Karoo were very large and the family group moved from one part to the other. Their only domestic animals were dogs. The Bantu people to the east of the Great Karoo did not occupy this arid region due to the scarce rainfall which prevented the farming of cattle. In 1854, Daniel Halladay invented the multibladed windpump (windmill) in the USA. It was perfected in 1883, and soon South Africa (and elsewhere) produced them in large numbers. These windpumps transformed the Great Karoo, making permanent settlement and stock farming (predominantly sheep) possible over large parts of the Karoo for the first time.
Central Desert Region councillors were held on 25 October 2008. The President (Mayor) of the Central Desert Regional Council is Adrian Dixon and the Deputy President is Norbert Jampijinpa Patrick. Much of the council's area had been unincorporated, and several Community Government Councils were merged into the Central Desert Region. These were: Changes to the NT Local Government Legislation in 2013 changed the names of Shire to Regional Councils and thus the Central Desert Shire became the Central Desert Regional Council with effect from 1 January 2014. The Central Desert Regional Council is divided into 4 wards, which is governed by 12 councillors