Two tribes dominate this region: the Dagana, nomadic herders, in the interior and the Kouri Kalé on the shores and islands of the western part of the lake.

They were later forced to move to the Yao region where they created a small Sultanate and settled into an agricultural lifestyle, although they are said to be good warriors.

[7] In recent years the town and region has been "invaded" from the north by Libyan importers, as have other arid and semi-arid parts of northern Chad.

[8] The cattle market, once important, has steadily declined due to the advance of the desert and political instability in the area around the shrinking Lake Chad.

[citation needed] The road is intended to facilitate access to a new oil refinery that is being built at Djermaya to the north of the capital.