Archives of the Geographical Studies of Development and Resource Use
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2001 - 3 Hein de Haas. Migration and agricultural
transformations in the oases of Morocco and Tunisia
Oases in the
Maghreb have been fundamentally transformed over the the past century following
their gradual integration into both the state's political structure and the
capitalist market economy. International migration in particular, it seems, has
increased the income of many oasis households, decreasing their dependence on
agriculture and enabling a greater diversity of economic activities. Such
changes have, of course, led to important transformations in the agricultural
realm, although there is widespread controversy over the nature of these changes
and the role of migration in them. Some authors, for example, claim that
migration has contributed positively to agricultural development. Most, however,
see it is as responsible for the demise of oasis agriculture. The IMAROM
research project (1998-2001) - whose main findings are presented in this paper -
was able to explore these issues through multidisciplinary fieldwork in Moroccan
(Todgha valley) and Tunisian (Mareth, Fatnassa) oases.
It was concluded,
in contrast to the prevalent pessimistic views, that oasis agriculture in the
Maghreb is not in fact declining but undergoing a spatially differentiated
transformation. Several oases are indeed suffering from the phasing-out of
traditional irrigation systems, but the majority are more intensively cultivated
than half a century ago, and the total irrigated surface has been extended
significantly. However, this has put increasing stress on water resources and
may threaten the long-term viability of oasis agriculture. Migration, it was
also concluded, has generally contributed to agricultural transformation in a
positive way as international migrant households often show a relatively high
willingness to invest in agriculture. Nevertheless, the development potential of
migration has not yet been fully realised due to a number of social, economic,
legal, institutional, and infrastructural obstacles.
Author:
Hein de Haas is a researcher at the Centre for International Development
Issues Nijmegen (cidin), University of Nijmegen (The Netherlands). He studied
human geography at the University of Amsterdam and has been involved in research
on migration and development in Morocco and Tunisia since 1993. Between 1998 and
2001, the author coordinated the IMAROM (Interaction between Migration, Land and
Water Management and Resource Exploitation in the Oases of the Maghreb) project
on behalf of the agids research institute, University of Amsterdam. In recent
years he has conducted extensive fieldwork in Morocco.
E-mail: h.dehaas@remove-this.maw.kun.nl