Algeria

Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (Jumhuriya al-Jazairiya ad-Dimuqratiya ash-Shabiya) is a country in North Africa, the largest of the countries that make up the Maghreb region.

History

Algeria was controlled by the French from the early part of the 19th century until, after 8 years of fighting between French forces and nationalists led by the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN), independence was conceded by France. The Algerian War (1954-1962) was complex in that it was both a war of national independence, but with three major sides: after French policy moved toward Algerian independence, other French factions in Algeria actively fought against independence while the French colonial administration had different goals. The 1954-1962 war was, even among wars, considered a dirty one. It was distinguished by having a formal policy of torture articulated by Colonel Roger Trinquier of the French Army.

International relations

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been in office since April 1999 following disputed elections, and was re-elected, first in 2004, and again in 2009 after the government had amended the constitution to remove restrictions on presidential term limits.

Algeria continues to suffer from transnational threats. While, like most "franchises" of al-Qaeda, there is no specific mailing address for al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, it is most often placed in Algeria. A number of other radical Islamist, transborder groups, have Algerian ties, such as the Armed Islamic Group.

In all fairness, Algerian diplomats enjoy considerable if deliberately low-key respect. There have been a number of cases, both in bilateral and multinational situations, where Algerians, such as Lakhdar Brahimi, are regarded as honest brokers between radicals and more established groups.

Geography

Algeria is the second largest country in Africa, and the eleventh largest country in the world. It is bordered to the Noth by the Mediterranean Sea, to the East by Tunisia and Libya, to the south by Niger and Mali, and to the west by Mauritania and Morocco. It has almost 1000km of coastline and has an area of 2,381,741sq km.

The fertile lands of Algeria are situated to the North, along the coast. To the south are the forested mountainous ranges of the Tellian and Saharan Atlas, rising to over 2000m, and then the Sahara desert which covers around 80% of the country. In the extreme south the desert is interrupted by two mountain ranges, the largest rising to just over 3,000m at the summit of Mt. Tahat, Algeria's highest peak. The mountainous areas of the North, which form part of the Atlas Mountains, remain geologically unstable and liable to severe earthquakes.

The climate of the coastal plain, known as the Tel, is typically Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and warm, wet winters during which most of the annual rainfall occurs. The northern mountainous areas, once forested in their entirety, experience less rainfall and have suffered from over-exploitation, now supporting forests only in higher, more isolated parts. South of the Saharan Atlas the climate is significantly more arid, with average yearly rainfall less than 130mm, and in some central desert areas less than 10mm.

Economy

Agriculture in Algeria is mostly confined to the coastal areas, which provide cereals, fruits and vegetables, and support the production of wine. Dates are cultivated both in the north and in the oases of the Sahara to the south. Algeria has a strong trade in mineral resources, especially petroleum and natural gas, which in 2004 made up over 40% of the gross domestic product (GDP). In 2008 Algeria's GDP was almost 160bn U.S. dollars, a per capita product of around 6,900 dollars.

Population

The 2008 census in Algeria reported a population of 34.8 million people, of which more than 90% live on the Tel, the Mediterranean coastal plain.

The majority of the population speak Arabic, with the remainder speaking mostly the Berber language, Tamazight. Since 1996 Arabic has been the only official language, although Tamazight was promoted to the status of national language in 2002. French remains common, especially for official transactions.