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Algeria Index
Great Mosque and University of Islamic Studies, Constantine
Courtesy Embassy of Algeria, Washington
School childeren, Algiers
Courtesy Anthony Toth and Middle East Report
The French colonial education imposed on Algeria was designed
primarily to meet the needs of the European population and to
perpetuate the European cultural pattern. A large majority of the
students were children of the colonists. French was the language
of instruction, and Arabic, when taught, was offered as an
optional foreign language.
Segregated schooling of French and Algerian children was
abolished in 1949, and increases in Muslim enrollments were
scheduled in the comprehensive 1954 Constantine Plan to improve
Muslim living conditions. On the eve of independence, however,
the European-oriented curricula were still taught exclusively in
French, and less than one-third of school-age Muslim children
were enrolled in schools at the primary level. At the secondary
and university levels, only 30 percent and 10 percent of the
students, respectively, were Algerians.
At the beginning of the 1963 school year, the education
system was in complete disarray, and enrollments in schools at
all levels totaled only 850,000. In the years immediately
following, teachers were trained hastily or recruited abroad;
classrooms were improvised, many in the vacated homes of former
French residents. Attendance climbed to 1.5 million in 1967, to
nearly 3 million by 1975, and to 6.5 million in 1991-92 (see
table 2, Appendix).
At the time of independence in 1962, the Algerian government
inherited the remnants of an education system focused on European
content and conducted in a foreign language by foreign teachers.
Algerian authorities set out to redesign the system to make it
more suited to the needs of a developing nation. The hallmarks of
their program were indigenization, arabization, and an emphasis
on scientific and technical studies. They sought to increase
literacy, provide free education, make primary school enrollment
compulsory, remove foreign teachers and curricula, and replace
French with Arabic as the medium of instruction. They also
planned to channel students into scientific and technical fields,
reflecting the needs of Algerian industrial and managerial
sectors. The approach to education has been gradual, incremental,
and marked by a willingness to experiment--unusual
characteristics in a developing country.
The high priority assigned by the government to national
education was reflected in the amount of money spent on it and on
the existence of free schooling at all levels. Between 1967 and
1979, a total of DA171 billion (for value of the
dinar--see Glossary) was
allocated for operating expenditures in this
sector. In 1985 approximately 16.5 percent of the government's
investment budget was devoted to education; in 1990 the education
sector received 29.7 percent of the national budget.
Algeria received substantial assistance from the World Bank.
Between 1973 and 1980, Algeria contracted five education loan
agreements for sums totaling US$276 million. The World Bank has
continued to provide funds and technical assistance in connection
with a fundamental reform of education, the latest phase of which
occurred in 1993. The structure of the existing basic and
secondary systems was being revised, and much heavier emphasis
was being given to technical and vocational schooling.
In the mid-1970s, the primary and middle education levels
were reorganized into a nine-year system of compulsory basic
education. Thereafter, on the secondary level, pupils followed
one of three tracks--general, technical, or vocational--and then
sat for the baccalaureate examination before proceeding to one of
the universities, state technical institutes, or vocational
training centers, or directly to employment. The process of
reorganization was completed only in 1989, although in practice
the basic system of schooling remained divided between the
elementary level, including grades one to six, and the middle
school level of grades seven to nine. Despite government support
for the technical training programs meant to produce middle- and
higher-level technicians for the industrial sector, a critical
shortage remained of workers in fields requiring those technical
skills.
The reforms of the mid-1970s included abolishing all private
education. Formerly, private education was primarily the realm of
foreign institutions and schools often run by Roman Catholic
missions. Legislation passed in 1975 stipulated that education
was compulsory for nine years between the ages of six and
fifteen, and that it would be free at all levels. The Ministry of
National Education and the Ministry of Higher Education were
assigned sole responsibility for providing and regulating the
education system.
In 1982 about 4 million pupils were enrolled in the nine-year
basic education track at a time when the government claimed 81
percent of all six-year-olds were attending school. Attendance
approached 90 percent in urban centers and 67 percent in rural
areas. Teachers were nearly all Algerian, and instruction was
entirely in Arabic, French being introduced only in the third
year.
