 |
Algeria Reference Map and Information
Note -- This Algeria reference map and supplemental information have been modified and reformatted from the CIA World Factbook -- available in the public domain.
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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), 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 did not appease the activists who progressively widened
their attacks. The fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw
intense fighting between 1992-98 and which resulted 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. However, small numbers of armed militants persist in confronting
government forces and conducting ambushes and occasional attacks on
villages. The army placed Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA in the presidency in
1999 in a fraudulent election but claimed neutrality in his 2004
landslide reelection victory. Longstanding problems continue to face
BOUTEFLIKA in his second term, including the ethnic minority Berbers'
ongoing autonomy campaign, large-scale unemployment, a shortage of
housing, unreliable electrical and water supplies, government
inefficiencies and corruption, and the continuing activities of
extremist militants. The 2006 merger of the Salafist Group for
Preaching and Combat (GSPC) with al-Qaida (followed by a change of name
to al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb) signaled an increase
in bombings, including high-profile, mass-casualty suicide attacks
targeted against the Algerian government and Western interests. Algeria
must also diversify its petroleum-based economy, which has yielded a
large cash reserve but which has not been used to redress Algeria's
many social and infrastructure problems. |
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Location:
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Northern
Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia |
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Geographic coordinates:
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28
00 N, 3 00 E |
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Map references:
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Africa
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Area:
|
total:
2,381,740 sq km
land: 2,381,740 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
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slightly
less than 3.5 times the size of Texas |
|
Land boundaries:
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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:
|
998
km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm |
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Climate:
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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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Terrain:
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mostly
high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow, discontinuous coastal
plain |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m |
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Natural resources:
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petroleum,
natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 3.17%
permanent crops: 0.28%
other: 96.55% (2005) |
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Irrigated land:
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5,690
sq km (2003) |
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Total renewable water resources:
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14.3
cu km (1997) |
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Freshwater withdrawal
(domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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Total:
6.07 cu km/yr (22%/13%/65%)
Per capita: 185 cu m/yr (2000) |
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Natural hazards:
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mountainous
areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy
season |
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Environment - current issues:
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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:
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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:
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second-largest
country in Africa (after Sudan) |
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Population:
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33,333,216
(July 2007 est.) |
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Age structure:
|
0-14
years: 27.2% (male 4,627,479/female 4,447,468)
15-64 years: 67.9% (male 11,413,121/female
11,235,096)
65 years and over: 4.8% (male 752,058/female
857,994) (2007 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
25.5 years
male: 25.2 years
female: 25.7 years (2007 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.216%
(2007 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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17.11
births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Death rate:
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4.62
deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-0.33
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.016 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female
total population: 1.015 male(s)/female (2007
est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
28.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.45 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2007
est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
|
total
population: 73.52 years
male: 71.91 years
female: 75.21 years (2007 est.) |
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Major infectious diseases:
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degree
of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial
diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: cutaneous leishmaniasis
is a high risk in some locations (2007) |
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Nationality:
|
noun:
Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian |
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Ethnic groups:
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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:
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Sunni
Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1% |
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Languages:
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Arabic
(official), French, Berber dialects |
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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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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:
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republic
