Fachi

Fachi is an oasis surrounded by the sands of the Ténéré, beside the rocky outcrop known as Agram. Its inhabitants cultivate dates and extract salt, exchanging their produce for supplies brought by caravans. A fortified settlement, or ksar, sheltered the oasis population against raids; its high walls were built of blocks made from the local salt-bearing soil.

In the fifteenth century Mai Ali Gaji of Bornu took Fachi as his kingdom reasserted its power over the Kawar oases. His successor Idris Aloma also campaigned in the region. By the eighteenth century Tuareg forces had displaced Bornu's authority, and caravans from Aïr crossed the Ténéré through Fachi on their way to the salt pans of Bilma. Grain brought from the west could be exchanged for salt destined for markets farther south.