In the 1991-92 school year, about 5.8 million pupils were
enrolled in grades one through nine; and the gross enrollment
ratios reached 93 percent for the first six years of school and
75 percent for the next three years. Algerian society in the
early 1990s was still not fully accustomed to women assuming
roles outside the home, and female enrollments remained slightly
lower than might have been expected from the percentage of girls
in the age-group.
Secondary enrollments totaled 280,000 in 1982, compared with
51,000 in 1962-63. The number of secondary schools increased from
thirty-nine to 319 over the decade, while the percentage of
Algerian teachers increased from 41 in 1975 to 71 in 1982. French
continued as the favored language of instruction in general,
particularly in mathematics and science. Despite these impressive
gains, enrollments still fell short of planned targets,
especially in scientific and technical fields. The same was true
of female education. Nationwide, in 1982 girls accounted for 38.8
percent of total enrollments in secondary and technical schools.
A great variation also existed between the number of girls
attending school in Algiers, where the percentage nearly equaled
that of boys, and Tamanrasset in the south, where the percentage
dropped to as low as 7. In 1984 national primary and secondary
enrollments totaled 5 million.
In 1989-90, secondary school enrollments comprised 44 percent
of the school-age population, or a total of 743,000 students, of
whom 22 percent had entered the technicums, or technical
high schools. The proportion of girls in that cycle of education
was as high as that of the previous phase and constituted 44
percent of total enrollment at the secondary level. Teachers were
more than 90 percent Algerian at all levels. Arabization of the
education system was considered an important objective of the
1990s.
Vocational education at the secondary level received
attention as part of the reorganization of the mid-1970s. The
program was designed with the requirements of industry and
agriculture in mind; students were to be trained as apprentices
for up to five years. As of 1990, a total of 325 vocational
training schools were in operation, and about 200,000 apprentices
were in training. Vocational skills were also taught as part of
the national service program, which provided employment and work
experience for large numbers of young men
(see Labor and Employment
, ch. 3).
The major universities in 1993 were the University of Oran,
the University of Science and Technology at Oran, the University
of Algiers, and universities at Tlemcen, Sidi Bel Abbes,
Constantine, and Annaba and the Houari Boumediene University of
Science and Technology. There were also universities of Batna,
Blida, Sétif, and Tizi Ouzou and university centers at Bejaïa,
Mostaganem, Chelif, and Tiaret. Total higher education enrollment
for the academic year 1989-90 was 177,560 students as compared
with 103,000 in 1983-84 and close to 8,000 in 1967. Only the
Algiers campus predated independence, having been founded in
1909.
The higher education system first adopted by the University
of Algiers was based on the French model. As such, it stressed
autonomy of the university faculties not only in administration
but also in designing curricula and organizing courses of study
aimed at particular degrees. The system resulted in unwieldiness,
duplication of academic offerings, and complete loss of credits
by students changing programs. In addition, it led to a very high
attrition rate. Some reforms designed to modernize the university
system were introduced in 1971, and major reforms were introduced
in 1988. Nevertheless, the universities still loosely resemble
the French model, and French remains widely used for
instructional purposes. The number of French instructors has
declined, however, as the number of Algerian teachers has
increased after 1980. In 1981-82, for instance, 64.6 percent of
the teachers at all levels of education were Algerian. By the
academic year 1990-91, the percentage had increased to 93.4
percent. Arabic was widely taught at the tertiary level, and
Zouaouah, the dialect of the Kabyle Berbers, was taught at the
University of Tizi Ouzou.
In addition to the universities, a number of state institutes
provide specialized technical, agricultural, vocational, and
teacher training. Some function under the direct jurisdiction of
appropriate ministries and provide one to five years of technical
training and job experience for trainees. The Ministry of Energy
and Petrochemical Industries and the Ministry of Agriculture and
Fishing each has a number of institutes. Algeria in the early
1990s had more than thirty institutes of higher learning,
including technical studies, teacher-training colleges, and
Islamic institutes.
Many Algerian students also study abroad. Most go to France
or other West European countries, various countries of Eastern
Europe, and the United States.
