Study Abroad in Algeria
Algeria is the second-largest country in Africa (Sudan
being the largest) and is situated in northwestern
Africa, with the northern coastline running along the
Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered on the east by Tunisia
and Libya, on the southeast and south by Niger, on the
south and south west by Mali, on the west by
Mauritania and on the west northwest by Morocco.
The northern parallel mountain ranges of the Saharan
Tell or Maritime Atlas, comprising coastal massifs and
inland ranges, and the Saharan Atlas divide Algeria
into three longitudinal zones running generally
eastwest: the Mediterranean zone; the high plateaus; and the
Sahara which covers some 85% of the entire area. About
half of Algeria is 914 m (3,000 ft) or more above sea
level, and about 70% of the area is from 762 m
(2,500ft) to 1675m (5,500 ft) in elevation. The lowest point
is Chott Melrhir -40m and the highest Tahat at 3,003m.
Only the main rivers of the Tell have water all year
round, and even then the summer flow is small. None of
the rivers are navigable. The mountainous areas of the
High Plateaus are poorly watered; most of the rivers
and streams flow irregularly, since they depend an
erratic rainfall for water. In the High Plateaus lie many
salt marshes and dry or shallow lakes. Further south,
the land becomes increasingly arid, merging into the
completely dry Sahara desert.
Despite efforts to modernize Algerian society, the
pull of traditional values remains strong. Whether in the
city or countryside, the daily life of the average
Algerian is permeated with the atmosphere of Islam, which
has become identified with the concept of an
autonomous Algerian people and of resistance to what many
Algerians perceive as a continued Western imperialism.
Practiced largely as a set of social prescriptions and
ethical attitudes, Islam in Algeria has more
characteristically been identified with supporting traditional
values than serving a revolutionary ideology
Currency:
The currency of algeria is Algerian dinar
(DZD
Population
The population of algeria is 32,531,853 .
Population growth rate 1.22 percent (2006 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 40,254,833 (2006
estimate)
Projected population in 2050 43,983,870 (2006
estimate)
Population density 14 persons per sq km (2006
estimate)
36 persons per sq mi (2006 estimate
Languages
Arabic (official), Tamazight, Berber dialects, French
Cities
Largest cities, with population
Algiers 1,519,570 (1998)
Oran 655,852 (1998)
Constantine 462,187 (1998
Algiers - capital city of Algeria The capital city of
Algeria and the most important Mediterranean port of
northwest Africa
Other include:-
Annaba
Setif
Batna
Tlemcen
Sidi Bel Abbes
Batna
Biskra
Ghardaia
Bechar
Tindouf
Tamanrasset
Economy
Salient Features: State-directed economic system
undergoing modest market-oriented structural adjustment and
decentralization. Central government retains ownership
of more than 450 state-owned enterprises. Economy
dominated by hydrocarbon sector, mainly oil, but
diversifying into natural gas and refined products.
Underinvestment in agriculture and other nonoil sectors.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): In 1992 estimated at
US$42 billion. GDP grew at average annual rate of 6.5
percent during 1970s and 4.5 percent during first half of
1980s, largely as result of increasing oil revenues.
Economy contracted sharply during latter half of 1980s
and early 1990s; per capita GDP declined from US$2,752
in 1987 to US$1,570 in 1992.
Minerals:
Hydrocarbon sector, mainstay of economy and
main source of exports, constituted 23 percent of GDP
in 1990. Exports include crude oil, refined petroleum
products, and gas. Nonfuel minerals include high-grade
iron ore, phosphate, mercury, and zinc.
Energy:
Electricity supplied mainly by gas powered
plants. Overall energy consumption quadrupled between
1970s and early 1990s.
Industry:
Manufacturing constituted 10 percent of GDP
in 1990. Investment concentrated in state-owned heavy
industry, mainly steel.
Since independence Algerian authorities have worked on
redesigning the national educational system.
Particular attention has been given to replacing French with
Arabic as the language of instruction and to emphasizing
scientific and technical studies. Education in Arabic
is officially compulsory for all children between 6
and 15 years of age, and roughly nine-tenths of boys of
that age are in school; enrollment for girls is
slightly lower. Children residing in rural areas have
remained underrepresented in the classroom, although much
progress for both groups has been made since
independence. The literacy rate is about three-fourths for men
but less than half for women. The educational system has
experienced extreme difficulty in trying to
accommodate the increasing number of school-age children. The
scarcity of qualified Arabic teachers has been
ameliorated by the recruitment of teachers from other Arab
countries. Arabic replaced French as the language of
instruction at all institutes of higher learning in 2000.
Amazigh discontent over the policy of Arabization,
however, has prompted the government to restore Amazigh
language and literature studies at a number of
universities. The major institutions include Islamic
universities in Algiers and Constantine, several regional
university centres, and a number of technical colleges. Each
year a few thousand Algerian students go abroad to
study, mainly in France, other European countries, or the
United States.
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