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Algeria Index
At independence Algerian society differed greatly from its
condition at the beginning of the struggle for liberation. The
exodus of Europeans in 1962-63, left a society composed primarily
of illiterate peasants and sizable numbers of urban laborers. It
was estimated that less than 1 percent of the 1964 population had
belonged to the middle and upper classes during the 1950s.
Educated persons remaining in the country were insufficient to
staff all the positions in government and industry vacated by the
Europeans. A criteria of prestige stemming from the war had also
entered the social reckoning; those who had participated actively
in the fighting or suffered loss because of it became eligible
for special benefits or consideration.
During the colonial period, the country's most significant
social distinctions had been those that separated Europeans from
Algerians. Europeans had ranged from great industrialists through
middle-class businesspeople, professionals, and farmers to
unskilled workers. The Algerian population had also covered a
range from well-to-do business and professional families to
landless rural laborers. Distinctions, however, were blurred by
the disabilities and discrimination suffered during the war by
all Algerians and by the ideological emphasis on the unity of the
Algerian people.
The removal of the European community permitted the
appearance of the rudiments of a modern class system in which
probably the most influential group consisted of French-trained
technocrats, civil servants, army officers, and senior
functionaries of the National Liberation Front (Front de
Libération Nationale--FLN). The few indigenous industrialists
lacked great influence, but the bureaucrats and technocrats who
managed the government and its expanding enterprises began to
form a conspicuous and highly influential group that was to
contribute upper-echelon personnel for public administration and
state enterprises. Education, more than any other single factor,
became the criterion for membership in the new elite.
Houari Boumediene, who was president from 1967 to 1978,
headed a government that was dedicated to furthering Islamic
socialism and held that, because early Islam in Algeria had its
own egalitarian tendencies, no contradiction was involved. The
pursuit of socialism since the 1960s, however, has produced its
own rich assortment of social contradictions and tensions.
The Boumediene government at times has been criticized for
its state capitalist tendencies because of its single-minded
pursuit of industrialization, which led to the emergence of a
prosperous and reasonably competent elite. After 1968 Boumediene
gradually brought more and more educated young bureaucrats and
technocrats into government service; by the late 1970s, they
formed part of an administrative and managerial elite who staffed
the government ministries and planned and operated the state
industrial sector. Largely in control of the country, the new
social group nonetheless shared status and influence with the
army and functioned under the supervision of senior political
officials. Although the explicit ideology of the government
discouraged the formation of social classes, this relatively
wealthy and powerful elite seemed to represent an important
barrier on the road to an egalitarian society.
The technocrats and bureaucrats tended to be modernizers
influenced by Western ideas. In general, they subscribed to the
modernist view of Algerian society and believed that all members
of society, including women, should participate actively to
change the environment to suit the needs of society and its
members. In socialist-oriented Algeria, the concepts of the
nation-state, self-determination, and state planning came to the
fore among members of the elite; local loyalties and family ties
declined in importance as the society became more modern, urban,
and educated.
Aside from the bureaucratic and technocratic elite, the
middle class consisted of employees of state industrial and
service enterprises; small businesspeople and shopkeepers;
professionals, such as teachers, physicians, and lawyers; and
artisans. Except for businesspeople, this stratum increased
greatly after independence, moving to help fill the void created
by the departure of the French and by the demand for services and
skilled labor in the postindependence economy. Residing mostly in
the cities and larger towns, the middle class was by Algerian
standards relatively well-off.
An urbanized working class had similarly come into being over
the previous few decades, finding employment, for example, in
state and private industries, construction, public works, and
transportation. As with the urban middle class, this group grew
steadily in size after 1962 as a consequence of economic
expansion. Another sizable group also found in the cities
consisted of the unemployed. Substantial number of the unemployed
were young males, many of them migrants from rural areas, who
were often forced to settle in squalid housing. Usually
monolingual in Arabic, lacking job skills, and possessing only a
primary education, the migrants and the unemployed survived on
the largesse of the state welfare system. Finally, there were the
rural agricultural workers, including small and medium-sized
landowners, landowning and landless peasants, and those who
worked on large state farms. Some members of this class benefited
from land distribution in the 1970s and early 1980s. Others, such
as medium-sized landowners who survived land redistribution and
the formation of large agricultural enterprises, reportedly were
enjoying a measure of prosperity and favored government
investment in roads and services in rural areas.
As the nation continued to modernize in the 1980s and early
1990s, millions of Algerians were torn between a tradition that
no longer commanded their total loyalty and a modernism that did
not satisfy their psychological and spiritual needs. This dilemma
especially affected the nation's youth. Educated young women were
torn between the lure of study and a career and the demands of
their husbands and fathers. Young men faced conflicting models of
cultural behavior and achievement, conflict between demands for
fluency in modern Arabic and fluency in French, and conflict
between devotion to Islam and the secularism of modernization.
Above all loomed the reality of youth unemployment, which reached
a staggeringly high 41 percent in the early 1990s (compared to 30
percent for the overall working-age population). With no solution
in sight, unemployment was a prime factor accounting for the
boredom, frustration, and disillusionment that characterized the
younger generation. Many young people became major supporters of
the Islamic Salvation Front (Front Islamique du Salut--FIS) whose
groups were located on campuses and in major cities throughout
the country. Young people contributed to the clashes with
government forces ongoing since the late 1980s and to the general
political instability.
To strengthen a sense of national pride in the country's
culture, in 1970 an officially sponsored "cultural revolution"
was launched to restore historic monuments and to develop the
means to communicate cultural themes via radio, television, the
press, libraries, and museums. In realms such as economics and
politics where the past offered no guidance, new structures were
to be devised in keeping with the theory of the 1962 Tripoli
Program. This program rejected capitalism, which it associated
with Western colonial powers, and disavowed an economic system
that would make it dependent on the West. Instead, it favored a
socialist system that allowed for state control both of the means
of production and of the plan for national development. The
program opted for a one-party political system that would
represent the aspirations of the rural and urban masses. Other
aspects of the cultural revolution included substituting Arabic
for French and eliminating foreign teachers and foreign influence
from the educational establishment--all part of a policy of
constructing an Algeria distinctive in personality and proud of
its heritage and achievements.
The cultural revolution was fifteen years old in 1985; beyond
language and education development, however, its achievements
were hard to measure. The program had suffered from neglect and
lack of funds for projects involving monuments and archeological
sites, museums, the arts, and the publishing industry. A national
seminar on the history of the Algerian Revolution was
successfully organized in 1981, however, and in late 1983 Chadli
Benjedid (president, 1979-92) issued a renewed call for serious
attention to cultural affairs and to the study of Algerian
national history.
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
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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
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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.)
|
Median age(years) | | total: 26.6 years male: 26.3 years female: 26.8 years (2009 est.)
|
Population growth rate(%) | | 1.196% (2009 est.)
|
Birth rate(births/1,000 population) | | 16.9 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
|
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.)
|
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
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Government type | | republic
|
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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