A variety of literacy programs for adults was initiated after
1962, when the national literacy rate was below 10 percent. The
Conquest of Literacy program was mounted to help people attain
literacy in Arabic or French or both languages. Volunteer
teachers held classes on the job, in homes, and in abandoned
buildings; old French or Arabic grammars, copies of the Quran,
and political tracts were pressed into service as texts. Wide-
ranging approaches, including correspondence courses and use of
the public media, were introduced during the Second Four-Year
Plan, 1974-77. Major responsibility for out-of-school education
was assigned to two specialized government agencies. These
agencies benefited from technical assistance under the second of
the three World Bank education loans, but the main emphasis of
the government's education program has been on the rapid
development of the formal school system.
Progress in literacy has been noteworthy. About 42 percent of
the population was literate in 1977. By 1990 adult literacy had
reached 57.4 percent, according to estimates by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO); 69.8 percent of Algerian men and 45.5 percent of
Algerian women were literate. Because, however, priority has been
given to the education of youth, adult illiteracy has not yet
received the attention it needs.
Data as of December 1993
- Algeria-THE INDIVIDUAL, THE FAMILY, AND THE SEXES
- Algeria-Toward a Modern Society
- Algeria-Balance of Payments
- Algeria-The Elite
- Algeria-TRENDS
- Algeria-War of Independence
- Algeria-Health HEALTH AND WELFARE
- Algeria-Exports and Imports
- Algeria-Air Force
- Algeria-De Gaulle
- Algeria-Chapter 1 - Historical Setting
- Algeria-Urbanization and Density
- Algeria-National Consultative Council
- Algeria-Strategic Perspectives
- Algeria-EXTERNAL SECURITY PROBLEMS AND POLICIES
- Algeria-Prison Conditions
- Algeria-GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
- Algeria-Boumediene and the Socialist Experiment
- Algeria-Marabouts
- Algeria-Islamic Opposition
- Algeria-The Algerian General Workers' Union and the Workers' Movement
- Algeria-FLN
- Algeria-AGRICULTURE
- Algeria-POLITICAL STRUCTURE AND PROCESSES
- Algeria-PREFACE
- Algeria-INTERNAL SECURITY
- Algeria-The Women's Movement
- Algeria-Socialist Vanguard Party
- Algeria-Military Dictatorship
- Algeria-The Islamist Factor
- Algeria-Acknowledgments
- Algeria-Transportation
- Algeria-Democratization, October 1988-January 11, 1992
- Algeria-France and the Mediterranean Countries
- Algeria-The Sahara
- Algeria-Berber Separatism
- Algeria-Colonization and Military Control
- Algeria-Chapter 3 - The Economy
- Algeria-Climate and Hydrology
- Algeria-The Military and Boumediene
- Algeria-Wilayat
- Algeria-Hegemony of the Colons
- Algeria-The National Union of Algerian Farmers
- Algeria-Preindependence Society STRUCTURE OF SOCIETY
- Algeria-Chapter 5 - National Security
- Algeria-The Islamist Movement since the Late 1980s
- Algeria-CIVIL SOCIETY
- Algeria-Banking SERVICES
- Algeria-THE ARMED FORCES
- Algeria-Security Problems with Neighboring States
- Algeria-LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
- Algeria-Trading Partners
- Algeria-Aftermath of the War
- Algeria-Criminal Justice System
- Algeria-EDUCATION
- Algeria-Provincial Courts
- Algeria-Geographic Regions
- Algeria-Army
- Algeria-Security Interests Outside the Maghrib
- Algeria-Invasion of Algiers FRANCE IN ALGERIA, 1830-1962
- Algeria-Return to Authoritarianism, January 11, 1992
- Algeria-Roads
- Algeria-Crops
- Algeria-THE DEFENSE BURDEN
- Algeria-General Trends FOREIGN POLICY
- Algeria-GOVERNMENT ROLE
- Algeria-ALGERIA
- Algeria-Land Tenure and Reform
- Algeria-The United States
- Algeria-TRADE
- Algeria-Privateers
- Algeria-The Press
- Algeria-Africa
- Algeria-Fishing
- Algeria-TRANSPORTATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
- Algeria-Almoravids
- Algeria-The Arabization Movement
- Algeria-Demographic Profile POPULATION
- Algeria-Family and Household
- Algeria-Currency and Exchange Rates
- Algeria-Trade Account
- Algeria-The Revolutionary Period and Independence
- Algeria-Airports
- Algeria-Hydrocarbons NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY
- Algeria-Political Movements
- Algeria-Arab and Middle East Affairs
- Algeria-DOMESTIC SECURITY CONCERNS
- Algeria-GEOGRAPHY
- Algeria-SOCIETY
- Algeria -COUNTRY PROFILE
- Algeria
- Algeria-Structure of the National Government
- Algeria-Forestry
- Algeria-Almohads
- Algeria-Philippeville
- Algeria-Minerals
- Algeria-Electoral System
- Algeria-The High Plateaus and the Saharan Atlas
