Through the creation of ecotourism tours, the association IRADA for the Development of Tozeur, Tunisia, has succeeded in influencing decisions such as the closure of an uncontrolled landfill, creating employment for several families and providing additional income for people working in the tourism sector. 

In Chott El Jérid, sustainable ecotourism and the development of the local economy pave the way for the protection of ecosystems

Through the creation of ecotourism trails, the IRADA Association for the Development of Tozeur, Tunisia has managed to influence decisions such as closing an uncontrolled discharge, to create the job for several families s and to allocate additional income for people working in the tourism sector. The recognition as a tourist municipality of the town of Degache is one of the main objectives of the project: an initiative supported by the Minister of Tourism and Crafts René Trabelsi. The diversity of Saharan potential: an asset for the promotion of ecotourism

As part of the PPI-OSCAN (Small Initiatives Program for Civil Society Organizations in North Africa), the IRADA association offers adequate solutions to the problems identified in this region, in particular the enhancement of the ecosystem and the boost of economic activity.

Through the establishment of a geo-tourism circuit that respects the region's environmental balances and helps reduce the effects of climate change. Indeed,  this circuit contributes to the improvement of the working and living conditions of the owners of the rest areas installed all along the road to Chott El Jérid because it allows them to make more sales: the owners of tourist relays and young graduates benefited from income and in all, 15 horse-drawn carriages and 8 local vendors received financial aid.

The NGO also promotes local, national and global environmental awareness in order to cope with environmental pollution and human overruns and to strengthen the attractiveness of the Chott Jerid region and the neighboring regions as a tourist site, thanks to the implementation of activities such as trekking, hiking and horse riding, etc.

It also provides for the establishment of cleaning and maintenance campaigns which will serve to sensitize the populations to the preservation of the environment and the reappropriation of their natural and cultural heritage.

Chott El Djérid, the cradle and oasis of civilization

In Tunisia,  Chott El Jérid is a vast salty depression located between the Cherb mountain range in the north and the desert in the south. Considered to be the largest in the chain of depressions between the steppe and the desert, it represents the cradle of oasis civilization. The region is even considered by BirdLife International to be an area of international importance for bird conservation. The site is registered on the exhaustive list of the world heritage of UNESCO.

But the threats hanging over Chott El Jérid have a direct impact on biodiversity and are mainly manifested through two phenomena:

• The increase and expansion of household and solid waste, particularly in areas close to urban concentrations (Tozeur governorate in the north and Kebelli governorate in the south). The cause:  An uncontrolled landfill operated by the municipality of Degache in the region of Sidi Bouhlel. The association is currently negotiating with the city council to relocate it.

"We have already succeeded in influencing the municipality to close an uncontrolled landfill near Chott Jérid" declare the members of the association.

This waste is a real source of nuisance and pollution for the landscape and for flora (halophilic vegetation, that is to say which grows in salty regions) and faunistic (wild boar, flamingo and white stork). In particular, they are made of a large amount of plastic and can be easily moved by the wind, which increases their risk of geographic expansion and nuisance.

• Growing pollution of the network In fact, located in a depressed topographical position, Chott El Jérid represents a natural base level for all the hydrographic arteries of southwestern Tunisia. But this hydrographic network is partially used for the evacuation of wastewater by ONAS (National Sanitation Office) and/or rainwater. The considerable water and solid inputs are often evacuated in Chott El Djérid without worrying about the possible biochemical impacts.

Chott El Jérid plays an essential role in the hydraulic regime of the entire neighboring region through its oases of Degache, Tozeur and Neha as well as the group of oases of Nefzaoua which are fed by water from underground artesian aquifers.

“This water supply was once done naturally through artesian sources - wells - but today it is done by sounding. The site constitutes a fundamental element of the oasis ecosystem because it forms the base level for oasis drainage water and has a definite influence on the quality of dates, which are widely consumed by the local population. Thus, pollution of these waters would represent an obstacle to the food security of the inhabitants of the region. "

It is in this region classified as a wetland in 2007 by the Ramsar convention and where the main activity is based on agriculture, salt production and cattle grazing,  that the members of the IRADA association have decided to put in place of ecotourism activities allowing the enhancement of the site.

Chott El Jérid is the largest saline plain - Tunisian sebkha - and the largest of the sebkhas in all of the Maghreb. The region is made up of a mixture of various natural landscapes with areas covered by salt, oases or dunes and covers an area of over 586 hectares.

However, in recent years, although it is a predominantly agricultural town, Degache has become the second delegation of the governorate with 21.4% of the total demographic weight. This implies significant changes that have strongly impacted biodiversity, such as the development of roads on the site, increasing urbanization, the extension of irrigated perimeters on its borders, industrial salt works and  other activities that threaten its landscapes and exceptional remains and leave uncertainties about the preservation of this ecosystem. 

An association closest to the local population

The IRADA association regularly holds meetings with civil society actors and the local community in order to develop their activities in the region and raise citizens' awareness of environmental protection. The locals are very involved in associative work and the development of these tourist routes will benefit them in the medium to long term, thanks to the creation of jobs.

The development of local farmers through an innovative farming system is also an important part of the association's project. The objective is to identify the needs of farmers in terms of planting new cultivars, to encourage them in terms of biodiversity rehabilitation and to make them aware of the rational management of irrigation water. She also works with women and young people.

"We involve women and young people in initiatives to preserve traditions and craft skills related to dates and date by-products and offer practical solutions to enhance the by-products of various cultivars so as to encourage farmers to use them. replant in their plots ” explain the members of the association.