Aymen Jamli
Farmers near a seaside lagoon in northern Tunisia are fighting to preserve a unique, traditional irrigation system that has sparked renewed interest as North Africa’s water shortages intensify.
Retired schoolteacher Ali Garci wanders among tiny sandy plots, inspecting his potatoes, lettuces and onions.
“It’s not land that we cultivate for the profit it brings, but for the art and the pleasure,” says the 61-year-old, who works around a hectare inherited from his family.
Local farmers have used the “ramli” technique since the 17th century, when Muslims and Jews settled in North Africa after fleeing the Catholic reconquest of Andalusia.
Some found safety in Ghar El Melh, a small fishing town in Tunisia’s north.
But they had to battle a lack of cultivated land and water.
They learned to take advantage of the light, sandy soil, and the fact that underground freshwater, which is lighter than seawater, “floats” above the saltier groundwater below.
When rainwater from the hills reaches the sandy area around Ghar El Melh’s lagoons, instead of mixing immediately with the brine below, it forms a thin layer of fresh groundwater.
Twice a day, the tides of the nearby Mediterranean raise the level of both, bringing precious freshwater in contact with the vegetables in the ramli plots.
“It’s as if the sea is suckling its young,” said Abdelkarim Gabarou, who has worked the traditional plots for more than 40 years.
‘EVERY DROP OF WATER’
The ramli farms — ramli is Arabic for “sandy” — cover around 200 hectares and support around 300 people.
They were listed last year in the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) list of Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems.
The FAO said the ramli system was “unique not only in Tunisia but in the whole world”.
Ramli produce is said to have a particular taste, and is in high demand both locally and in Tunis.
But farmers voice regret that their products lack formal certification, despite the FAO designation.
They must also contend with growing threats to their unique farming system, both from climate change and development.
As rainfall becomes less regular and sea levels rise, the ramli farmers’ delicate dance with nature is becoming harder.
— AFP
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