Algeria Population: 34,994,937
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| 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), was established in 1954 as part of the struggle for independence and has largely dominated politics since. The Government of Algeria in 1988 instituted a multi-party system in response to public unrest, but 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, and fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw intense violence 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. He was reelected to a second term in 2004, and overwhelmingly won 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-Qa'ida to form al-Qa'ida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb, which has launched an ongoing series of kidnappings and bombings targeting the Algerian Government and Western interests. A sudden rise in the cost of food staples, possibly coupled with the onset of protests in neighboring Tunisia beginning in December 2010, triggered a wave of riots across Algeria in early January 2011, but protests subsided quickly following a restrained security response and the government's decision to cut taxes and increase subsidies on key food staples. In response to protester demands, the government in February 2011 lifted the 19-year state of emergency restrictions, and President BOUTEFLIKA inaugurated a presidential reform commission the following month. Draft reform laws, including changes to the process for authorizing new political parties and the opening of broadcast media to private ownership, were submitted to parliament in early October. Small, sometimes violent demonstrations by disparate groups continued throughout the country in 2011, but were primarily focused on sector-specific socioeconomic demands or confined to specific regions. |
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| Geography | |
| Largest country in Africa | |
| Location: | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia |
| Geographic coordinates: | 28 00 N, 3 00 E |
| Area: | total: 2,381,741 sq km land: 2,381,741 sq km water: 0 sq km Size comparison: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas |
| Land Boundaries: | 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 |
| Coastline: | 998 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm |
| 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 |
| Terrain: | mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m highest point: Tahat 3,003 m |
| Natural resources: | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc |
| Land use: | arable land: 3.17% permanent crops: 0.28% other: 96.55% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 5,700 sq km (2008) |
| Natural hazards: | mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy season |
| Current Environment 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 |
| International Environment 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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| People | |
| Population: | 34,994,937 (July 2011 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 24.2% (male 4,319,295/female 4,144,863) 15-64 years: 70.6% (male 12,455,378/female 12,242,604) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 845,116/female 987,681) (2011 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 27.6 years male: 27.4 years female: 27.8 years (2011 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 1.173% (2011 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 16.69 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Death rate: | 4.69 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | 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 (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 25.81 deaths/1,000 live births male: 28.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 74.5 years male: 72.78 years female: 76.31 years (2011 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 1.75 children born/woman (2011 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.1%; 0.1% note - no country specific models provided (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 18,000 (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | fewer than 1,000 (2009 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Algerian(s) adjective: Algerian |
| Ethnic groups: | Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1% note: although almost all Algerians are Berber in origin (not Arab), only a minority identify themselves as Berber, about 15% of the total population; these people 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 |
| Religions: | Sunni Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1% |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects |
| 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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| Government | |
| 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 |
| Capital: | name: Algiers geographic coordinates: 36 45 N, 3 03 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| 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 |
| Independence: | 5 July 1962 (from France) |
| National holiday: | Revolution Day, 1 November (1954) |
| 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 |
| Legal system: | mixed legal system of French civil law and Islamic law; judicial review of legislative acts in ad hoc Constitutional Council composed of various public officials including several Supreme Court justices |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| 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 (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; note - a November 2008 constitutional amendment abolished presidential term limits; election last held on 9 April 2009 (next to be held in April 2014) election results: Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA was reelected president for a 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% |
| Legislative branch: | bicameral Parliament consists of the Council of the Nation (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: Council of the Nation - last held on 29 December 2009 (next to be held in December 2012); National People's Assembly - last held on 17 May 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: Council of the Nation - 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; |
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court |
| Political parties and leaders: | Ahd 54 [Ali Fauzi REBAINE]; Algerian National Front or FNA [Moussa TOUATI]; Movement of the Society of Peace or MSP [Boudjerra SOLTANI]; National Democratic Rally (Rassemblement National Democratique) or RND [Ahmed OUYAHIA]; National Liberation Front or FLN [Abdelaziz BELKHADEM, secretary general]; National Reform Movement or Islah [Ahmed ABDESLAM] (formerly MRN); Rally for Culture and Democracy or RCD [Said SADI]; Renaissance Movement or EnNahda Movement [Fatah RABEI]; Socialist Forces Front or FFS [Hocine Ait AHMED]; Workers Party or PT [Louisa HANOUNE] note: a law banning political parties based on religion was enacted in March 1997 |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | The Algerian Human Rights League or LADDH [Hocine ZEHOUANE]; SOS Disparus [Nacera DUTOUR] |
| International organization participation: | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, BIS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Abdallah BAALI chancery: 2118 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2174 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Henry S. ENSHER embassy: 05 Chemin Cheikh Bachir, El-Ibrahimi, El-Biar 16000 Algiers mailing address: B. P. 408, Alger-Gare, 16030 Algiers telephone: [213] 770-08-2000 FAX: [213] 21-60-7355 |