- Algeria-Military Tribunals
- Algeria-European Offensive
- Algeria-Recent Political Events
- Algeria-Role of the FIS
- Algeria-Formation of the Second Algerian Republic, 1976-79
- Algeria-PHYSICAL SETTING
- Algeria-Legalization of Political Parties and Beginnings of a Pluralist System
- Algeria-Housing
- Algeria-Construction
- Algeria-Early History
- Algeria-Abd al Qadir
- Algeria-Local and Regional Government
- Algeria-The Revolution and Social Change
- Algeria-Budget
- Algeria-Table A - Selected Acronyms and Contractions
- Algeria-Carthage and the Berbers NORTH AFRICA DURING THE CLASSICAL PERIOD
- Algeria-Vandals and Byzantines
- Algeria-Zayanids
- Algeria
- Algeria
- Algeria
- Algeria-Sub-Saharan Africa
- Algeria
- Algeria-THE MILITARY HERITAGE
- Algeria
- Algeria-Conditions of Service
- Algeria-External Debt and Payments
- Algeria-Personnel and Recruitment
- Algeria-Committee of Public Safety
- Algeria-PREHISTORY OF CENTRAL NORTH AFRICA
- Algeria-The Entrepreneurial Class
- Algeria-Opposition to the Occupation
- Algeria
- Algeria-ECONOMY
- Algeria
- Algeria-Dawair
- Algeria-NATIONAL SECURITY
- Algeria-Livestock
- Algeria
- Algeria-Chapter 2 - The Society and Its Environment
- Algeria-Railroads
- Algeria-Legislative: National People's Assembly
- Algeria
- Algeria-Youth and Student Unions
- Algeria
- Algeria-The Generals' Putsch
- Algeria-FOREIGN MILITARY ASSISTANCE
- Algeria-Family Code
- Algeria-Political Configuration: The Army-Party-State Triangle
- Algeria-Foreign Aid
- Algeria-Relations with the United States
- Algeria-Algerian Nationalism
- Algeria-Telecommunications
- Algeria-Navy
- Algeria-Arabization
- Algeria
- Algeria
- Algeria-Chapter 4 - Government and Politics
- Algeria-Supreme Court
- Algeria-Tenets of Islam
- Algeria-Family Planning
- Algeria-Uniforms, Ranks, and Insignia
- Algeria-The "Heroic" Stage: Ben Bella's Regime, 1962-65
- Algeria-Judicial System
- Algeria-Men and Women
- Algeria-Role of Political Parties
- Algeria-RELIGIOUS MINORITIES
- Algeria-Social Welfare
- Algeria-The West
- Algeria-Ottoman Rule
- Algeria-Electric Power
- Algeria
- Algeria-Ports
- Algeria-EFFECTIVE INSTITUTIONS
- Algeria-Municipal Government
- Algeria-Manufacturing
- Algeria-Migration
- Algeria-The Peoples ETHNIC GROUPS AND LANGUAGES
- Algeria-Ben Bella and the FLN
- Algeria-PUBLIC FINANCES
- Algeria-Intelligence Agencies
- Algeria-Fatimids
- Algeria-Conduct of the War
- Algeria-Islam and the Algerian State
- Algeria-Terrain
- Algeria-ISLAM
- Algeria-Investments
- Algeria
- Algeria-TRANSPORTATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
- Algeria-INDUSTRY
- Algeria-The Land and Colonizers
- Algeria-Languages: Arabic and Berber
Background | | After more than a century of rule by France, Algerians fought through much of the 1950s to achieve independence in 1962. Algeria's primary political party, the National Liberation Front (FLN), has dominated politics ever since. Many Algerians in the subsequent generation were not satisfied, however, and moved to counter the FLN's centrality in Algerian politics. The surprising first round success of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in the December 1991 balloting spurred the Algerian army to intervene and postpone the second round of elections to prevent what the secular elite feared would be an extremist-led government from assuming power. The army began a crackdown on the FIS that spurred FIS supporters to begin attacking government targets. The government later allowed elections featuring pro-government and moderate religious-based parties, but this did not appease the activists who progressively widened their attacks. The fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw intense fighting between 1992-98 resulting in over 100,000 deaths - many attributed to indiscriminate massacres of villagers by extremists. The government gained the upper hand by the late-1990s and FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, disbanded in January 2000. Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA, with the backing of the military, won the presidency in 1999 in an election widely viewed as fraudulent and was reelected in a landslide victory in 2004. BOUTEFLIKA was overwhelmingly reelected to a third term in 2009 after the government amended the constitution in 2008 to remove presidential term limits. Longstanding problems continue to face BOUTEFLIKA, including large-scale unemployment, a shortage of housing, unreliable electrical and water supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption, and the continuing activities of extremist militants. The Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) in 2006 merged with al-Qaida to form al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb, which has launched an ongoing series of kidnappings and bombings - including high-profile, mass-casualty suicide attacks targeting the Algerian Government and Western interests.
