Algeria

Eighty percent of Algeria's inhabitants live in the agricultural lands and cities of the north, called the Tell. An independent republic since it won freedom from France in 1962, Algeria has links to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea and to southern Africa via the Sahara. History, language, and the Muslim religion make the country a part of the Arab world.

Northern Algeria is divided into five distinctive physical regions. Three are in the far north: the arable coastal strip, the plains just to the south, and the Tell Atlas Mountains running east and west along the plains. Farther south, the High Plateaus form another east-west barrier. The fifth region is the Saharan Atlas Mountains, which extend into the desert.

The region of the Tell Atlas Mountains is geologically young and unstable, and earthquakes are common. It has a Mediterranean climate, with warm, wet winters and hot, dry summers. Rainfall averages 28 inches (71 centimeters); mean temperatures range from 50° F (10° C) in January to 80° F (27° C) in July. Hot, dry winds from the Sahara intensify summer drought, which may severely damage crops.

The semiarid lands of the High Plateaus area form a wide, almost featureless plain in the southern part of the country. Annual rainfall ranges from 16 inches (41 centimeters) in the north to 8 inches (20 centimeters) in the south. Temperatures range from 48° F (9° C) in January to 80° F in July. The High Plateaus region has no permanent streams.

The Saharan Atlas Mountains are rugged and vegetation is sparse. The northern edge of the mountains receives about 8 inches of rain yearly. Farther south, precipitation decreases. The arid Sahara region consists of several large, saucer-shaped basins, plateaus, and highlands. Some of the basins contain extensive fields of sand, called ergs. To the south are large heavily eroded volcanic massifs (mountain blocks). The Ahaggar is the largest, with Algeria's highest peak, Mount Tahat, at 9,573 feet (2,918 meters). At the desert's northern edge, the annual rainfall is about 7 inches (18 centimeters). Average temperatures range from 45° F (7° C) in January to 85° F (29° C) in July. The central Sahara has less than 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) of rainfall annually; average temperatures range from 57° F (14° C) in January to 99° F (37° C) in July. Plant and Animal Life

Plant and animal life relate to the patterns of rainfall. The amount of rainfall increases from west to east but decreases from north to south. The Saharan Atlas Mountains roughly divide the country into two principal agricultural and vegetation zones. North of the mountains, dry farming is possible, and fine forests and abundant vegetation are found. Cork oaks grow, along with grapes, olives, citrus fruits, grain, tobacco, and cotton. Other trees include Aleppo pines, evergreen oaks, and thugas. To the south, vegetation common to steppe regions, including esparto grass or wormwood, appears. Some plants grow quickly after a rain and disappear almost at once. Grasses, stunted shrubs, athels, acacia, jujube trees, and other plants can survive despite meager rainfalls.

Vegetation on the High Plateaus consists mainly of scattered bushes and clumps of grasses. Seasonal pastures are used for grazing livestock. Depending on the amount of rainfall, the cultivation of grain crops may be possible. In 1975 the government began to plant a belt of trees just south of the Saharan Atlas chain. Some 930 miles (1,500 kilometers) long, it was designed to keep the desert from drifting northward.

Elephants, hippopotamuses, and crocodiles once lived in Algeria. Today, few species are found, mainly because the sparse vegetation will not support diverse animal life. Hyenas and jackals, monkeys, hawks, and desert snakes are native to the region; so are some antelope, gazelles, hares, jerboa, and wild boars.

The People

Two ethnic strains, the Arab and the Berber, predominate in Algeria. Many of the country's inhabitants are of mixed Arab and Berber descent. The Berbers originally lived in the region and today form an important element of the population; the Arabs came later, during the 600s, and today make up about 90 percent of the population. Islam, the religion of the Muslims, helps to unify Algeria's peoples. About 99 percent of the population is Muslim; the great majority belongs to the Sunni sect of Islam. Most of the others are Roman Catholics of French descent.

Both Berber and Arabic are spoken in Algeria. But most Berbers also speak Arabic, the official language. Even though most of the French residents left after 1962, French continued to be used as a second lan-guage. Efforts have been made to increase the use of Arabic. At the same time the Berbers have struggled to keep their own language and culture. Algeria's peoples follow ways of life that vary from region to region. In the capital, Algiers, and other cities many people maintain a modern lifestyle. In the northern plains, farmers lead simple lives while seminomadic and nomadic groups range the highlands and deserts.

In 1968 the National Institute of Music began programs to encourage traditional music and dances and preserve folklore. Many of these forms developed from Arabian and Spanish Andalusian styles. The Algerian National Theater has presented the Arabic-language works of Algerian playwrights. In painting, the themes of revolution and socialism have been widely used. Craft workers produce inlaid furniture, rugs, earthenware, camel-skin products, jewelry, and a variety of other goods.

Economy

The Algerian government controls the nation's economy. Since independence, Algeria has nationalized most foreign-owned companies and properties. The government also runs all heavy industry and controls the production and distribution of petroleum, natural gas, and minerals.

Most Algerians work in agriculture, but less than 5 percent of the arable land is permanently cultivated. On the coastal plains, cereal grains, grapes, olives, and citrus fruits are the principal crops. Cereal growing and livestock herding take place in the Tell Atlas and the High Plateaus. Permanent meadows and pastures support goats, sheep, and cattle.

