The town of Tindouf was built near an isolated Saharanoasis in 1852 by members of the Tajakant tribe, but sacked and destroyed by the Reguibat, another Sahrawi tribe in 1895, and the Tajakant tribe were expelled from the region. It remained deserted until French troops arrived in the area in 1934. Since Algerian independence in 1962, the town has been deliberately built up, partly because of its importance as a last outpost before the Moroccan, Sahrawi and Mauritanian borders. In 1963, the area was the scene of fighting between Algerian and Moroccan forces laying claim to western Algeria, in the Sand War. The region has since been heavily militarized, increasing its relevance. Since the mid-70s, the Tindouf region served as base for the Polisario Front, a Sahrawi nationalist organization fighting for Western Sahara's independence. The Polisario Front is headquartered in self-administered refugee camps south of the city, which filled up as Moroccan and Mauritanian forces conquered Western Sahara in 1975. During the war years of 1975–1990, Polisario forces struck in Western Sahara, Mauritania and southern Morocco, using the Tindouf region as their rear base area, with Algerian protection and support. Since 1990 the area has been quiet, although the refugee community remains in Algeria, pending a UN-sponsored peace process and a referendum on independence.
Demographics
Tindouf has a population of 47,965, though this figure is of questionable authenticity, given the fact that the exact number is a sensitive issue due to the Sahrawi refugees, who are excluded from the estimate.
Year
Population
1977
6,044
1987
13,084
1998
32,004
2008
45,966
2010
47,965–59,898
Climate
Tindouf has a hot desert climate, with extremely hot summers and very warm winters. There is very little rain for most of the year, generally concentrated in February and —associated with the West African Monsoon— by September–October. The region can be hit by rare events of heavy rain, such as in February 2006 or October 2015. Summer daytime temperatures commonly approach 45 °C with blazing sunshine, while winter nighttime temperatures can sometimes drop to 5 °C or less.
Education
6.1% of the population has a tertiary education, and another 18.8% has completed secondary education. The overall literacy rate is 75.0%, and is 79.7% among males and 70.1% among females.
