Boukaïs

Boukaïs (Arabic: ﻳﺲ ﺑﻮﻗﺎ‎) is a town and commune in Lahmar District, Béchar Province, in western Algeria. According to the 2008 census its population is 970,[2] up from 890 in 1998,[3] and its annual population growth rate is 0.9%.[2] The commune covers an area of 1,760 square kilometres (680 sq mi).[1]

Boukaïs ﻳﺲ ﺑﻮﻗﺎ
Commune and town
Location of Boukaïs commune within Béchar Province
Boukaïs Location of Boukaïs within Algeria
Coordinates: 31°55′24″N 2°27′49″W
Country	Algeria
Province	Béchar Province
District	Lahmar District
Area [1]
• Total	1,760 km^2 (680 sq mi)
Elevation	851 m (2,792 ft)
Population  (2008)[2]
• Total	970
• Density	0.55/km^2 (1.4/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)

Geography

Boukaïs lies at an elevation of 851 metres (2,792 ft) on a rocky plain at the edge of a region of higher, darkly colored rocky hills. There is an even higher range of lightly colored hills to the west. The Oued Ihrassa passes by the town to the east; water from this river is used to irrigate the palm grove found to the southwest of the town.

Climate

Boukaïs has a hot desert climate, with very hot summers and cool winters, and low precipitation throughout the year, especially in summer.

Climate data for Boukaïs
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	15.3 (59.5)	18.4 (65.1)	21.4 (70.5)	25.8 (78.4)	30.8 (87.4)	34.6 (94.3)	39.3 (102.7)	38.3 (100.9)	33.2 (91.8)	26.6 (79.9)	19.7 (67.5)	15.4 (59.7)	26.6 (79.8)
Daily mean °C (°F)	8.6 (47.5)	11.3 (52.3)	14.5 (58.1)	18.6 (65.5)	23.6 (74.5)	27.4 (81.3)	31.6 (88.9)	31 (88)	26.2 (79.2)	20.0 (68.0)	13.5 (56.3)	9.2 (48.6)	19.6 (67.4)
Average low °C (°F)	2.0 (35.6)	4.3 (39.7)	7.7 (45.9)	11.4 (52.5)	16.4 (61.5)	20.3 (68.5)	24.0 (75.2)	23.8 (74.8)	19.3 (66.7)	13.5 (56.3)	7.4 (45.3)	2.6 (36.7)	12.7 (54.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	13 (0.5)	12 (0.5)	13 (0.5)	12 (0.5)	8 (0.3)	4 (0.2)	2 (0.1)	4 (0.2)	10 (0.4)	16 (0.6)	17 (0.7)	16 (0.6)	127 (5.1)
Source: climate-data.org[4]

Economy

Agriculture is a significant industry in Boukaïs. The commune has a total of 300 hectares (740 acres) of arable land, of which 110 hectares (270 acres) is irrigated.[5] There are a total of 19,000 date palms planted in the commune.[6] As of 2009 there were 1,613 sheep, 1,815 goats, 613 camels, and 8 cattle.[7]

Infrastructure and housing

100% of Boukaïs's population is connected to drinking water,[8] 99% is connected to the sewerage system,[9] and 91% (including 210 buildings) have access to electricity.[10] There is no fuel service stations in the town.[11]

Boukaïs has a total of 239 houses, of which 163 are occupied, giving an occupation rate of 6.0 inhabitants per occupied building.[12]

Transportation

A local road connects the town to Lahmar, 30 kilometres (19 mi) to the east, and then continues south to the provincial capital Béchar, 50 kilometres (31 mi) from Boukaïs.[13]

There is a total length of 11.3 kilometres (7.0 mi) of roads in the commune.[14]

Education

There is one elementary school, with 8 classrooms including 5 in use.[15] There are a total of 97 elementary and middle school students; secondary school students attend education in Lahmar.[16]

6.0% of the population has a tertiary education, and another 20.6% has competed secondary education.[17] The overall literacy rate is 79.7%, and is 86.7% among males and 73.2% among females.[18]

Health

Boukaïs only has one room care facility; for medical treatment residents must travel to a clinic in Lahmar or the hospital in Béchar.[19]

Religion

Boukaïs has one operational mosque, with another one under construction.[20]

Localities

The commune is composed of just one locality – the town of Boukaïs itself.[21]

References

1. "Population, Area and Density per Commune" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
2. "Population: Béchar Wilaya" (PDF) (in French). Office National des Statistiques Algérie. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
3. "Algeria Communes". Statoids. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
4. "Climate data for: Boukais". climate-data.org. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
5. "Distribution of Agricultural Land" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
6. "Plant Productions" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
7. "Animal Production" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
8. "Drinking Water" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
9. "Sewerage Networks" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
10. "Electrification" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
11. "Fuel Distribution" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
12. "Housing" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
13. "Presentation" (in French). Site Officiel de la Wilaya de Béchar. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2013.
14. "Density Kilometres" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
15. "School Infrastructure" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
16. "Number of Pupils" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
17. "Structure relative de la population résidente des ménages ordinaires et collectifs âgée de 6 ans et plus selon le niveau d'instruction et la commune de résidence" (PDF) (in French). Office National des Statistiques Algérie. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
18. "Taux d'analphabétisme et taux d'alphabétisation de la population âgée de 15 ans et plus, selon le sexe et la commune de résidence " (PDF) (in French). Office National des Statistiques Algérie. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 May 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
19. "Health Facilities by Commune" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
20. "Mosques and Koranic Rooms" (in French). Official Website of the Wilaya of Bechar. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
21. "Décret n° 84-365, fixant la composition, la consistance et les limites territoriale des communes. Wilaya d'El Oued" (PDF) (in French). Journal officiel de la République Algérienne. 19 December 1984. p. 1489. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 March 2013 or before. Retrieved 2 March 2013. Check date values in: |archivedate= (help)

Neighbouring towns and cities