ATAR: Wandering atop a small sand dune in central Mauritania, Aliene Haimoud gazed dejectedly at the yellowing date palms in front of him – trees dying, if not already dead.
The advance of the desert is striking in the oasis village of Azougui, about 450 kilometers (280 miles) northeast of Nouakchott, the capital of the West African nation.
Despite the ever-decomposing sand gradually swallowing the trees, local residents are preparing for the Guetna – the annual date harvest.
The popular event is rooted in a long nomadic tradition and involves large family celebrations centered around the small sweet fruit – the region’s main source of income.
“You go from 10 to 1,000 friends,” one local said cheerfully.
But when a palm tree dies, a little bit of life in every village goes out.
“Because of the sand, people are forced to settle elsewhere because there can be no harvest here,” said Haimoud, president of the local cooperative association.
Nearly 20,000 palm trees have died since the 1980s, and his village is emptier every year, he said.
Like other countries in West Africa and the Sahel region, Mauritania is on the front lines of climate change.
According to a 2022 report by the UN Human Rights Office, temperatures in the region are rising 1.5 times faster than the global average, while rainfall is erratic and the rainy season is dwindling.
In Mauritania, the government tried to stop desertification by planting trees to ward off the onslaught of sand.
But the chosen variety of prosopis caused even more drying of the soil, further exacerbating the fragility of the palms.
About 70 kilometers further south, the green oasis of M’Heiret was also decimated.
About 6,000 palms, already weakened by years of drought, were swept away two years ago by a massive flood of a wadi – a stream that forms during the rainy season.
The trees now lie in a riverbed that is completely dry at this time of year.
“This place used to be full of palm trees,” said Amou Dehah, who was the village’s mayor at the time.
“Their owners are still here, but they have nothing left,” he added.
“If there are no palm trees, there is no more work. If there is no work, there is no money,” Dehah said.
“We have to find a solution. If we don’t, people will go live elsewhere because that’s our only source of income,” he added.
Beside him, 56-year-old Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Brihm said he was worried about his 50 palm trees planted near the wadi and passed down from generation to generation.
“Of course I’m afraid I’m going to lose everything. I’m even afraid they’re going to destroy my house,” he said.
Residents of M’Heiret, which is known for its quality and variety of dates, have called for the construction of a dam which they say will act as a buffer against future downpours and create favorable conditions for cultivation.
“A dam is the best solution,” said Houdy Sidina, a professor of biology and agronomy at the University of Nouakchott.
“It helps fight drought, irrigate palm trees and prevent floods,” he added.
