How Libya Built Brand-New Rivers Across the Sahara

Libya, situated in North Africa, has been embroiled in a prolonged period of civil strife and violence for much of the past decade, resulting in the loss of tens of thousands of lives. Even after the most recent civil war ended with a ceasefire agreement two years ago, numerous governments, including the U.S., UK, EU, Canada, and Australia, continue to issue a level four travel advisory, strongly cautioning their citizens against traveling to Libya due to the ongoing dangers and turmoil.

However, this discussion will not delve into these well-known issues. Instead, the focus will shift to a remarkable and relatively obscure achievement within Libya – an extraordinary feat of macro engineering that has largely evaded Western attention.

Libya's geographical landscape is predominantly arid, with over 90 percent of its territory comprising harsh and uninhabitable desert regions. Rainfall is infrequent and sporadic, with certain areas experiencing decades-long droughts. Remarkably, Libya is the sole African country, and one of the few globally, without any natural rivers for freshwater supply. This scarcity of water resources renders Libya among the most parched and desolate places on Earth, making the sustenance of a thriving civilization exceedingly challenging.

The few habitable zones in Libya lie within a narrow coastal strip where rainfall is sufficient to sustain life. Major cities, including the capital Tripoli in the northwest and Benghazi in the northeast, are situated here. Consequently, the vast majority of Libya's population, around 90 percent, resides within this narrow region, while much of the country remains uninhabitable wasteland. In essence, Libya's actual functional territory, in terms of civilization, is more akin to the size of Moldova, significantly smaller than its total land area.

Libya's fortunes transformed dramatically in 1956 when it discovered vast oil reserves, a treasure trove that had been concealed beneath its desolate expanses. These oil reserves, the largest on the African continent and among the world's top ten, not only brought unprecedented wealth but also a surge in population. Within two decades, Libya's populace more than doubled, largely concentrated in the habitable north.

However, this population growth rekindled an age-old challenge – the scarcity of water. Seeking solutions, Libya explored three options, each beset with challenges. Desalination, while effective, was exorbitantly expensive. Importing freshwater by ship or pipeline was economically and politically unfavorable, as it rendered Libya dependent on foreign sources.

Fortuitously, during oil exploration efforts, Libya stumbled upon a hidden treasure beneath its arid surface – fossil water stored in aquifers, remnants of a lush past during the last Ice Age. Over tens of thousands of years, rainfall had accumulated underground, forming vast reservoirs. While not renewable, these aquifers held massive amounts of irreplaceable freshwater. The Libyans' audacious plan emerged – to harness this ancient water source and redirect it to their growing cities.

Initiating in 1984, the Great Man-Made River Project was born – an awe-inspiring endeavor involving a sprawling network of underground pipelines and pumps. This engineering marvel would channel water from the southern aquifers to northern cities, supplying over 2.4 cubic kilometers of fresh water annually. By 2009, the project reached its third phase, providing a lifeline to Libya's citizens and mitigating the water crisis.

However, the project's completion stalled amid the political upheaval sparked by the Arab Spring, leading to the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi's regime. The ensuing chaos and civil conflict disrupted further construction, leaving the project's final phases unfinished. The Great Man-Made River, an ambitious testament to human ingenuity, remains incomplete, waiting for a more stable future to continue.

Libya's trajectory underscores significant questions about poverty and prosperity. Despite immense oil wealth, Libya's average income lags far behind developed nations. These disparities, while smaller than some of the world's poorest countries, raise critical inquiries about the factors constraining Libya's progress and whether such challenges can be overcome.

These inquiries echo the central themes of "Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty," a thought-provoking book published in 2013. As the Arab Spring swept through Libya, this work analyzed the complex dynamics behind nations' success or failure, shedding light on the intricate interplay of institutions, politics, and economics that shape societies' destinies.