Phosphorus (P) plays a vital role in cells as well as in structural and energetic elements, which is involved in many biological processes, such as is used commonly for growth, production of energy, reaction with redox, fixation of symbiotic nitrogen, and metabolism of carbohydrates (George et al., 2012; Lazali et al., 2020). The result has shown that the synthesis of nucleic acids (DNA, RNA) and components of phospholipids controls stability and cell membrane properties (George et al., 2012; Lazali et al., 2020). It is involved in many other processes of key physiology and biology during growth and plant development. However, P-deficiency in soils around the world often limits plant growth and represents a significant obstacle to increasing agricultural production to meet global food demand (Duchene et al., 2017); which contributes to the excessive use of mineral fertilizers to improve soil and crop quality, but this intensive pratique of fertilizers especially the phosphate fertilization leads to many environmental and socio-economic problems such as pollution of aquatic ecosystems, and consumption of the main resource used for the synthesis of phosphatic fertilizers and considered to be the main responsible of the eutrophication of coastal ecosystems (Jia et al., 2020). Confronted with soil degradation and pollution, researchers need selection strategies to exploit resources of soil for the management of agroecosystems to optimize the nutrient acquisition of crops (Zhang et al., 2021). Regarding cultivation techniques, it is important to highlight the key elements for the development of plant yields, such currently require stricter management, which is based on the strategy of adapting inputs to meet the needs of the crop during its various stages of development. One of the proposed solutions is the introduction of a specific diversity within agroecosystems through the development of intercropping crops (Lalati et al., 2014; Zhang et al., 2021). For millennia, Asians, Americans, and Africans former attracted attention by intercropping to produce premium yields at the lowest inputs and its land-sparing potential (Li et al., 2020 a, b). Intercropping systems are widely used around the world, including maize-wheat (Mupangwa et al., 2021), bean fava maize (Xu et al., 2018), wheat-pea, and maize-soybean (Fu et al., 2019). Under unfavorable conditions, growing legumes and durum wheat have advantages for P uptake (Cheng et al., 2014; Gong et al., 2020). Additionally, legume is gaining attention for their impact on the sustainability of agriculture and their nutritional and health benefits. Also, it has been found in tropical and Mediterranean regions, that there is a low availability of phosphorus in the soil which is an important nutritional factor for limiting the production of legumes (Latati et al., 2014; Lazuli et al., 2020). Therefore, intercropping can potentially increase crop production and reduce consumption simultaneously (Rezaei-Chiyaned et al., 2021). Better use of resources such as sunlight, water, and nutrients; can help to reduce the need for supplemental irrigation and fertilization which can be expensive and damaging to the environment and nation (Ibrahim et al., 2019; Christie et al., 2020), thus can help to reduce soil erosion increase the yield of crops because of the beneficial effect of crop diversity (Rezaei-Chiyaned et al., 2021). Intercropping of cereals and legumes has been reported to conserve soil and water in some landscapes and provide stable yields (Melkamu, 2023). Smallholder farmers often grow cereal-legume intercrops due to legumes' ability to adapt to disintegrating soils and influence soil health (Begam et al., 2020). Legumes can fix nitrogen from the atmosphere in the soil which increases fertility and reduces the soil nutrients for replenishment (Meena et al., 2015b). Pulses are soil-improving crops with significant soil health benefits that must become an important part of agricultural systems (Dhakal et al., 2016). The soils of semi-arid and arid regions are usually low in P and pose agronomic problems and environmental. Hence, the objectives of the current study were i) to evaluate the impacts of intercropping legume (chickpea)-cereal (durum wheat) on the P availability ii) investigate the variation in enzymatic activity du sol (A-Phase et Phytase) that contribute to P availability iii) and evaluate the potential role of durum wheat–chickpea intercropping in increase biomass, yield and pH variation as compared to sole crops in a low P soil under arid ecosystems of southern Tunisia.