In southeastern Morocco, the oases of Tafilalt depend on an ancient irrigation system to sustain life at the edge of the Sahara. Known as Khettaras, these underground canals carry water to palm groves and villages, where generations of farmers have developed ways to manage and share this scarce resource.
For date growers like Saïd and Mohamed, water is essential to their livelihoods. But prolonged droughts, advancing sand, and rural migration threaten the Khettaras and the communities that maintain them. Agronomist Thierry Ruf works alongside local specialists to understand and preserve this ancestral system.
As conditions change, residents are finding other ways to sustain their livelihoods. Adil raises Yellow Saharan Bees and D’man sheep, while women’s cooperatives cultivate medicinal and aromatic plants that require less water.
Discover how the people of Tafilalt manage water scarcity, preserve their traditions, and adapt to the challenges facing Morocco’s oases.
Documentary: Oases : Sentinels of the Desert S1E2 Oasis Maroc
Directed by: Guy Beauché
Production: ZED (2021)
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