People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
A country in the northwest part of Africa. Area — 2,382,000 km². Capital — Algiers (approx. 3.5 million), other major cities: Oran (1.5 million), Constantine (approx. 1 million), Annaba (600,000). Administrative-territorial division - 48 wilayas (provinces). Population - 32.6 million (2004); mainly Arabs (80%), about 20% - Berbers (Kabyles, Shawiya, Tuaregs, etc.). Youth aged under 30 constitutes about 70% of the population, demographic growth — 2.3%. Official language - Arabic, "national" - Arabic and Berber, French is widely spoken. State religion — Islam, the overwhelming majority of the population are Sunni Muslims. Currency unit - dinar = 100 centimes.
It has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (established with the USSR on March 23, 1962).
National holiday — November 1 - Revolution Day (1954).
According to the constitution, Algeria is a republic. The head of state is the president. Elected by universal direct secret ballot for 5 years. Under the current constitution of 1996, the head of state has broad powers - is the supreme commander of the armed forces and the minister of defense, appoints the head of government, members of the Council of the Nation (upper house of parliament), members of the Constitutional Council, governors (walis). Since April 1999 — Abdelaziz Bouteflika (reelected in April 2004). Head of government - A. Ouyahia (since April 2004).
Parliament - a bicameral legislative body. The Council of the Nation consists of 144 deputies (term - 6 years, renewed every 3 years by 1/2 of the composition; 2/3 of members are elected through indirect and secret elections from the members of local people's communal assemblies). The National People's Assembly (lower house) consists of 389 deputies (term - 5 years). Chairman of the Council of the Nation - Abdelkader Bensalah (since July 2002). Chairman of the National People's Assembly - Amar Saadani (since June 2004).
Main political parties: National Liberation Front (FLN), National Democratic Rally, Front of Socialist Forces, Rally for Culture and Democracy, Movement for Society for Peace, An-Nahda movement. The formation of parties on religious, linguistic, racial, gender, corporate, or regional bases is prohibited.
Main public organizations: General Union of Algerian Workers, National Union of Algerian Farmers, National Union of Algerian Youth, National Union of Algerian Women, National Organization of Mujahideen.
Since the 8th century BC, part of the country's coastline was part of Carthage. At the turn of the 3rd-2nd centuries BC, an independent state of Numidia existed on the territory of modern Algeria. From the mid-1st century BC, coastal areas became provinces of the Roman Empire. In the 5th century AD, they were captured by the Vandals, in the 6th century - by the Byzantines. In the 7th century, Algeria was included in the Arab Caliphate, in the 8th century it was divided among small feudal-theocratic principalities, and then was under the rule of various Arab dynasties. In the early 16th century, it became part of the Ottoman Empire.
From 1830 to 1962, Algeria was a colony of France. The liberation movement, which had practically not ceased all these years, gained particular momentum after World War II. The armed struggle for independence, which began on November 1, 1954, led by the FLN, ended with the signing of the Evian Accords on March 18, 1962, and then the proclamation of Algeria's independence on July 5, 1962. On September 25, 1962, the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria was proclaimed. Until the mid-1980s, the authorities of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria generally managed to control the situation in the country; however, a consistent decline in the standard of living of the population exacerbated internal tensions and was exploited by rapidly rising Islamist groups for their interests.
In December 1991, Algeria held its first parliamentary elections on a multiparty basis, which were marked by the main opposition organization - the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) gaining a significant number of seats in parliament in the first round. The election results were annulled, the FIS was banned, its leaders were arrested, and a state of emergency was declared. Over 12 years, according to official data, more than 100,000 Algerian citizens and 137 foreigners became victims of armed confrontation in the country, about 1 million people were forced to leave their homes, and the economic damage from the actions of Islamists is estimated at $20 billion. President A. Bouteflika, prioritizing non-violent methods to lead the country out of the political and socio-economic crisis, proclaimed a line for the swift achievement of intra-Algerian reconciliation and civil agreement. As part of this course, several thousand former members of armed Islamic groups (from among those who did not take direct part in mass killings and terrorist acts) were granted amnesty, and on July 13, 1999, a law on civil concord came into force, which received support from the overwhelming majority of the population during the nationwide referendum held on September 16, 1999. In January 2000, in exchange for full amnesty for its members, the Islamic Salvation Army (the military wing of the FIS) disbanded. On September 29, 2005, a referendum approved the Charter of Peace and National Reconciliation. However, extremists continue to assert themselves through reprisals against residents of rural areas, explosions, and murders in cities.
