Algeria (2006) | Norfolk Island (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.1% (male 4,722,076/female 4,539,713)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 11,133,802/female 10,964,502) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 735,444/female 834,554) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry |
Airports | 142 (2006) | 1 (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 (2006) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 90
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 26 914 to 1,523 m: 39 under 914 m: 23 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 2,381,740 sq km
land: 2,381,740 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC |
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 crack down 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 - although significantly degraded - activities of extremist militants. 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. | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. |
Birth rate | 17.14 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues: $42.05 billion
expenditures: $30.75 billion; including capital expenditures of $5.8 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues: $4.6 million
expenditures: $4.8 million (FY99/00) |
Capital | name: Algiers
geographic coordinates: 36 47 N, 2 03 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 29 03 S, 167 58 E time difference: UTC+11.5 (16.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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 | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 998 km | 32 km |
Constitution | 8 September 1963; revised 19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976; revised 3 November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996 | Norfolk Island Act of 1979, as amended in 2005 |
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 |
conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
Death rate | 4.61 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $19.45 billion (2005 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Attorney-General's Department |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Robert S. FORD
embassy: 04 Chemin Cheikh Bachir Ibrahimi El-Biar 16030, Algiers mailing address: B. P. 408, Alger-Gare, 16030 Algiers telephone: [213] (021) 69-12-55 FAX: [213] (021) 69-39-79 |
none (territory of Australia) |
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 |
none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | Algeria supports the exiled Sahrawi Polisario Front and rejects Moroccan administration of Western Sahara; most of the approximately 102,000 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; in an attempt to improve relations, Morocco, in mid-2004, unilaterally lifted the requirement that Algerians visiting Morocco possess entry visas - a gesture not reciprocated by Algeria; 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $122.8 million (2002 est.) | $NA |
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 seventh-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and is the second-largest gas exporter; it ranks 14th in oil reserves. Sustained high oil prices in recent years, along with macroeconomic policy reforms supported by the IMF, have helped improve Algeria's financial and macroeconomic indicators. Algeria is running substantial trade surpluses and building up record foreign exchange reserves. 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. The population is becoming increasingly restive due to the lack of jobs and housing and frequently stages protests, which have resulted in arrests and injuries, including some deaths as government forces intervened to restore order. 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. | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. |
Electricity - consumption | 24.9 billion kWh (2003 est.) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 400 million kWh (2003 est.) | - |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2003 est.) | - |
Electricity - production | 26.99 billion kWh (2003 est.) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
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 | NA |
Environment - international agreements | 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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | 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 |
descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesian |
Exchange rates | Algerian dinars per US dollar - 73.276 (2005), 72.061 (2004), 77.395 (2003), 79.682 (2002), 77.215 (2001) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2137 (2007), 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003) |
Executive branch | 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% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | 1.127 million bbl/day (2004 est.) | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY91/92) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97% | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados |
Exports - partners | US 22.8%, Italy 16.2%, Spain 10.4%, France 10%, Canada 8%, Brazil 6.1%, Belgium 4.4%, Germany 4.2% (2005) | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam (the state religion) | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10.1%
industry: 60% services: 29.8% (2005 est.) |
- |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2005 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 28 00 N, 3 00 E | 29 02 S, 167 57 E |
Geography - note | second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan) | most of the 32 km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated |
Heliports | 1 (2006) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 26.8% (1995) |
- |
Imports | 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods | NA |
Imports - partners | France 28.2%, Italy 7.8%, Spain 7.1%, China 6.6%, Germany 6.3%, US 5.5% (2005) | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2006) |
Independence | 5 July 1962 (from France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2005 est.) | - |
Industries | petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete |
Infant mortality rate | total: 29.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 33.62 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.9% (2005 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, BIS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | UPU |
Irrigated land | 5,690 sq km (2003) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions |
Labor force | 10.15 million (2005 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 14%, industry 13.4%, construction and public works 10%, trade 14.6%, government 32%, other 16% (2003 est.) | agriculture: 10%
industry and services: 90% |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.17%
permanent crops: 0.28% other: 96.55% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects | English (official), Norfolk - a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian |
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 | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consisting of the National People's Assembly or Al-Majlis Ech-Chaabi Al-Watani (389 seats - formerly 380 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; members serve six-year terms; the constitution requires half the council to be renewed every three years)
elections: National People's Assembly - last held 30 May 2002 (next to be held in 2007); Council of Nations (Senate) - last held 30 December 2003 (next to be held in 2006) election results: National People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FLN 199, RND 47, Islah 43, MSP 38, PT 21, FNA 8, EnNahda 1, PRA 1, MEN 1, independents 30; Council of Nations - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party NA |
unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.26 years
male: 71.68 years female: 74.92 years (2006 est.) |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70% male: 78.8% female: 61% (2003 est.) |
NA |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 41 ships (1000 GRT or over) 744,406 GRT/766,764 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 7, cargo 10, chemical tanker 2, liquefied gas 9, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 3, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 13 (UK 13) (2006) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | National Popular Army (ANP; includes Land Forces), Algerian National Navy (MRA), Air Force (QJJ), Territorial Air Defense Force (2005) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3 billion (2005 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.2% (2005 est.) | - |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 1 November (1954) | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) |
Nationality | noun: Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian |
noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
Natural hazards | mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy season | typhoons (especially May to July) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc | fish |
Net migration rate | -0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Pipelines | condensate 1,344 km; gas 85,946 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,213 km; oil 6,496 km (2005) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Algerian National Front or FNA [Moussa TOUATI]; National Democratic Rally (Rassemblement National Democratique) or RND [Ahmed OUYAHIA, secretary general]; 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) [Abdellah DJABALLAH]; National Renewal Party or PRA [Yacine TERKMANE]; Progressive Republican Party [Khadir DRISS]; Rally for Culture and Democracy or RCD [Said SADI]; Renaissance Movement or EnNahda Movement [Fatah RABEI]; Socialist Forces Front or FFS [Hocine Ait AHMED, secretary general]; Social Liberal Party or PSL [Ahmed KHELIL]; Society of Peace Movement or MSP [Boudjerra SOLTANI]; Workers Party or PT [Louisa HANOUN]
note: a law banning political parties based on religion was enacted in March 1997 |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | The Algerian Human Rights League or LADH or LADDH [Yahia Ali ABDENOUR]; SOS Disparus [Nacera DUTOUR]; Somoud [Ali MERABET] | none |
Population | 32,930,091 (July 2006 est.) | 2,114 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25% (2005 est.) | - |
Population growth rate | 1.22% (2006 est.) | 0.006% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 25, FM 1, shortwave 8 (1999) | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) |
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 (2005) |
- |
Religions | Sunni Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1% | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.2%, none 18.1% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: telephone density in Algeria is very low, not exceeding five telephones per 100 persons; the number of fixed main lines increased in the last few years to nearly 2.6 million, but only about two-thirds of these have subscribers; much of the infrastructure is outdated and inefficient
domestic: good service in north but sparse in south; domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations (20 additional domestic earth stations are planned) international: country code - 213; submarine cables - 5; 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) (2005) |
general assessment: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia and New Zealand; satellite earth station |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2.572 million (2005) | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 13.661 million (2005) | 0; note - proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 46 (plus 216 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (local programming station plus 2 repeaters that air Australian programs by satellite) (2005) |
Terrain | mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.89 children born/woman (2006 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | 17.1% (2005 est.) | - |