Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne () is a town and commune in Abadla District,

Béchar Province Béchar () is a Provinces of Algeria, province ''(Wilayah, wilaya)'' in Algeria, located on the border with Morocco in the Algerian Desert, Algerian Sahara. It is the second least-densely populated province in Algeria, with a population of 353591 ...

, in western

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. According to the 2008 census its population is 3,091, down from 3,133 in 1998, with an annual growth rate of -0.1%. The commune covers an area of .

Etymology

The town is named after

Houari Boumediene Houari is a given name and surname. It may refer to: Persons Given name *Houari Boumédiène, also transcribed Boumediene, Boumedienne etc. (1932–1978), served as Chairman of the Revolutionary Council of Algeria from 19 June 1965 until 12 Decembe ...

, a former president of Algeria.

Geography

Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne lies at an elevation of 572m to the west of the Oued Guir, an intermittent

wadi Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet (ephemerality, ephemeral) Stream bed, riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portion ...

, and just south of the town of Abadla. From here through Abadla to Erg Ferradj is the site of an extensive 3000 hectare

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 **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...

plantation.

Climate

Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne 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 extremely hot summers and cool winters, and very little precipitation throughout the year.

Economy

Agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

is the main industry in Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne. The commune has a total of of

arable land Arable land (from the , "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the purposes of a ...

, of which is

irrigated Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has be ...

. There are a total of 41,850 date palms planted in the commune. As of 2009 there were 791

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

, 2,986

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...

s, 1,636

camel A camel (from and () from Ancient Semitic: ''gāmāl'') is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. Camels have long been domesticated and, as livestock, they provid ...

s, and 10

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...

. There were also 14,600

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

s in 6 buildings.

Infrastructure and housing

100% of Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne's population is connected to drinking water, 99% is connected to the sewerage system, and 83% (including 555 buildings) have access to electricity. There are no fuel service stations in the town; the nearest is in Abadla. Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne has a total of 759 houses, of which 511 are occupied, giving an occupation rate of 6.0 inhabitants per occupied building.

Transportation

Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne is on the N6 national highway between Béchar to the northeast and Adrar to the southeast. The town of Abadla is on the highway to the north, while to the south the towns of Igli, Béni Abbès and others can be accessed. The N50 highway leaves the N6 to the west just to the north of Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne; it eventually leads to

Tindouf Tindouf () is the main town, and a Communes of Algeria, commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Algeria–Mauritania border, Mauritanian, Algeria–Western Sahara border, Western Saharan and Algeria–Morocco border, Moroccan borders. Th ...

, passing Hamaguir and Tinfouchy on the way. Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne is from Abadla, and from the provincial capital, Béchar. There is a total length of of roads in the commune.

Education

There are 2 elementary schools, with 24 classrooms including 14 in use. There are a total of 732 school students. 3.6% of the population has a tertiary education, and another 13.8% has competed secondary education. The overall literacy rate is 63.9%, and is 70.2% among males and 57.7% among females. The rate for males is the lowest in the province, and the rates overall and for females are the second lowest.

Health

Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne has a hospital, which is a central focus of healthcare for Abadla district and Tabelbala. There are also a polyclinic, a room care facility, and a medical operating theatre.

Religion

Méchraâ Houari Boumédienne has 2 operational mosques.

References

Neighbouring towns and cities

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mechraa Haouri Boumedienne Communes of Béchar Province Cities in Algeria