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Location | | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia
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Area(sq km) | | total: 2,381,741 sq km land: 2,381,741 sq km water: 0 sq km
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Geographic coordinates | | 28 00 N, 3 00 E
|
Land boundaries(km) | | total: 6,343 km border countries: Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km, Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km, Western Sahara 42 km
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Coastline(km) | | 998 km
|
Climate | | arid to semiarid; mild, wet winters with hot, dry summers along coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on high plateau; sirocco is a hot, dust/sand-laden wind especially common in summer
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Elevation extremes(m) | | lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m highest point: Tahat 3,003 m
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Natural resources | | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc
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Land use(%) | | arable land: 3.17% permanent crops: 0.28% other: 96.55% (2005)
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Irrigated land(sq km) | | 5,690 sq km (2003)
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Total renewable water resources(cu km) | | 14.3 cu km (1997)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) | | total: 6.07 cu km/yr (22%/13%/65%) per capita: 185 cu m/yr (2000)
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Natural hazards | | mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy season
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Environment - current issues | | soil erosion from overgrazing and other poor farming practices; desertification; dumping of raw sewage, petroleum refining wastes, and other industrial effluents is leading to the pollution of rivers and coastal waters; Mediterranean Sea, in particular, becoming polluted from oil wastes, soil erosion, and fertilizer runoff; inadequate supplies of potable water
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Environment - international agreements | | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note | | second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan)
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Population | | 34,178,188 (July 2009 est.)
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Age structure(%) | | 0-14 years: 25.4% (male 4,436,591/female 4,259,729) 15-64 years: 69.5% (male 11,976,965/female 11,777,618) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 798,576/female 928,709) (2009 est.)
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Median age(years) | | total: 26.6 years male: 26.3 years female: 26.8 years (2009 est.)
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Population growth rate(%) | | 1.196% (2009 est.)
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Birth rate(births/1,000 population) | | 16.9 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
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Death rate(deaths/1,000 population) | | 4.64 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
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Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population) | | -0.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
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Urbanization(%) | | urban population: 65% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 2.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio(male(s)/female) | | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
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Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births) | | total: 27.73 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 24.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth(years) | | total population: 74.02 years male: 72.35 years female: 75.77 years (2009 est.)
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Total fertility rate(children born/woman) | | 1.79 children born/woman (2009 est.)
