Continuing the trajectory of a government-subsidized initiative for small-scale farmers initiated a few years prior, a consortium of date farms in Southern Tunisia invested in 16 NPI water tanks to facilitate the irrigation of date palms. Spanning a stretch of 2,500 hectares along the border with Algeria, this area is situated in a remote area in the Northern Sahara desert.
In the early 1970s, a large underground aquifer was found in this Tunisian region, leading to the establishment of numerous oases to promote agricultural development. Within this expanse, a 2,500-hectare strip was dedicated to cultivating crops, prominently featuring date palms.
A sophisticated irrigation system, fueled by a centralized water storage facility comprised of numerous metal water tanks, sustains the crops and thousands of palm trees. Specifically, relatively low tanks with a wide diameter were selected—16 tanks measuring 19.14 by 1.52 meters each. The 41 water tanks, implemented across both phases of this project, contribute to an annual date production of approximately 20,000 tonnes.
