1989 Edition

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

tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages 1 24 inches; rainy season from November to April, dry season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation

Coastline

998 km

116 km

Comparative area

slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas

slightly larger than Washington, DC

Contiguous zone

1 2 nm

Continental shelf

200 m

Defense expenditures

1 . 1 billion leks, 1 1.3% of total budget (FY88); note— conversion of the military budget into US dollars using the official administratively set exchange rate would produce misleading results 500 fcm Mediterranean Sea Stt rctionil mip VII

Disputes

Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in southeastern Algeria

Environment

mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; desertification

typhoons common from December to March

Extended economic zone

200 nm

Land boundaries

6,343 km total; Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km, Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km. Western Sahara 42 km

none

Land use

3% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 13% meadows and pastures; 2% forest and woodland; 82% other; includes NEGL% irrigated

10% arable land; 5% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 75% forest and woodland; 10% other

Natural resources

crude oil, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc

pumice and pumicite

Note

second largest country in Africa (after Sudan)

Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location about 3,700 km south-southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand

Terrain

mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow, discontinuous coastal plain

five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls

Territorial sea

1 2 nm

1 2 nm

Total area

2,381,740 km2; land area: 2,381,740 km2

199 km2; land area: 199 km2

Birth rate

37 births/ 1,000 population (1990)

41 births/ 1,000 population (1990)

Death rate

9 deaths/ 1, 000 population (1990)

4 deaths/ 1,000 population (1990)

Ethnic divisions

99% Arab-Berber, less than 1% European

90% Samoan (Polynesian), 2% Caucasian, 2% Tongan, 6% other

Infant mortality rate

87 deaths/ 1,000 live births (1990)

1 1 deaths/ 1,000 live births (1990)

Labor force

3,700,000; 40% industry and commerce, 24% agriculture, 1 7% government, 10% services (1984) Organized labor 16-19% of labor force claimed; General Union of Algerian Workers (UGTA) is the only labor organization and is subordinate to the National Liberation Front

10,000; 48% government, 33% tuna canneries, 19% other (1986 est.)

Language

Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects

Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages) and English; most people are bilingual

Life expectancy at birth

61 years male, 64 years female (1990)

69 years male, 74 years female (1990)

Literacy

52%

99%

Nationality

noun — Algerian(s); adjective — Algerian

noun — American Samoan(s); adjective — American Samoan

Net migration rate

0 migrants/ 1 ,000 population (1990)

— 8 immigrants/ 1 ,000 population (1990)

Note

about 65,000 American Samoans live in the States of California and Washington and 20,000 in Hawaii

Organized labor

NA

Population

25,566,507 (July 1990), growth rate 2.8% (1990)

41,840 (July 1990), growth rate 2.9% (1990)

Religion

99% Sunni Muslim (state religion); 1% Christian and Jewish

about 50% Christian Congregationalist, 20% Roman Catholic, 30% mostly Protestant denominations and other

Total fertility rate

5.4 children born/ woman (1990)

5.4 children born/ woman (1990)

Administrative divisions

3 1 provinces ( wilayat, singular — wilaya); Adrar, Alger, Annaba, Batna, Bechar, BejaYa, Biskra, Blida, Bouira, Constantino, Djelfa, El Asnam, Guelma, Jijel, Laghouat, Mascara, Medea, Mostaganem, M'sila, Oran, Ouargla, Oum el Bouaghi, Saida, Setif, Sidi Bel Abbes, Skikda, Tamanrasset, Tebessa, Tiaret, Tizi Ouzou, Tlemcen; note — there may now be 48 provinces with El Asnam abolished, and the addition of 18 new provinces named Ain Delfa, Ain Temouchent, Bordjbou, Boumerdes, Chief, El Bayadh, El Oued, El Tarf, Illizi, Jijel, Khenchela, Mila, Naama, Relizane, Souk Ahras, Tindouf, Tipaza, Tissemsilt

Capital

Algiers

Communists

400 (est.); Communist party banned 1962

Constitution

19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Abderrahmane BENSID; Chancery at 2118 Kalorama Road NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 328-5300; US — Ambassador Christopher W. S. ROSS; Embassy at 4 Chemin Cheich Bachir Brahimi, Algiers (mailing address is B. P. Box 549, Alger-Gare, 16000 Algiers); telephone [213] (2) 601-425 or 255, 186; there is a US Consulate in Oran

Elections

President — last held on 22 December 1988 (next to be held December 1993); results— President Bendjedid was reelected without opposition; People 's National Assembly — last held on 26 February 1987 (next to be held by February 1992); results — FLN was the only party; seats— (281 total) FLN 281; note — the government has promised to hold multiparty elections (municipal and wilaya) in June 1990, the first in Algerian history