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Nationality | | noun: Algerian(s) adjective: Algerian
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Ethnic groups(%) | | Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1% note: almost all Algerians are Berber in origin, not Arab; the minority who identify themselves as Berber live mostly in the mountainous region of Kabylie east of Algiers; the Berbers are also Muslim but identify with their Berber rather than Arab cultural heritage; Berbers have long agitated, sometimes violently, for autonomy; the government is unlikely to grant autonomy but has offered to begin sponsoring teaching Berber language in schools
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Religions(%) | | Sunni Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1%
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Languages(%) | | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects
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Country name | | conventional long form: People's Democratic Republic of Algeria conventional short form: Algeria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Jaza'iriyah ad Dimuqratiyah ash Sha'biyah local short form: Al Jaza'ir
|
Government type | | republic
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Capital | | name: Algiers geographic coordinates: 36 45 N, 3 03 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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Administrative divisions | | 48 provinces (wilayat, singular - wilaya); Adrar, Ain Defla, Ain Temouchent, Alger, Annaba, Batna, Bechar, Bejaia, Biskra, Blida, Bordj Bou Arreridj, Bouira, Boumerdes, Chlef, Constantine, Djelfa, El Bayadh, El Oued, El Tarf, Ghardaia, Guelma, Illizi, Jijel, Khenchela, Laghouat, Mascara, Medea, Mila, Mostaganem, M'Sila, Naama, Oran, Ouargla, Oum el Bouaghi, Relizane, Saida, Setif, Sidi Bel Abbes, Skikda, Souk Ahras, Tamanghasset, Tebessa, Tiaret, Tindouf, Tipaza, Tissemsilt, Tizi Ouzou, Tlemcen
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Constitution | | 8 September 1963; revised 19 November 1976; effective 22 November 1976; revised 3 November 1988, 23 February 1989, 28 November 1996, 10 April 2002, and 12 November 2008
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Legal system | | socialist, based on French and Islamic law; judicial review of legislative acts in ad hoc Constitutional Council composed of various public officials including several Supreme Court justices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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Suffrage | | 18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch | | chief of state: President Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA (since 28 April 1999) note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; a November 2008 constitutional amendment separated the position of head of government from that of the prime minister head of government: President Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA (since 28 April 1999) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; note - a November 2008 constitutional amendment abolished presidential term limits; election last held 9 April 2009 (next to be held in April 2014) election results: Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA reelected president for third term; percent of vote - Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA 90.2%, Louisa HANOUNE 4.2%, Moussa TOUATI 2.3%, Djahid YOUNSI 1.4%, Ali Fawzi REBIANE less than 1%, Mohamed SAID less than 1%
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Legislative branch | | bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (upper house; 144 seats; one-third of the members appointed by the president, two-thirds elected by indirect vote to serve six-year terms; the constitution requires half the Council to be renewed every three years) and the National People's Assembly (lower house; 389 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: National Council - last held 28 December 2006 (next to be held 29 December 2009); National People's Assembly - last held 17 May 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; National People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FLN 136, RND 61, MSP 52, PT 26, RCD 19, FNA 13, other 49, independents 33;
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Judicial branch | | Supreme Court
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Political pressure groups and leaders | | The Algerian Human Rights League or LADDH [Hocine ZEHOUANE]; SOS Disparus [Nacera DUTOUR]
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International organization participation | | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, BIS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
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Flag description | | two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and white; a red, five-pointed star within a red crescent centered over the two-color boundary; the colors represent Islam (green), purity and peace (white), and liberty (red); the crescent and star are also Islamic symbols, but the crescent is more closed than those of other Muslim countries because the Algerians believe the long crescent horns bring happiness
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Economy - overview | | The hydrocarbons sector is the backbone of the economy, accounting for roughly 60% of budget revenues, 30% of GDP, and over 95% of export earnings. Algeria has the eighth-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and is the fourth-largest gas exporter; it ranks 15th in oil reserves. Sustained high oil prices in recent years have helped improve Algeria's financial and macroeconomic indicators. Algeria is running substantial trade surpluses and building up record foreign exchange reserves. Algeria has decreased its external debt to less than 5% of GDP after repaying its Paris Club and London Club debt in 2006. Real GDP has risen due to higher oil output and increased government spending. The government's continued efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and domestic investment outside the energy sector, however, has had little success in reducing high unemployment and improving living standards. Structural reform within the economy, such as development of the banking sector and the construction of infrastructure, moves ahead slowly hampered by corruption and bureaucratic resistance.
