Iraq's Basra under pressure from rural exodus due to desertification

FOCUS © FRANCE 24

Repeated droughts experienced by Iraq for the past three years are accentuating the rural exodus underway throughout the country. No longer able to work on their land due to rapid desertification, farmers are moving to the cities. In oil-rich Basra, the country's economic powerhouse, these farmers end up in slums, often going without basic services. Basra is officially home to two million people, but more than 350,000 people now live in informal settlements, putting the city under pressure. Our correspondents report.