The Algerian government has enacted several land-reform programs since independence. In 1971, for example, large farms were redistributed to landless peasants who were organized into agricultural cooperatives. The government also nationalized 6.7 million acres (2.7 million hectares) of pastureland.

Petroleum and natural gas are Algeria's main exports. The major oil fields are located in the northeastern Sahara and on the Libyan border. Algeria has petroleum reserves of 9 billion barrels (1985 estimate). Natural gas reserves are the fourth largest in the world (1988 estimate). Most of the reserves are at Hassi R'Mel, 250 miles (400 kilometers) south of Algiers. Gas is piped to the coast in liquefied form. Throughout the 1980s the government invested in new pipelines, liquefaction plants, and tankers.

Algeria also produces minerals. It mines and exports high-grade iron ore, mercury, and phosphate rock. Most of the iron ore is produced at the Ouenza open-pit mine. Manufacturing accounts for only a small part of Algeria's income. The major industries are iron, steel, and petroleum refining. The production of fertilizers and the manufacture of industrial vehicles and farm machinery are also significant. The country's growing industries include paper, textiles, electrical goods, and flour milling.

Transportation, Communication, and Education

Two thirds of Algeria's roads and railroad tracks are located in the northern half of the country. Main roads link towns and large cities and extend to the petroleum and natural gas fields. The trans-Saharan Road of African Unity has been completed to Tamenghest. Algeria has some 2,300 miles (3,700 kilometers) of railway.

Algiers is the country's main port. Other major ports are Annaba and Oran (Wahren). Houari Boumedienne, near Algiers, is a modern airport. Annaba, Qacentina (Constantine), and Oran have smaller modern airports. Air Algérie (Air Algeria) provides domestic and international service.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s the country's postal, telephone, and telegraph services were expanding. The official Algerian Press Service reported local and international news for radio, television, and newspapers. Several Arabic-language and French-language newspapers are published. Founded in 1962, the Algerian Radio and Television System broadcasts throughout the country. Programs are produced in both Arabic and French.

Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 15. Arabic is the language of instruction. From a literacy rate below 20 percent in 1954, Algeria's population became 50 percent literate by 1985. Eighty percent of all school-age children were receiving educations in the late 1980s. Ten major universities serve thousands of students, and more are planned.

Government and History

Since becoming independent in 1962 Algeria has been controlled by the National Liberation Front (Front de Liberation Nationale, or FLN) party. The president is the head of state. He must be more than 40 years old, of Algerian birth, and a Muslim. The president is nominated by the FLN party; he is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. He may be reelected for any number of consecutive terms. The president presides over a Council of Ministers, all of whom he appoints. The National People's Assembly passes all national laws.

Berbers made up the majority of ancient Algeria's population. The country was called Numidia by the Romans. The Berbers were conquered by successive waves of invaders--Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, and Vandals. Arab armies conquered Algeria in the 7th and 8th centuries. Mass Arab migrations to Algeria followed in the 11th century. Although the Berbers converted to Islam, they later resisted Arab rule and joined radical Islamic sects.

The Ottoman Turks gained control of northern Algeria in 1518. By the 17th century, Algiers maintained diplomatic relations with European states and yet, ironically, profited by piracy in the Mediterranean Sea. Piracy flourished relatively unchallenged until 1815, when an American fleet defeated the Barbary Coast pirates. The Berbers maintained their independence under Turkish rule.

France conquered Algiers in 1830. The country was not wholly subdued until 1857, at which time the last Berbers surrendered. The French confiscated most of the best land. By 1961, some 1.5 million Europeans, about half of them Algerian-born, controlled the country's economy, politics, and foreign policy.

The Algerian nationalist movement began after World War I. The promises of the new constitution of 1947 went unfulfilled, and a war of independence was begun by the FLN in 1954. After Charles de Gaulle came to power in France in 1958, he agreed that Algeria should be independent. A truce was signed in March 1962, and Algeria became independent on July 3. Ahmed Ben Bella became premier of the new republic in September and president the following year. Economic reconstruction was the major government goal. War and the departure of the Europeans after 1962 left most of the labor force unemployed and unskilled.

In 1965 Col. Houari Boumedienne deposed Ben Bella in a military coup. Boumedienne installed a revolutionary regime dedicated to socialism and political and economic independence. Boumedienne died in 1978, and Col. Chadli Bendjedid was elected president. He was reelected in 1984 and 1988. After bloody rioting in October 1988 against the FLN Bendjedid proposed constitutional reforms that would separate the FLN from the government. Voters approved initial reforms in November 1988 and, on Feb. 23, 1989, a new constitution that had no references to socialism and allowed free speech and a multiparty political system.

Algeria's first multiparty elections were held in December 1991, and the fundamentalist Islamic Salvation Front won a large number of seats. A military group took power in January 1992 and created a council to run the country for two years. Gen. Lamine Zeroual was appointed president in January 1994, replacing the five-member High State Council.

Author Credit: William Keefe

FURTHER RESOURCES FOR ALGERIA

• Entelis, J.P. Algeria: The Revolution Institutionalized (Westview, 1986).
• Horne, Alistair. A Savage War of Peace: Algeria, 1954-1962 (Penguin, 1987).
• McDowall, David. Let's Visit Algeria (Chelsea House, 1988).
• Wolf, J.B. The Barbary Coast: Algeria Under the Turks (Norton, 1982).

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