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GDP (purchasing power parity) | | $233.5 billion (2008 est.) $225.6 billion (2007 est.) $218.8 billion (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
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GDP (official exchange rate) | | $159.7 billion (2008 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate(%) | | 3.5% (2008 est.) 3.1% (2007 est.) 2.1% (2006 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP) | | $6,900 (2008 est.) $6,800 (2007 est.) $6,600 (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
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GDP - composition by sector(%) | | agriculture: 8.3% industry: 62.3% services: 29.4% (2008 est.)
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Labor force | | 9.464 million (2008 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation(%) | | agriculture 14%, industry 13.4%, construction and public works 10%, trade 14.6%, government 32%, other 16% (2003 est.)
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Unemployment rate(%) | | 12.8% (2008 est.) 11.8% (2007 est.)
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Population below poverty line(%) | | 23% (2006 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share(%) | | lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 26.8% (1995)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index | | 35.3 (1995)
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Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP) | | 26.1% of GDP (2008 est.)
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Budget | | revenues: $70.06 billion expenditures: $56.04 billion (2008 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%) | | 4.4% (2008 est.) 3.5% (2007 est.)
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Stock of money | | $60.91 billion (31 December 2008) $55.43 billion (31 December 2007)
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Stock of quasi money | | $30.36 billion (31 December 2008) $28.59 billion (31 December 2007)
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Stock of domestic credit | | $NA (31 December 2008) $NA (31 December 2007)
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Market value of publicly traded shares | | $NA
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Economic aid - recipient | | $370.6 million (2005 est.)
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Public debt(% of GDP) | | 8.4% of GDP (2008 est.) 37.4% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Agriculture - products | | wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle
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Industries | | petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing
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Industrial production growth rate(%) | | 3.2% (2008 est.)
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Current account balance | | $35.27 billion (2008 est.) $30.6 billion (2007 est.)
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Exports | | $78.23 billion (2008 est.) $60.6 billion (2007 est.)
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Exports - commodities(%) | | petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97%
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Exports - partners(%) | | US 23.9%, Italy 15.5%, Spain 11.4%, France 8%, Netherlands 7.8%, Canada 6.8% (2008)
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Imports | | $39.16 billion (2008 est.) $26.4 billion (2007 est.)
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Imports - commodities(%) | | capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods
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Imports - partners(%) | | France 16.5%, Italy 11%, China 10.3%, Spain 7.4%, Germany 6.1%, US 5.5% (2008)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | | $143.5 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $110.6 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Debt - external | | $3.753 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $3.957 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | | $13.76 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $11.91 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | | $1.162 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $962 million (31 December 2007 est.)