Since 1962, Algeria has been a member of the UN and the Arab League, and is part of the African Union, OIC, NAM, OPEC, and Group 77 + China.
In independent Algeria, natural resources, industry, transport, and banks were nationalized; the foundations of a modern industry were created in a relatively short time. The state sector holds dominant positions in the economy. The private sector predominates in light and food industries (70-90%), construction (60%), services, wholesale and retail trade (up to 80%), and agriculture (80%). GDP - $69.3 billion, growth rate - 4.4% (2004).
The leading industry is oil extraction (59.3 million tons in 2004) and natural gas (144.3 billion m³ in 2004), as well as iron ore, phosphates, and non-ferrous metals. The manufacturing industry is represented by enterprises in metallurgy, machine engineering, oil refining, chemical, and electrical engineering sectors, as well as enterprises for the processing of agricultural raw materials.
Agriculture (10-12% of GDP), despite generally favorable natural conditions, only meets 73% of the country's food needs. Since the late 1980s, the leadership of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria has been implementing a transition of the economy to market principles. Within the framework of reforms, the autonomy of state enterprises is being expanded, and many of them are being transferred to joint-stock and private ownership. A policy of actively attracting foreign capital is being implemented. Restrictions on foreign investments in the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, including profit repatriation, have been lifted, and a decision has been made to allow foreign capital into the oil and gas industry. Since 1991, economic transformations have been carried out with the consideration of recommendations from international financial organizations, primarily the IMF. As a result of the agrarian reform carried out in 1988, state farms of the socialist type were dissolved, and about 22,000 small cooperatives were created on their basis. Some land was transferred to individual farmers.
The length of paved roads is over 50,000 km, and railways are about 4,000 km. There are 31 airfields in operation.
The main foreign trade partners are developed Western countries (EU - about 60%, USA - 17%). Foreign trade turnover - $49.9 billion (2004). Exports include oil and petroleum products (revenues from sales amounted to about $33.5 billion in 2004), liquefied gas, wine, citrus fruits, cork, building materials, and others. Imports include machinery and equipment, food, consumer goods.
The financial situation of Algeria is determined by revenues from oil and gas exports (up to 98% of foreign currency receipts and about 2/3 of the revenue part of the state budget). As a result of negotiations between the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria and the IMF, Paris Club, and London Club, agreements have been reached on the rescheduling of most of Algeria's debt. In 2004, external debt was reduced to $18.8 billion. The country's gold and foreign currency reserves amount to over $42 billion (2004).
The consequences of the acute internal political crisis in the country have not yet been overcome, exacerbating the socio-economic problems of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria and causing the impoverishment of the population (according to official data, about 7 million Algerians live on the brink or below the poverty line), an increase in the number of unemployed (27% of the working-age population, mainly youth; more than 1 million Algerians are forced to seek work in France and other Western European countries), and deepening property stratification in society.
Algeria has achieved significant progress in education. There are 8 universities (including in Algiers, Annaba, Oran, Constantine), 170 other higher educational institutions, and 700 vocational and technical education centers. Since 1974, free medical care has been introduced.
About 60 printed publications are issued in the country (total circulation of about 1.7 million copies).
Daily newspapers in Arabic: "El-Shaab", "El-Khabar", and others; in French: "El-Moudjahid", "El-Watan", "Le Matin", "Le Quotidien d'Oran", and others. The state information agency is Algeria Press Service (APS). The national television and radio broadcasting company provides programming throughout the country.