Algerian Flag

The Menas Associates country fact file page is devised to provide our readers with a checklist of information about the history, people, government, economy, geography, military and transnational issues affecting each one of the countries we write about.

Time: UTC + 1
Area: 2,381,741 km ²
Population: 34,895,000
Currency: Algerian dinar (DZD)
Capital: Algiers (El Djezaïr)
Official language: Arabic
Geography: Algeria is located between Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia, and is the second largest country in Africa (after Sudan)
Borders: Libya (982 km), Mali (1,376 km), Mauritania (463 km), Morocco (1,559 km), Niger (956 km), Tunisia (965 km), Western Sahara (42 km)
Government: Republic (independent from France since 1962)
President: Abdelaziz Bouteflika (since 1999)
Parliament: Bicameral; consisting of a lower chamber; the National People's Assembly (APN), (380 members); and an upper chamber; the Council Of Nation, (144 members)
Military: President, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, is the commander-in-chief of the military
Religion: Sunni Muslim (99%), Christian and Jewish (1%)
Demographics: Algeria has 48 provinces, 553 districts and 1,541 municipalities
Exports: petroleum, natural gas and petroleum products (97%)
Export partners: US (23.9%), Italy (15.5 %), Spain (11.4%), France (8%), Netherlands (7.8%), Canada (6.8%)
Imports: capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods
Import partners: France (16.5%), Italy (11%), China (10.3 %), Spain (7.4%), Germany (6.1%), US (5.5%)
Economy: hydrocarbons account for approx 60% of budget revenues, 30% of GDP and over 95% of export earnings
Electricity consumption/production/exports/imports: 28.34 billion kWh, 34.98 billion kWh, 273 million kWh, 279 million kWh
Oil consumption/production/exports/imports: 299,000 b/d, 2.18 million b/d, 1.891 million b/d, 14,320 b/d
Natural gas consumption/production/exports/imports: 26.83 billion m³, 86.5 billion m³, 59.67 billion m³, 0 m³
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc
Agriculture: 25% of Algerians are employed in the agricultural sector
Concerns: large-scale unemployment, a shortage of housing, unreliable electrical and water supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption and the continuing activities of extremist militants.

* All the above data is selected from statistical review journals, published in the latter part of 2008/9. Therefore, please note that some facts/figures may vary according to source/time of documentation.