|
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Capital:
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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:
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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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Independence:
|
5
July 1962 (from France) |
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National holiday:
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Revolution
Day, 1 November (1954) |
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Constitution:
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8
September 1963; revised 19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976;
revised 3 November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996 |
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Legal system:
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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:
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18
years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief
of state: President Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA (since 28 April
1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Abdelaziz
BELKHADEM
cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the
president
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8
April 2004 (next to be held in April 2009); prime minister appointed by
the president
election results: Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA
reelected president for second term; percent of vote - Abdelaziz
BOUTEFLIKA 85%, Ali BENFLIS 6.4%, Abdellah DJABALLAH 5% |
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral
Parliament consists of the National People's Assembly or Al-Majlis
Al-Shabi Al-Watani (389 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms) and the Council of Nations (Senate) (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)
elections: National People's Assembly - last
held 17 May 2007 (next to be held in 2012); Council of Nations (Senate)
- last held 28 December 2006 (next to be held in 2009)
election results: 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; Council of
Nations - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FLN 29, RND
12, MSP 3, RCD 1, independents 3, presidential appointees (unknown
affiliation) 24; note - Council seating reflects the number of replaced
council members rather than the whole Council |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme
Court |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Ahd
54 [Ali Fauzi REBAINE]; Algerian National Front or FNA [Moussa TOUATI];
National Democratic Rally (Rassemblement National Democratique) or RND
[Ahmed OUYAHIA]; Islamic Salvation Front or FIS (outlawed April 1992)
[Ali BELHADJ, Dr. Abassi MADANI, Rabeh KEBIR]; National Entente
Movement or MEN [Ali BOUKHAZNA]; National Liberation Front or FLN
[Abdelaziz BELKHADEM, secretary general]; National Reform Movement or
Islah (formerly MRN) [Mohamed BOULAHIA]; National Renewal Party or PRA
[Mohamed BENSMAIL]; Rally for Culture and Democracy or RCD [Said SADI];
Renaissance Movement or EnNahda Movement [Fatah RABEI]; Socialist
Forces Front or FFS [Hocine Ait AHMED]; Social Liberal Party or PSL
[Ahmed KHELIL]; Society of Peace Movement or MSP [Boudjerra SOLTANI];
Workers Party or PT [Louisa HANOUNE]
note: a law banning political parties based on
religion was enacted in March 1997 |
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Political pressure groups and
leaders:
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The
Algerian Human Rights League or LADDH [Hocine ZEHOUANE]; SOS Disparus
[Nacera DUTOUR]; Somoud [Ali MERABET] |
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International organization
participation:
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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, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner),
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO (observer) |
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Diplomatic representation in the
US:
|
chief
of mission: Ambassador Amine KHERBI
chancery: 2118 Kalorama Road NW, Washington,
DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 265-2800
FAX: [1] (202) 667-2174 |
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Diplomatic representation from
the US:
|
chief
of mission: Ambassador Robert S. FORD
embassy: 5 Chemin Cheikh Bachir, El-Ibrahimi,
El-Biar 16000 Algiers
mailing address: B. P. 408, Alger-Gare, 16030
Algiers
telephone: [213] 70-08-2000
FAX: [213] 21-60-7355 |
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Flag description:
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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
note: the crescent, star, and color green are
traditional symbols of Islam (the state religion) |
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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 14th 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 10% 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):
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$268.9
billion (2007 est.) |
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GDP (official exchange rate):
|
$95.93
billion (2007 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
|
4.6%
(2007 est.) |
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$8,100
(2007 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
8.1%
industry: 61%
services: 30.9% (2007 est.) |
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Labor force:
|
9.38
million (2007 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:
|
14.1%
(2007 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
|
25%
(2005 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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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
4.6%
(2007 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
|
23.5%
of GDP (2007 est.) |
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Budget:
|
revenues:
$58.5 billion
expenditures: $41.35 billion (2007 est.) |
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Public debt:
|
9.7%
of GDP (2007 est.) |
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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:
|
5%
(2007 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
|
31.91
billion kWh (2005 est.) |
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Electricity - production by
source:
|
fossil
fuel: 99.7%
hydro: 0.3%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001) |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
27.52
billion kWh (2005 est.) |
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Electricity - exports:
|
275
million kWh (2005 est.) |
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Electricity - imports:
|
359
million kWh (2005 est.) |
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Oil - production:
