About us | Les Puits du Désert

Our mission

Our mission in one sentence: finance the projects decided and led by Nigerien teams in the Tidène valley.

No outsourcing. No expats. No "development missions" parachuted in. The projects are chosen locally by the communities and NGO Tidène. We finance, we support, we follow up — but we don't decide for them.

This method has a name: operational partnership. It's the sine qua non condition for projects that actually work — and it's also the reason for our longevity (20 years, no break with NGO Tidène).

Our values

Local partnership — NGO Tidène is the sole operator in Niger. No subcontracting, no French expats.
Transparency — Annual accounts published and audited. 85% field, 12% structure, 3% communications.
Pragmatism — No promises, only completed projects. No spin, only real figures.
Duration — 20 years with the same local partner. Consistency beats media buzz.
Autonomy — The ultimate goal is for communities to manage and maintain the works themselves.
Cultural respect — We don't try to impose our models. The solutions are Nigerien, not French.

Timeline

20 years, step by step.

2002

Forced landing in the Ténéré

Christel Pernet, during the 'Air Solidarité' humanitarian raid, makes a forced landing and meets the Tuareg chief Mohamed Ixa. The desire to help local Tuareg communities is born.

2004

LPDD + NGO Tidène created simultaneously

Christel Pernet creates the association Les Puits du Désert in France, Mohamed Ixa founds NGO Tidène in Niger. They sign a partnership agreement together — the start of a 20-year story.

2006

First community school: Lago

Construction of the first community school 'Lago', after 79 wells already built since 2004.

2009

World Bank selection

LPDD and NGO Tidène are selected by the World Bank for the 'Development Marketplace' program.

2012

World Water Forum

First participation in the World Water Forum. International advocacy on access to water in the Sahel.

2013

Security & Development program

First phase of the 'Security and Development' program in the Aïr massif: 203 wells rehabilitated. A major turning point in the region's history.

2019

Christel becomes Tambara of the sultan of Aïr

Christel Pernet becomes the first non-Tuareg woman to receive the customary title of Tambara, which gives her the responsibility to represent Tuareg women. Recognition of the work accomplished since the association's creation.

2022

9th World Water Forum, Dakar

Invited by the French Water Partnership, the association presents its 'Security and Development' project. The Niger example becomes a reference for Guillaume Benoit, president of the 'Water and Rural Development' group.

2023

345 wells + 16 cooperatives

Year-end 2023 totals: 345 wells (village, pastoral, market-garden, solar boreholes), 13 schools, 16 women's cooperatives, 720 children schooled full-time. More than 5,000 women impacted by the projects.

France team

The LPDD team.

A volunteer team, no salaried staff in France.

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Christel Pernet

President and founder

Founder of Les Ailes du Désert in 1998, she met Mohamed Ixa in 2002 during a forced landing in the Ténéré (Air Solidarité raid). From that meeting Les Puits du Désert was born, created in 2004. In 2019, she became Tambara of the sultan of Aïr — the first non-Tuareg woman to receive this customary Tuareg title.

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Armelle de Roton

Director

A partner of the association for nearly 15 years, she became director in early 2023. Based in Paris, she follows projects daily in liaison with NGO Tidène's team and leads communications and partner relations.

Governance

The board.

25 people elected at the annual general meeting, re-electable every 3 years. Plus a youth division of 3 students.

President

Christel PERNET

Vice-presidents

Alain DUPOUY
Jean Marc PAMBET
Nadine SIONNEAU
Jacques TCHENG

Treasurer

Philippe OSOUF

Members (18)

Bernard AUBONNET
Jean-Claude BELANGER
Laurence BOBILLIER
Myriam BINCAILLE
Stéphane BOUVIER
Mahé CHAON
Patrice DREVET
Calixte GAUTIER
Franck GIAZZI
Anne KARSENTY
Thierry NICOD
Emilie PATOU
Ingrid PERNET-DUPARC
René SCHILD
Jean Christophe SIBELYA
Jean THOMAS
Thierry BOUTROUX
Philippe BERNARD

Youth division (3 students) — names to come

Niger team

NGO Tidène, our local partner.

100% Nigerien. Natives of the Agadez region.

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Mohamed Ixa

President, NGO Tidène

Co-founder of NGO Tidène in 2004. Tuareg, a former Ténéré desert guide until 2007, he worked alongside Mano Dayak. Convinced that access to water is the trigger for all development, he has worked for twenty years to make his people's voice heard.

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Ibrahim Rissa Ikssa

Director, NGO Tidène

A child of the bush, sponsored as a kid by Les Puits du Désert. After a Master's degree in economics and management in Europe and the United States, he returned to Niger to take over NGO Tidène's leadership. He coordinates all field operations and manages a team of 8 people across the different intervention zones.