Arlit, The Second Paris

Back in the 1970s, the desert frontier town of Arlit in Northern Niger was the Eldorado of the region due to the uranium mining operation of the French company Cogema which employed 25 thousand people. Labelled the Second Paris, Arlit was then a promise of adventure, highlife and a brighter future. The Touareg rebellion in the early 1980s and the French company’s withdrawal turned Arlit into a ghost town, while the radioactive poisoning of the population is still going on. The city has turned into a stopping off point for illegal immigrants heading to the Promised Continent Europe. Coming from all over Africa, they find themselves stuck in this dusty, dreary, lethargic place. However, the surprising ethnic mix, which has resulted from the continuous inter-African migration, makes it a unique and fantastic place. (DOK.fest München)