Iran launches project to build permanent
tent sites for nomads

The Iranian government has launched a major
project to build concrete sites where nomads can use as permanent dwellings to
set up their Black Tents on them, the head of the Nomads Affairs Organization
said.

“Today, a safe and hygienic refuge is among
the basic needs of our nomads across the country,” Abbas Papizadeh said last
week at the groundbreaking ceremony of the project in Dezful, Iran's
southwestern province of Khuzestan.

He added, “To help the nomads to meet their
needs, the Nomads Affairs Organization- in cooperation with Natural Resources
and Watershed Management Organization, will build permanent concrete sites for
them so that they can use them during their seasonal migrations”.

Papizadeh said the sites will be equipped
with necessary gear to protect nomads and their families from natural hazards.

The majority of the nomads in Iran use
‘Black Tent’ as their mobile housing when they move from place to place in
their seasonal migrations (transhumance). Black tents are woven by nomad women
from the hair of black goats.

There are over 1.5 million nomads in Iran
today. Nomads generally are on the move in search of pasture and water for
cattle, set up tents, and nurture livestock. Solar panels generate enough power
to help families meet their needs like charging emergency lights and cell
phones and using the TV in the deserts and plains.

Iranian nomads live in Fars,
Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari, Khuzestan, Isfahan, and some other provinces. They
usually change between their winter quarters in steppes (Qishlaq or warmer
areas) and summer quarters in green mountainous regions (Yeylaq or cooler
countryside).