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Algeria |
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| Background: |
After a century of rule by France, Algeria became independent in 1962.
The surprising first round success of the fundamentalist FIS (Islamic
Salvation Front) party in the December 1991 balloting caused the army
to intervene, crack down on the FIS, and postpone the subsequent elections.
The fundamentalist response has resulted in a continuous low-grade civil
conflict with the secular state apparatus, which nonetheless has allowed
elections featuring pro-government and moderate religious-based parties.
The FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, disbanded in January
2000 and many armed militants of other groups surrendered under an amnesty
program designed to promote national reconciliation. Nevertheless, small
numbers of armed militants persist in confronting government forces
and carrying out isolated attacks on villages and other types of terrorist
attacks. Other concerns include Berber unrest, large-scale unemployment,
a shortage of housing, and the need to diversify the petroleum-based
economy. |
| Location: |
Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and
Tunisia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
28 00 N, 3 00 E |
| Map
references: |
Africa
|
| Area: |
total: 2,381,740 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land:
2,381,740 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
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: |
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 NM
territorial sea:
12 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: 3.21%
permanent crops: 0.21%
other: 96.58% (1998 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
5,600 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods
in rainy season |
| 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 |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed,
but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban |
| Geography
- note: |
second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan)
|
| Population: |
32,818,500 (July 2003 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years: 32.8% (male 5,485,197; female 5,285,434)
15-64 years: 63% (male 10,460,475; female 10,224,389)
65
years and over: 4.2% (male 624,839; female 738,166) (2003 est.)
|
| Median
age: |
total: 22.5 years
male: 22.3 years
female:
22.6 years (2002) |
| Population
growth rate: |
1.65% (2003 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
21.94 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
5.09 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
total population:
1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
total: 37.74 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
35.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 40.34 deaths/1,000
live births |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population: 70.54 years
male: 69.14 years
female: 72.01 years (2003 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.55 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1% |
| 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: 70%
male: 78.8%
female: 61%
(2003 est.)
|
| 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 fifth-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and
is the second-largest gas exporter; it ranks 14th in oil reserves. Algeria's
financial and economic indicators improved during the mid-1990s, in
part because of policy reforms supported by the IMF and debt rescheduling
from the Paris Club. Algeria's finances in 2000-03 benefited from substantial
trade surpluses, record foreign exchange reserves, and reductions in
foreign debt. 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. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $167 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
3% (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $5,300 (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
8%
industry: 60%
services: 32% (2002 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
23% (1999 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): |
3% (2002 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
9.4 million (2001 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
government 29%, agriculture 25%, construction and public works 15%,
industry 11%, other 20% (1996 est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
31% (2002 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$20.3 billion
expenditures: $18.8 billion, including capital
expenditures of $5.8 billion (2001 est.) |
| Industries: |
petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical,
food processing |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
6% (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle |
| Exports: |
$19.5 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97% |
| Exports
- partners: |
Italy 22.8%, France 14.6%, Spain 13.9%, US 13.9%, Brazil (2001) |
| Imports: |
$10.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
| Imports
- partners: |
France 37.3%, US 11.3%, Italy 10.0%, Germany 7.6%, Spain (2001) |
| Debt
- external: |
$21.6 billion (2002 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$162 million (2000 est.) |
| Currency: |
Algerian dinar (DZD) |
| Currency
code: |
DZD |
| Exchange
rates: |
Algerian dinars per US dollar - 79.6819 (2002), 77.215 (2001), 75.2598
(2000), 66.5739 (1999), 58.739 (1998) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year
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