Niger – Into the Ténéré

Niamey
A small settlement until the French arrived in the late 19^th century, Niamey today has a population of around one and a half million, making it the largest city in Niger. Bisected by the Niger River on its way south to Nigeria, Niamey is one of the more sedate African capitals, with wide boulevards and avenues betraying its French influence, while outside of the centre more informal, shanty settlements spread out into the Sahel.

Agadez
Agadez has existed for over a millennium, first settled by the Hausa in the 11^th century as they were pushed from the Air Mountains by the Tuareg. It rose to prominence in the 15^th century and became an important stopping point for trade caravans crossing the desert, and its wealth attracted raiders, the inhabitants building strong fortified walls to repel them. As well as being important economically, it also became a centre for religious learning and scholars, but migration and conflict led to its decline over the coming centuries. In colonial times the French used it as a garrison in their efforts to subjugate the Tuareg. Agadez’s key ‘site’ is its mosque, a traditional Saharan structure with sticks jutting from its edges, and the old quarter with tis atmospheric alleyways and public squares is a fascinating place to explore.

Fachi
The village of Fachi is built in the style of the Berber ‘ksar’, surrounded by walls, with mud built houses flanking a network of very narrow alleys and a fort, former residence of the sultan and refuge for the inhabitants in times of war. A few kilometres away lie the salt-pits, once the main source of income for the local population and today still providing a livelihood for many families. The salt is deposited in layers in the ground, evidence of a marine past. The salt is extracted by digging holes, which are filled with water, due to pressure from the underlying groundwater. With the strong sun and daily heat, this evaporates in a short time, leaving the salt crystallized on the surface and then collected; a system that has remained unchanged for centuries.

The Tenere
The Tenere has a reputation for being one of the most difficult and inaccessible parts of the entire Saharan region, with little vegetation and water, gravel and sand plains, and enormous dunes. Roughly the size of France, this is one of the most evocative parts of the desert and includes the Grand Erg du Bilma, the serir (gravel plains) of the Tenere du Tafassasset, isolated villages and prehistoric rock art. It was once home to the famous ‘Arbre du Tenere’, a lone tree which was the only vegetation for miles around, until a truck driver managed to crash into it and knock it over. Until then, this had provided a landmark for the camel caravans and early overlanders who travelled the desert. The caravans still exist, travelling between some of the world’s most isolated outposts, although increasingly these days their role is being overtaken by trucks – quicker, and able to carry more, but without the romance of the desert.

Camel caravans – The Taghalamt, or Azalai
Since the dawn of humanity, caravans have crossed the continents to deliver an essential source of life: salt. Great axes of migration and exchange were born from these roads, and it has driven people to conquer territories. Caravans of dromedaries, llamas, goats, yaks and donkeys led by different men, with similar gestures, saddles and knots, have connected the shores of ancient seas, salt lakes – apparently inexhaustible sources – to the rest of the world, crossing deserts, plateaus and mountains. Today, in a world that threatens the nomadic way of life, there are still a few caravans that survive: one of these is the Taghalamt, in Niger. Colonisation gave the caravan that crosses the Ténéré the name of Azalai by analogy with the salt caravan that connects Taoudenni to Toumbouctou, in Mali. Taghalamt in the Tuareg language is the salt caravan that crosses the desert to reach the salt pits of Fachi or in the Kawar (Bilma and Seguedine).

The Kel Owei, a Tuareg tribe that inhabit the Air massif, and the Kel Gress, originally from the Madaoua region, are the largest caravaneers in the Tuareg world; caravan traffic is the backbone of the Kel Owei economy. A true Tuareg from Air must have made the caravan: the nobles are the caravaneers; it is almost a pilgrimage, a school of life with its rites of passage. On the outward journey, between Tree of Ténéré and Fachi, all the children or adolescents present for the first time must cross a straw ‘barrier’ that the adults have put down while running in front of the caravan: it is an initiatory symbol. Preparation for the caravan requires meticulous organisation that lasts a month and even more: participants must weave the mats and ropes with which the salt loaves will be packed, gather the food supply of the caravans and collect the fodder for the animals in bales of straw. Caravans are organized according to the extended family group. Each group has its guide (madugu) and each caravan (amawezlu) is responsible for about ten camels. Coming from various locations in the Air and from Damergou, they gather at the southern edge of the massif from where the crossing of the Ténéré desert begins. During the day the guide orients himself with different points of reference (orientation of the dunes, sand ripples, shadow of the dromedary’s ear) while at night he relies on the constellation of the Pleiades and that of Orion (called Amanar which means guidance) which allows him to maintain the correct course.

Tuareg People
The Tuareg, or kel-Tamashek (speakers of Tamashek) are a nomadic group of people who are found in Algeria, Mali, Niger, Libya and Burkina Faso. Their origins are not completely known but many sources believe that they are Berbers who retreated into the desert during the Arab invasions of North Africa. Today they follow Islam but an unusual aspect of their culture is that the men wear a type of veil, known as a ‘tagelmoust’ while the women’s faces are uncovered. The Tuareg were renowned as fierce warriors and were a major impediment to French exploration of the Sahara in the late 19th and early 20th century, fiercely resisting encroachment on their lands and on occasion massacring whole expeditions. Today Tuareg groups in Mali and Niger have been involved in conflict with government in attempts to gain greater autonomy. Tuareg men can still today be seen wearing their traditional swords when out travelling.