El Hadjira is a town and commune, and capital of El Hadjira District, in

Ouargla Province Ouargla or Warqla ( ar, ولاية ورقلة) is a province ('' wilaya'') in eastern Algeria. Its capital is Ouargla. Other localities include Hassi Ben Abdellah and Hassi Messaoud. It contains the Issaouane Erg desert. History In the past Ouar ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

. According to the 2008 census it has a population of 14,965, up from 12,781 in 1998, and an annual population growth rate of 1.6%.

Geography

El Hadjira lies about halfway between the two main cities in the province,

Touggourt Touggourt ( ar, ﺗﻗﺮت or تڤرت; ber, ⵜⵓⴳⵓⵔⵜ, Tugurt, lit=the gateway or 'the gate') is a city and commune, former sultanate and capital of Touggourt District, in Touggourt Province, Algeria, built next to an oasis in the S ...

and

Ouargla Ouargla (Berber: Wargrən, ar, ورقلة) is the capital city of Ouargla Province in the Sahara Desert in southern Algeria. It has a flourishing petroleum industry and hosts one of Algeria's universities, the University of Ouargla. The commune o ...

. Vegetation (mostly consisting of

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music * Palm (b ...

groves in the area) is supported by

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidat ...

, as most of the surface is usually dry. The landscape in the area is a mix of barren rocky plains and

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

Climate

Like other towns in the Sahara, El Hadjira has a hot

desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

, with very hot summers and mild winters, and little precipitation year-round. Temperatures may reach as high as in summer and as low as in winter. Strong wind is common, and in the winter fog may also occur.

Economy

The main economic focus of the area is agriculture, particularly the cultivation of

date palms ''Phoenix dactylifera'', commonly known as date or date palm, is a flowering plant species in the palm family, Arecaceae, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit called dates. The species is widely cultivated across northern Africa, the Middle Ea ...

; 3576 hectares of land are currently used for this purpose, including an estimated 95,030 palms. The rearing of livestock is also practiced, with an estimated 20364 goats, 11080 sheep and 1605 camels. Tourism is also important to the area; local tourist attractions include the desert landscape and local architecture, and archaeological sites. Aside from the above, there is very little industry in El Hadjira, mainly consisting of construction work, which provides about 300 jobs. Local reservoirs contain mud and gypsum used to construct the town's buildings.

Transportation

El Hadjira is on the provincial road W33 which connects the N3 highway to the east to El Allia and

El Guerrara El Guerrara ( ar, القرارة) (also written al-Qarārah or Guerara) is a town and commune, coextensive with El Guerrara District, in Ghardaïa Province, Algeria. According to the 2008 census it has a population of 59,514, up from 48,313 in 1 ...

(in Ghardaia Province) to the west. The N3 then connects to

to the north and

Hassi Messaoud Hassi Messaoud ( ar, حاسي مسعود) is a town in Ouargla Province, eastern Algeria, located southeast of Ouargla. As of 2008 it had a population of 45,147 people, up from 40,360 in 1998, and an annual population growth rate of 1.1%, the lo ...

to the south. Another local road leads south to

N'Goussa N'Goussa ( ar, ﻧﻘﻮﺳﺔ) is a town and commune, coextensive with the district of the same name, in Ouargla Province, Algeria. Some of its inhabitants speak the Ouargli language. As of 2008, the population of the town was 19,039, up fr ...

and the provincial capital

Localities

The commune is composed of 24 localities: * El Hadjira-centre * Lagraf * Rachedi * El Mir * Debidibi * Mehada * El Metguedema * Zit * Hassi Maamar * Guedachi * El Mekhfi * Oued N'Sa * El Maleh * Louguila * Erg Edam * Aïn Okèche * Hassi Chouli * Aïn Sahn * Chahna * El Alandaya * Dhoukkara * Baghdad * Aïn Bosmaha * Aïn Benithour

References

Neighbouring towns and cities

{{coord, 32, 37, N, 5, 31, E, display=title, region:DZ_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Communes of Ouargla Province