Baba Zoo

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Location of Baba Zoo in Niger

Zoo Baba (also Zobaba ) is an oasis in the municipality of Bilma in Niger . There is an artesian well with potable water and date palm groves . The Dakar Rally has passed through Baba Zoo several times in the past.

location

The oasis is located in the east of the country in the Ténéré desert , about 50 kilometers south of the municipal capital Bilma at the southern end of the Kaouar Mountains. To the south lies the Great Erg of Bilma . The neighboring oasis of Dibella is deserted, Agadem is a five-day walk away. Baba Zoo is located on the former slave road that led from Borno in Nigeria to Libya .

flora

Date and dump palms grow in Baba Zoo , each belonging to a family and watered by their relatives. In addition, tomatoes , gombo and mint are grown in three beds . Grass doesn't grow here, which is why the camels have to graze in Dibella.

Residents

In Zoo Baba several live Tubu - nomadic families . The population at the 1988 census was 92 people in 21 households. In 2000, 125 people lived here, 100 of whom were outside. At the 2001 census there were 85 residents in 19 households. At the 2012 census, the village had 142 inhabitants who lived in 34 households.

Way of life

According to a travel report by Michael Stührenberg in 2001, the village consists of huts made of palm fronds and there is no paved road. Five or six huts belong to one family and are at a great distance from the neighboring family. The residents feed mainly on millet gruel, and in times of drought also on duma powder. The remaining villagers, who do not move about with the camel herds, only deal with food preparation and watering. After the date harvest in July and August, with everyone helping out, camel caravans take the harvest to Birnin Kazoé in the south, 15 days' walk away , where a cup of dates is exchanged for a cup of millet . When they return in September, a 200-liter barrel is filled with the millet they have purchased. This is the storage space for the coming year, with the normal daily ration being 250 g per person. In the event of an attack, the residents take refuge on a somewhat fortified steep slope to the north.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gerhard Göttler: Sahara . DuMont, Cologne 2002, p. 372 .
  2. ↑ a b c GEO 9/2001, Michael Stührenberg: From survival beyond the world, p. 132 ff.
  3. ↑ Recensement Général de la Population 1988: Répertoire National des Villages du Niger . Bureau Central de Recensement, Ministère du Plan, République du Niger, Niamey March 1991, p. 34 ( ceped.org [PDF; accessed January 31, 2018]). www.ceped.org ( Memento of the original dated January 31, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ceped.org
  4. ^ Répertoire National des Communes (RENACOM). (RAR file) Institut National de la Statistique, accessed November 8, 2010 (French).
  5. ↑ Répertoire National des localites (ReNaLoc). Institut National de la Statistique, République du Niger, July 2014, accessed on 7 August 2015 (RAR, French).

Coordinates: 18 ° 14 '  N , 13 ° 3'  E