What if there was a river-valley civilization in Tunisia

I’m very new here, so I’m not sure how everything works yet, but I have been thinking about this scenario for a personal project of mine.

In this alternate history, there is a river running from mainland Africa to present day Tunisia. This makes the area very fertile for farming and attracts people to settle down on the riverside.

In time a river-valley civilization would be born, but my question is what would you think it be like and how would this affect all the other cultures in North-Africa as well?

And as a wollow-up I wonder in what circumstances could this civilization become like some of the European countries if it were to be conquered by Rome?
 
You may not get a River Valley situation naturally (without it being ASB I'm afraid), but I've recently taken to heart the idea of a Water-Managing civilisation. So whilst there are the smaller rivers in Tunisia, there are a number of aquifers. Considering the concept of ground-water isn't too advanced, Tunisia could have a civilisation that works around sourcing large quantities of water from underground. Arguably dangerous work, but having smaller towns make the active decision to raise water from aquifers could work.

So, PoD - water/earth/fertility cult emerges in Tunisia - with a particular religious admiration for green spots in the desert, leading to temples/communes in those locations (not just around rivers). After someone develops Qanats for getting water out from under the mountains, someone could have the bright idea to copy India and have those massive wells, digging down into the ground to source groundwater. (Perhaps this could be the equivalent of a burial tomb - being sealed into the walls of these wells, or even the floor could be a sign of affluence).

Now we have communities actively working to draw water from aquifers (since it is quite early in history, I don't expect that it'll be faster than the waters replenish - but that is a risk), we can improve the process. Closed-above ground cisterns/water towers where water is raised in buckets (perhaps using livestock or wind power in time).

Throw in microclimatology, i.e. where is it wet, it tends to rain, and you've already shifted the water cycle in the area in a small way. Add in overflow systems for when you have wind-power, or over-eager livestock, and you've basically got livestock-powered automated irrigation systems.

Don't get me wrong, it is a lot of work, and I'm not talking about great aqueducts, I'm talking stone chambers filled with water and stone-clad open-air (or even stone-roofed) wells.

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Heck, I'm probably overcomplicating this, but water management alongside the Medjerda river (i.e. where Utica, Tunis and Carthage were), is a start. It could be that an early civilisation here builds the aforementioned cult, which later spreads, and the further out it goes, the more it realises the 'Goddesses blessing' is needed. I.e. Fresh water.
 
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