Located in the central Sahara, in Eastern Algeria, this vast plateau, known in Berber as Tassili, spans 72,000 km2. With an average elevation of 1500 meters, the plateau culminates in a sheer cliff that rises 500 meters and stretches 700 kilometers long, forming a natural fortress with access limited to a few deep canyons.
Inside, there exists a network of ravines, with some areas featuring ponds and streams that flow year-round, bordered by lush vegetation. 
These oases are home to groups of Tuareg people who have settled here for many years. Other areas of the plateau are inhabited by nomadic Tuareg from the Ajjer region. Due to droughts and dwindling plant resources, these populations are increasingly adopting a sedentary lifestyle, posing threats to the fragile ecological balance.
Tassili N’Ajjer is renowned for its thousands of rock paintings and engravings, making it the largest outdoor prehistoric museum in the world. These Neolithic artifacts (dating from 6000 to 2000 BC) and various other traces indicate human presence in a period characterized by less arid conditions and a richer diversity of flora and fauna.
This site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1982 due to its cultural and natural significance. A management plan for the Tassili N’Ajjer plateau is currently being supported by UNESCO within the framework of the Convention.
Rock Paintings and Engravings
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