The lake, Lac du Bam is part of the upper reaches of the southward-flowing Volta system, and its presence permits year-round lakeshore cultivation in an otherwise arid climate.

Townspeople have irrigated plots close to the lake shore, but the presence of standing water means the malaria risk is high.

Aside from tropical fruits, green beans are produced here, usually supplying the winter market in Paris when flights form Ouagadougou permit this.

While government buildings house the regional outposts of several ministries and organisations (their employees have regular salaries) the majority of the urban population run small businesses or are traders.

In the late 1980s, after devastating droughts began to wane, the town started to attract interest from international development organisations, the largest of which was PATECORE, funded by the German aid agency GTZ and concentrating on soil conservation in 240 outlying villages.