling during the dry season. Solidarity around water is of paramount importance to the Tuareg people, as two proverbs testify: ‘If you find a stray animal, water it as if it belonged to you’ and ‘If a herder passes by your well, give him a drink, whether he is rich or poor’.

The Albien aquifer: Algeria’s hidden treasure

Beneath the Algerian Sahara, between Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, lies the world’s largest underground water table, known as the Albien aquifer. Around 70% of this water table is located in Algeria, mainly in the south-east of the country. This reservoir, formed over a million years ago, contains more than 50,000 billion cubic metres of water, most of which is brackish and requires treatment before it can be consumed.

Despite low rainfall in the region, around 1.4 billion cubic metres of water are replenished every year, representing 40% of the volumes used to meet the needs of the oases in the Algerian Sahara. This hidden treasure is essential to ensure the survival of the local populations and the Tuaregs. An agreement has been signed between Algeria, Tunisia and Libya for the sustainable management of this resource, under the supervision of the Sahel and Sahara Observatory.

Water, often referred to as the ‘blue gold of the Sahara’, is a priceless asset for the Tuareg and the people of the Algerian Sahara. Whether through the management of wells or the use of the Albian aquifer, over the centuries the Tuareg people have developed a unique understanding of this vital resource, around which the social, economic and environmental life of the desert revolves.

The blue gold of the Sahara: the precious water of the Tuaregs
The blue gold of the Sahara: the precious water of the Tuaregs
The blue gold of the Sahara: the precious water of the Tuaregs

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