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| Economy | |
| Algeria's economy remains dominated by the state, a legacy of the country's socialist post-independence development model. Gradual liberalization since the mid-1990s has opened up more of the economy, but in recent years Algeria has imposed new restrictions on foreign involvement in its economy and largely halted the privatization of state-owned industries. Hydrocarbons have long been 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 16th in oil reserves. Thanks to strong hydrocarbon revenues, Algeria has a cushion of $150 billion in foreign currency reserves and a large hydrocarbon stabilization fund. In addition, Algeria's external debt is extremely low at about 1% of GDP. Algeria has struggled to develop industries outside of hydrocarbons in part because of high costs and an inert state bureaucracy. The government's efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and domestic investment outside the energy sector have done little to reduce high poverty and youth unemployment rates. In 2010, Algeria began a five-year, $286 billion development program to update the country's infrastructure and provide jobs. The costly program will boost Algeria's economy in 2011 but worsen the country's budget deficit. Long-term economic challenges include diversification from hydrocarbons, relaxing state control of the economy, and providing adequate jobs for younger Algerians. | |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $251.1 billion (2010 est.) $243 billion (2009 est.) $237.4 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $160.3 billion (2010 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 3.3% (2010 est.) 2.4% (2009 est.) 2.4% (2008 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $7,300 (2010 est.) $7,100 (2009 est.) $7,000 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 8.3% industry: 61.6% services: 30.1% (2010 est.) |
| Labor force: | 10.81 million (2010 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 14% industry: 13.4% construction and public works: 10% trade: 14.6% government: 32% other: 16% (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 10% (2010 est.) 10.2% (2009 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | 23% (2006 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 26.8% (1995) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 35.3 (1995) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.9% (2010 est.) 5.7% (2009 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | Investment (gross fixed): 34.3% of GDP (2010 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $58.88 billion expenditures: $60.67 billion (2010 est.) |
| Public debt: | 6.6% of GDP (2010 est.) 8.1% of GDP (2009 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle |
| Industries: | petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing |
| Industrial production growth rate: | -3.6% (2010 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 40.11 billion kWh (2009 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 30.5 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 323 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 49 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Oil - production: | 2.078 million bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 312,000 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | 1.694 million bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - imports: | 18,180 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 12.2 billion bbl (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 85.14 billion cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 29.86 billion cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 55.28 billion cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 4.502 trillion cu m (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Current account balance: | $12.74 billion (2010 est.) $520 million (2009 est.) |
| Exports: | $57.19 billion (2010 est.) $45.18 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97% |
| Exports - partners: | US 24.9%, Italy 17.5%, Spain 10%, Canada 6.3%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 5.1%, Brazil 4.3% (2010) |
| Imports: | $38.38 billion (2010 est.) $37.4 billion (2009 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
| Imports - partners: | France 18%, China 10.6%, Italy 9.9%, Spain 7%, Tajikistan 4.8%, Germany 4.4% (2010) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $162.9 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $149.3 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $4.341 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $5.345 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: | $21.03 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $17.34 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: | $1.844 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $1.644 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $NA |
| Exchange rates: | Algerian dinars (DZD) per US dollar - 76 (2010) 72.65 (2009) 63.25 (2008) 69.9 (2007) 72.647 (2006) |
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| Communications | |
| Telephones in use: | 2.576 million (2009) country comparison to the world: 52 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 32.73 million (2009) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: 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 domestic: a limited network of fixed lines with a teledensity of less than 10 telephones per 100 persons is offset by the rapid increase in mobile-cellular subscribership; in 2009, combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity was roughly 100 telephones per 100 persons 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) (2009) |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .dz |
| Internet hosts: | 572 (2010) |
| Internet users: | 4.7 million (2009) |
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| Transportation | |
| Airports: | 143 (2010) country comparison to the world: 40 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 57 over 3,047 m: 12 2,438 to 3,047 m: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 1 (2010) |
| Airports (unpaved runways): | total: 86 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 41 under 914 m: 23 (2010) |
| Heliports: | 2 (2010) |
| Pipelines: | condensate 2,600 km; gas 16,360 km; liquid petroleum gas 3,447 km; oil 7,611 km; refined products 144 km (2010) |
| Railways: | total: 3,973 km standard gauge: 2,888 km 1.435-m gauge (283 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,085 km 1.055-m gauge (2008) |
| Roadways: | total: 111,261 km paved: 81,732 km (includes 645 km of expressways) unpaved: 29,529 km (2008) |
| Merchant marine: | total: 35 by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 8, chemical tanker 2, liquefied gas 9, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 12 (UK 12) (2010) |
| Ports and terminals: | Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Djendjene, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda |
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| Military | |
| 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) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 19-30 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (6 months basic training, 12 months civil projects) (2006) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 10,273,129 females age 16-49: 10,114,552 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 8,622,897 females age 16-49: 8,626,222 (2010 est.) |
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