EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The global crisis has had virtually no impact on Algeria’s financial system, which remains stable overall but thoroughly underdeveloped. Pervasive exchange controls, widespread public ownership, and an abundance of domestic funding have protected banks from external shocks....

KEY ISSUES Inflation has subsided, but longstanding vulnerabilities are becoming increasingly apparent. Economic growth is holding up well, inflation has fallen below the central bank’s target, and fiscal and external buffers remain large. But the economy’s dependence on the hydrocarbon...

Conclusions * Algeria will need to undertake significant and consistent fiscal consolidation to restore fiscal sustainability. In the wake of the crisis, Algeria expanded wages, subsidies, and transfers in an effort to address social demands. At the same time, revenues declined as a result of...

This Selected Issues paper discusses designing a rules-based fiscal framework for Algeria. Algeria's government has set a number of fiscal reform priorities and aims to maintain prudent and sustainable policies. This paper discusses the design of a rules-based fiscal framework which could help...

The 2022 Article IV Consultation with Algeria highlights that the upswing in hydrocarbon prices has alleviated pressures on public and external finances and the post-pandemic recovery has likely gathered pace. The prospects for 2023 are favorable but growth is projected to decelerate and...

For decades, Maghrebi decision-makers have instrumentalised friend and foe narratives with regard to Israel and Iran, two of the most controversial regional actors in the MENA region. Only Morocco has official relations with Israel, only Algeria and Tunisia with Iran. A systematic analysis of...

Algeria’s report on the Observance of Standards and Codes reviews the Fiscal Transparency Module. The Bank of Algeria (BA) does not apply multicurrency practices and does not require import deposits and there are, therefore, no quasi-fiscal activities in exchange regime-related operations. As...

The strong hydrocarbon export performance has allowed Algeria to strengthen its external position and record a budget surplus. Executive Directors commend the government for the broad improvement in macroeconomic indicators. The government has eased the fiscal stance, and this strategy has...

This Selected Issues paper for Algeria analyzes the growth prospects of the Algerian economy. Drawing on the findings of the empirical growth literature, the paper combines growth accounting and cross-country growth regressions to examine the role of macroeconomic and institutional factors in...