Niger · NE

Tabalakh

Tabalak is a rural commune and village in Niger's Tahoua region, best known for Lake Tabalak (La Mare de Tabalak), a crucial freshwater wetland that sustains life in an otherwise arid landscape. Designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 2005, this remarkable lake sits at the climatic crossroads between the Sahara Desert to the north and the Sahel to the south, serving as a lifeline for both people and wildlife. The wetland's surface area swells from about 50 hectares at the end of the dry season to nearly 1,000 hectares after the June-to-September rains, transforming a thread-shaped reservoir into a verdant oasis surrounded by sand dunes and plateaus. Around 3,500 people live directly beside the lake, with approximately 42,000 across the wider landscape, most of them Tuareg and Hausa communities whose livelihoods depend on fishing, irrigated agriculture, and livestock herding.