|
2.09
million bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
|
250,000
bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
|
1.724
million bbl/day (2004 est.) |
|
Oil - imports:
|
12,390
bbl/day (2004 est.) |
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Oil - proved reserves:
|
11.35
billion bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
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Natural gas - production:
|
84.4
billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption:
|
21.8
billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - exports:
|
62.6
billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - imports:
|
0
cu m (2005) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
4.359
trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
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Current account balance:
|
$31.5
billion (2007 est.) |
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Exports:
|
$63.3
billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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petroleum,
natural gas, and petroleum products 97% |
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Exports - partners:
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US
27.3%, Italy 17.1%, Spain 9.4%, France 8.8%, Canada 8.2%, Belgium 4.3%
(2006) |
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Imports:
|
$26.08
billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
|
Imports - commodities:
|
capital
goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
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Imports - partners:
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France
22.1%, Italy 8.6%, China 8.6%, Germany 5.9%, Spain 5.6%, US 4.8%,
Turkey 4.5% (2006) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
|
$370.6
million (2005 est.) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange and
gold:
|
$99.33
billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$3.358
billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
|
Stock of direct foreign
investment - at home:
|
$14.37
billion (2006 est.) |
|
Stock of direct foreign
investment - abroad:
|
$834
million (2006 est.) |
|
Market value of publicly traded
shares:
|
$NA
|
|
Currency (code):
|
Algerian
dinar (DZD) |
|
Currency code:
|
DZD
|
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Exchange rates:
|
Algerian
dinars per US dollar - 69.9 (2007), 72.647 (2006), 73.276 (2005),
72.061 (2004), 77.395 (2003) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
calendar
year |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
|
2.841
million (2006) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
|
20.998
million (2006) |
|
Telephone system:
|
general
assessment: a weak network of fixed-main lines, which remains
low at less than 10 telephones per 100 persons, is partially offset by
the rapid increase in mobile cellular subscribership; in 2006, combined
fixed-line and mobile telephone density surpassed 70 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 with approximately 200,000 subscribers in 2006
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) (2007) |
|
Radio broadcast stations:
|
AM
25, FM 1, shortwave 8 (1999) |
|
Radios:
|
7.1
million (1997) |
|
Television broadcast stations:
|
46
(plus 216 repeaters) (1995) |
|
Televisions:
|
3.1
million (1997) |
|
Internet country code:
|
.dz
|
|
Internet hosts:
|
2,077
(2007) |
|
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
|
2
(2000) |
|
Internet users:
|
2.46
million (2006) |
|
Airports:
|
150
(2007) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total:
52
over 3,047 m: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 27
1,524 to 2,437 m: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total:
98
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 26
914 to 1,523 m: 44
under 914 m: 25 (2007) |
|
Heliports:
|
2
(2007) |
|
Pipelines:
|
condensate
1,532 km; gas 13,861 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,408 km; oil 6,878 km
(2007) |
|
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 (2006) |
|
Roadways:
|
total:
108,302 km
paved: 76,028 km
unpaved: 32,274 km (2004) |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total:
35 ships (1000 GRT or over) 694,686 GRT/707,251 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 8, chemical
tanker 2, liquefied gas 9, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 4, roll
on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 12 (UK 12) (2007) |
|
Ports and terminals:
|
Algiers,
Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Djendjene, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda |
|
Military branches:
|
National
Popular Army (ANP; includes Land Forces), Algerian National Navy (MRA),
Air Force (QJJ), Territorial Air Defense Force (2005) |
|
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 19-49: 8,033,049
females age 19-49: 7,926,351 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower fit for military service:
|
males
age 19-49: 6,590,079
females age 19-49: 6,711,285 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower reaching military
service age annually:
|
males
age 18-49: 374,639
females age 19-49: 369,021 (2005 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - percent
of GDP:
|
3.3%
(2006) |
| Transnational Issues |
Algeria |
|
Disputes - international:
|
Algeria
supports the Polisario Front exiled in Algeria and who represent the
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic; Algeria rejects Moroccan
administration of Western Sahara; most of the approximately 90,000
Western Saharan Sahrawi refugees are sheltered in camps in Tindouf,
Algeria; 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 |
|
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: 400,000-600,000 (conflict between
government forces, Islamic insurgents) (2006) |
|
Trafficking in persons:
|
current
situation: Algeria is a transit and destination country for
men, women, and children from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia trafficked
for forced labor and sexual exploitation; many victims willingly
migrate to Algeria en route to European countries with the help of
smugglers, where they are often forced into prostitution, labor, and
begging to pay off their smuggling debt; some Algerian children are
reportedly trafficked within the country for domestic servitude
tier rating: Tier 3 - Algeria does not
adequately identify trafficking victims among illegal immigrants; the
government did not take serious law enforcement actions to punish
traffickers who force women into commercial sexual exploitation or men
into involuntary servitude; the government reported no investigations
of trafficking of children for domestic servitude or improvements in
protection services for victims of trafficking |
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This page was last
updated on 12 February, 2008
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