From Camels to Catfish, Algeria Boosts Fish Farming in the Sahara

Farming fish in the desert might sound counterintuitive but Algeria hopes to tap the huge aquifers beneath the Sahara - that covers about 80% of the country - as it seeks new ways to feed its growing population and diversify its oil-based economy.

Baby catfish swimming in a pond on a 15-hectare farm co-owned by Milouda Mohammed and his brothers in Touggourt, a town in the Sahara, in southern Algeria, April 12, 2018.

Camels on a 15-hectare farm co-owned by Milouda Mohammed and his brothers in Touggourt, a town in the Sahara, in southern Algeria, April 12, 2018.

Shrimps produced at the high-tech Shrimp Cultivation Research Center, a joint venture project between South Korea and Algeria, in Ouargla, southern Algeria, April 11, 2018.

Milouda Mohammed, 48, stands in front of a pond he had dug where he plants to raise the mature catfish in a 15-hectare farm he co-owns with his brothers in Touggourt, a town in the Sahara, in southern Algeria, April 12, 2018.

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