Algerian economy coming out of eight years of stagnation

JAKARTA (JP): Although lying far away in northwest Africa, Algeria is one of Indonesia's closest friends, be it as a predominantly Moslem country or as a developing nation.

Indonesia also gave strong moral support to the Algerian people and patriots during their struggle for independence when they began to take up arms against the French colonial rule on Nov. 1, 1954, up to the time they achieved victory on July 5, 1962, making Algeria a sovereign country.

Marking the 44th anniversary of Algeria's national day, which falls on Nov. 1, The Jakarta Post posed a number of questions to Soufiane Mimouni, Algeria's ambassador to Indonesia.

How do you see trade relations between Algeria and Indonesia over the past few years?

Trade relations between Algeria and Indonesia have progressed in a positive way in the last few years with the volume of annual transactions reaching more than US$150 million. This increase in trade between the two countries was also followed by the signing of several important agreements like the one on the avoidance of double taxation and the setting up of a joint commission. But this positive result does not reflect, in my view, the real potentialities of the two countries and there is still insufficient knowledge of the opportunities in the two markets.

Therefore even if trade relations have witnessed significant improvements, much remains to be done by the two countries to take the best of their economic potentialities and give a real sense to the South-South cooperation.

In your opinion, what other measures should the two countries take to boost bilateral trade in term of value and volume?

In order to foster the bilateral cooperation, I believe that efforts from both sides should be devoted to create a strong cooperation, not only based on trade, but also on sound partnerships. Furthermore, there is a need to promote the opportunities of the two markets.

Businessmen from both sides seem to concentrate their efforts on proximity or traditional markets. This situation has to change. The two countries also need to increase the number of visits by their officials and businessmen. But I remain confident that the two countries will achieve this goal and the next holding of the session of the joint commission will certainly contribute to expanding the Algerian-Indonesian economic relations.

Can you tell us about the recent political developments in Algeria?

Algeria has been engaged in the last four years in a process aimed at building a strong and modern state and establishing a genuine democracy. Following a political process initiated by President Liamine Zeroual in 1994, which included all political parties which accepted to respect the constitution and reject violence, Algeria as a whole engaged in an action to restore the electoral process with all guarantees of legitimacy and transparency including the presence of international observers.

Today, Algeria has already completed its electoral process and succeeded in establishing democratic institutions based on free and fair elections. All Algerians enjoy full freedom. Our medias are independent and reflect reality in total liberty. The opinion of several personalities who recently visited the country converge on the fact that the democratic process in Algeria is truly authentic.

The recent decision of President Liamine Zeroual to call for an early presidential election, in which he will not be a candidate, will definitely contribute toward deepening the democratic political process. In addition, it will allow for the free exercise of power transfer which constitutes one of the main pillars of democracy.

In short, Algeria of today is the reflection of a country at work, mobilized to ensure the reestablishment of its security and stability, to consolidate its democracy and to resolve the entangled socio economic problems.

Is there a chance for the outlawed Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) to take part in the coming presidential election which is scheduled for early next year?

The file of the outlawed Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) is closed and there is no way it will take part in the next presidential election. All national political forces which had in the past accepted two basic conditions, namely the respect for the constitution, the law and the rejection of violence, have today become part of the national political scene. Those who are not taking part in this process are those who have chosen to devote themselves passively or actively to terrorism.

How great a role does the Algerian press play in the development of democratization and human rights in your country?

We are proud to have a vibrant and pluralistic press which reflect reality in total liberty. In this regard, I must say that the Algerian press is playing a significant role in the consolidation of democracy in the country by tackling all issues. The independence of our press is an important gain which attests the respect of freedom of expression in our country.

In our effort to reinforce the democratic process, we are convinced that democracy and human rights cannot be dissociated and the government continues to stress the primacy of human rights and the rule of law.

In this regard, several institutions have been established among them a national human rights observatory which report directly to the President and an ombudsman. Besides a national mechanism, Algeria is party to 32 conventions on human rights and is regularly fulfilling its conventional obligations by reporting to UN human rights treaty bodies.

So as far as human rights are concerned I don't think that there are human rights violations in Algeria as some pretend. There are some individuals and isolated cases of excess behavior which the Algerian authorities have not only admitted, but whose authors were systematically brought before the tribunals and sentenced.

This can happen in any country and the Algerian authorities are making every possible effort to prevent such cases.

How is the government dealing with the economic crisis ?

Algeria has experienced a strong economic transformation during the past four years. Indeed, political reforms have gone hand in hand with economic restructuring. The government has engaged on a vast program of reforms aimed at liberalizing the economy and establishing a firm foundation for a competitive modern economy.

The results of these reforms are today clear. Despite a continuous decrease in oil prices, Algeria has revived its economy from eight successive years of stagnation and achieved steady growth rates, with the last three years showing a positive performance and a strong growth forecast in 1998.

The government expects this year's gross domestic product to grow by 5 percent. Inflation which was 29 percent in 1995 fell to 5 percent in 1998. The country's foreign exchange reserves now stand at $8 billion compared to $2 billion in 1995. The budget deficit which was 4.4 percent of GDP in 1994 transformed into a surplus in the last three years. There were also improvements in the balance of trade where Algeria achieved a trade surplus.

This improvement in the economic situation of Algeria need now to be supported through a strengthening of growth and an increase in employment. (ego)