The foggara is a traditional hydraulic system well-known around the world, particularly in arid regions. The knowledge and skills of the foggaras, or water bailiffs, are studied in the ksours (village communities) of Touat and Tidikelt, Algeria.
The oasis population of the Algerian Sahara continues to rely heavily on foggaras. In addition to calculating water shares, the water measurers repair distribution combs and conduct water to the channels. The foggara is an ingenious but immutable irrigation system that may not be able to cope with the radical changes in socioeconomics and the environment of the 20th and 21st centuries.
There are several categories of social actors and knowledge bearers connected to every foggara, including owners, manual workers, accountants, and water measurers, but the knowledge of the water measurers appears to be in danger. The water measurers are an important part of the Saharan ksour's way of life since they manage a domain vital to their survival.
Both intellect and manual skills are important for the community, and they can be used continuously. There is currently a lack of communication between youth and their elders, and many factors are disrupting the proper functioning of the foggara, such as the changes the central government is making to ownership relations, the effects of modernization and urbanization, and the lack of consideration of steps that need to be taken to ensure knowledge is transmitted.
This lack of activity is directly related to the advanced age of water measurers, which indicates that there are not enough new practitioners entering the field. Even so, the flow is on the rise and one can't predict when it will stabilize. Ksourians are concerned about this new situation characterized by floods. Part of the palm grove is underwater after the water flooded the sebkha.
Currently, there are 19 foggaras in the operation of 33 dug over the past ten centuries. These upwellings are considered a positive development. The phenomenon must be taken seriously, however. All foggaras with a drying issue can be considered in this case. In the foggaras catchment area, the problem can be solved by the remoteness of the wells.
Throughout this study, the importance of institutions was highlighted as a means of adapting and preserving the foggara's living character. It is important to adapt the physical infrastructure and institutions governing the use of foggaras to maintain collective action and keep the foggaras flowing in the future.