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Exchange rates | | Algerian dinars (DZD) per US dollar - 63.25 (2008 est.), 69.9 (2007), 72.647 (2006), 73.276 (2005), 72.061 (2004)
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Currency (code) | | Algerian dinar (DZD)
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Telephones - main lines in use | | 3.314 million (2008)
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Telephones - mobile cellular | | 31.871 million (2008)
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Telephone system | | general assessment: a weak network of fixed-main lines, which remains at roughly 10 telephones per 100 persons, is offset by the rapid increase in mobile cellular subscribership; in 2008, combined fixed-line and mobile telephone density surpassed 100 telephones per 100 persons domestic: privatization of Algeria's telecommunications sector began in 2000; three mobile cellular licenses have been issued and, in 2005, a consortium led by Egypt's Orascom Telecom won a 15-year license to build and operate a fixed-line network in Algeria; the license will allow Orascom to develop high-speed data and other specialized services and contribute to meeting the large unfulfilled demand for basic residential telephony; Internet broadband services began in 2003 international: country code - 213; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-4 fiber-optic submarine cable system that provides links to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia; microwave radio relay to Italy, France, Spain, Morocco, and Tunisia; coaxial cable to Morocco and Tunisia; participant in Medarabtel; satellite earth stations - 51 (Intelsat, Intersputnik, and Arabsat) (2008)
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Internet country code | | .dz
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Internet users | | 4.1 million (2008)
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Airports | | 143 (2009)
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Pipelines(km) | | condensate 1,937 km; gas 14,648 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,933 km; oil 7,579 km (2008)
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Roadways(km) | | total: 108,302 km paved: 76,028 km (includes 645 km of expressways) unpaved: 32,274 km (2004)
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Ports and terminals | | Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Djendjene, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda
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Military branches | | People's National Army (Armee Nationale Populaire, ANP), Land Forces (Forces Terrestres, FT), Navy of the Republic of Algeria (Marine de la Republique Algerienne, MRA), Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Jaza'eriya, QJJ), Territorial Air Defense Force (2009)
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Military service age and obligation(years of age) | | 19-30 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (6 months basic training, 12 months civil projects) (2006)
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Manpower available for military service | | males age 16-49: 9,736,757 females age 16-49: 9,590,978 (2008 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service | | males age 16-49: 8,317,473 females age 16-49: 8,367,005 (2009 est.)
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Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually | | male: 375,852 female: 362,158 (2009 est.)
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Military expenditures(% of GDP) | | 3.3% of GDP (2006)
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Disputes - international | | Algeria, and many other states, rejects Moroccan administration of Western Sahara; the Polisario Front, exiled in Algeria, represents the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic; Algeria's border with Morocco remains an irritant to bilateral relations, each nation accusing the other of harboring militants and arms smuggling; Algeria remains concerned about armed bandits operating throughout the Sahel who sometimes destabilize southern Algerian towns; dormant disputes include Libyan claims of about 32,000 sq km still reflected on its maps of southeastern Algeria and the FLN's assertions of a claim to Chirac Pastures in southeastern Morocco
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Refugees and internally displaced persons | | refugees (country of origin): 90,000 (Western Saharan Sahrawi, mostly living in Algerian-sponsored camps in the southwestern Algerian town of Tindouf) IDPs: undetermined (civil war during 1990s) (2007)
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Trafficking in persons | | current situation: Algeria is a transit country for men and women trafficked from sub-Saharan Africa to Europe for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and involuntary servitude; Algerian children are trafficked internally for the purpose of domestic servitude or street vending tier rating: Tier 3 - Algeria did not report any serious law enforcement actions to punish traffickers who force women into commercial sexual exploitation or men into involuntary servitude in 2007; the government again reported no investigations of trafficking of children for domestic servitude or improvements in protection services available to victims of trafficking; Algeria still lacks victim protection services, and its failure to distinguish between trafficking and illegal migration may result in the punishment of victims of trafficking (2008)
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Electricity - production(kWh) | | 34.98 billion kWh (2007 est.)
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Electricity - production by source(%) | | fossil fuel: 99.7% hydro: 0.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
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Electricity - consumption(kWh) | | 28.34 billion kWh (2007 est.)
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Electricity - exports(kWh) | | 273 million kWh (2007 est.)
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Electricity - imports(kWh) | | 279 million kWh (2007 est.)
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Oil - production(bbl/day) | | 2.18 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
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Oil - consumption(bbl/day) | | 299,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
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Oil - exports(bbl/day) | | 1.891 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
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Oil - imports(bbl/day) | | 14,320 bbl/day (2007 est.)
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Oil - proved reserves(bbl) | | 12.2 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
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Natural gas - production(cu m) | | 86.5 billion cu m (2008 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption(cu m) | | 26.83 billion cu m (2008 est.)
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Natural gas - exports(cu m) | | 59.67 billion cu m (2008)
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Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m) | | 4.502 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%) | | 0.1%; note - no country specific models provided (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | | 21,000 (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths | | fewer than 1,000 (2007 est.)
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Literacy(%) | | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 69.9% male: 79.6% female: 60.1% (2002 est.)
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)(years) | | total: 13 years male: 13 years female: 13 years (2005)
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Education expenditures(% of GDP) | | 5.1% of GDP (1999)
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