Adrar Province
Adrar exhibits path dependence like mycorrhizal networks: 1,900 foggaras built over ten centuries now compete with boreholes draining the same aquifer.
Adrar Province demonstrates how underground infrastructure creates path dependence lasting centuries. At 254,000 km² (roughly the size of Wyoming), this Saharan province hosts over 1,900 foggaras—underground irrigation tunnels dating to the 11th century that channel groundwater across 2,000 km of subterranean galleries. Like mycorrhizal networks beneath a forest, these foggaras enabled oasis settlements to flourish where surface water is impossible, supporting 400,000 date palms in the Timimoun area alone.
The foggara system exemplifies community resource allocation: each farmer receives water proportional to their maintenance contribution, governed by the nékib and measured by the kayal using a leather hallafa gauge. This social technology was so successful that UNESCO recognized it as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2018. But modern boreholes now compete for the same aquifer, causing 1-2 foggaras to dry up annually—a case study in how new technology can disrupt established resource-sharing systems.
The province is now pivoting to industrial-scale agriculture: a $3.5 billion Qatari dairy partnership launched in 2024 covers 117,000 hectares, while a €420 million Italian wheat venture in Timimoun targets 170,000 tons of durum wheat annually. Meanwhile, Sonatrach is developing three gas processing facilities handling 14 million cubic meters daily. Adrar is transforming from traditional oasis economy to commodity extraction—the same pattern repeated across resource-rich regions, where billion-year aquifers are spent in decades.