Executive branch

president, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Flag

two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and white with a red five-pointed star within a red crescent; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam (the state religion)

Independence

5 July 1962 (from France)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)

Leaders

Chief of State— President Chadli BENDJEDID (since 7 February 1979); Head of Government — Prime Minister Mouloud HAMROUCHE (since 9 September 1989) Political parties and leaders: National Liberation Front (FLN), Col. Chadli Bendjedid, chairman; Abdelhamid Mehri, secretary general; the government established a multiparty system in September 1989 and as of 1 February 1990 19 legal parties existed

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

Legislative branch

unicameral National People's Assembly (Assembled Nationale Populaire)

Long-form name

Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria

Territory of American

Member of

AfDB, AIOEC, Arab League, ASSIMER, CCC, FAO, G-77, GATT (de facto), IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB— Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, ILZSG, INTERPOL, IOOC, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, QIC, OPEC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

National holiday

Anniversary of the Revolution, 1 November (1954)

Suffrage

universal at age 18

Type

republic

Agriculture

accounts for 8% of GDP and employs 24% of labor force; net importer of food — grain, vegetable oil, and sugar; farm production includes wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits, sheep, and cattle

Aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-85), $1.4 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $8.2 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $1.8 billion; Communist countries (1970-88), $2.7 billion

Budget

revenues $17.4 billion; expenditures $22.0 billion, including capital expenditures of $8.0 billion (1988)

Currency

Algerian dinar (plural — dinars); 1 Algerian dinar (DA) = 100 centimes

Electricity

4,333,000 kW capacity; 14,370 million kWh produced, 580 kWh per capita (1989)

Exchange rates

Algerian dinars (DA) per US$1— 8.0086 (January 1990), 7.6086 (1989), 5.9148 (1988), 4.8497 (1987), 4.7023 (1986), 5.0278 (1985)

Exports

$9.1 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities — petroleum and natural gas 98%; partners — Netherlands, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Italy, France, US

External debt

$26.2 billion (December 1989)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

$54.1 billion, per capita $2,235; real growth rate -1.8% (1988)

Imports

$7.8 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities — capital goods 35%, consumer goods 36%, food 20%; partners — France 25%, Italy 8%, FRG 8%, US 6-7%

Industrial production

growth rate 5.4% (1986)

Industries

petroleum, light industries, natural gas, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

5.9% (1988)

Overview

The exploitation of oil and natural gas products forms the backbone of the economy. Algeria depends on hydrocarbons for nearly all of its export receipts, about 30% of government revenues, and nearly 25% of GDP. In 1973-74 the sharp increase in oil prices led to a booming economy that helped to finance an ambitious program of industrialization. Plunging oil and gas prices, combined with the mismanagement of Algeria's highly centralized economy, have brought the nation to its most serious social and economic crisis since independence. The government has promised far-reaching reforms, including giving public sector companies more autonomy, encouraging private-sector activity, boosting gas and nonhydrocarbon exports, and a major overhaul of the banking and financial systems. In 1988 the government started to implement a new economic policy to dismantle large state farms into privately operated units.

Unemployment rate

19% (1988)

Airports

147 total, 136 usable; 53 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,660 m; 29 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 68 with runways 1,2202,439 m

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie

Civil air

42 major transport aircraft

Defense expenditures

1 .8% of GDP, or $974 million (1989 est.) American Samoa (territory of the US) .S wains Island South Pacific Ocean Tutuila 'PAGO PAGO Olosega Olu" 0T la u Pose Island

Highways

80,000 km total; 60,000 km concrete or bituminous, 20,000 km gravel, crushed stone, unimproved earth

Merchant marine

75 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 900,957 GRT/ 1,063,994 DWT; includes 5 passenger, 27 cargo, 2 vehicle carrier, 10 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 5 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 9 liquefied gas, 7 chemical tanker, 9 bulk, 1 specialized liquid cargo

Military manpower

males 15-49, 5,886,334; 3,638,458 fit for military service; 293,476 reach military age (19) annually

Pipelines

crude oil, 6,612 km; refined products, 298 km; natural gas, 2,948 km

Ports

Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejai'a, Jijel, Mers el Kebir, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda

Railroads

4,146 km total; 2,632 km standard gauge (1.435 m), 1,258 km 1.055meter gauge, 256 km 1 .000-meter gauge; 300 km electrified; 215 km double track

Telecommunications

excellent domestic and international service in the north, sparse in the south; 693,000 telephones; stations— 26 AM, no FM, 113 TV; 1,550,000 TV sets; 3,500,000 receiver sets; 6 submarine cables; coaxial cable or radio relay to Italy, France, Spain, Morocco, and Tunisia; satellite earth stations — 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Intersputnik, 1 ARABSAT, and 15 domestic Defense Forces