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GENERAL INFORMATION | GEOGRAPHY | GOVERNMENT | HERITAGE & CULTURE | COMMUNICATION
GENERAL INFORMATION
Area: 919,590 sq mi (2,381,740 sq
km)
Population: 32.3 million
Capital: Algiers
Independence:July 5, 1962
(from France)
Ethnicity/Race: Arab (84%), Berber
(16%), European (less than 1%).
Language: Arabic (official), French,
Berber dialects
Currency: Algerian Dinar (AD)
Religion: Sunni Islam (state religion)
99%, Christianity and Judaism 1%
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GEOGRAPHY
Geography: Nearly
four times the size of Texas, Algeria is bordered on the west by
Morocco and Western Sahara and on the east by Tunisia and Libya.
To the south are Mauritania, Mali, and Niger. The Saharan region,
which is 85% of the country, is almost completely uninhabited. The
highest point is Mount Tahat in the Sahara, which rises 9,850 ft
(3,000 m).
Climate: arid to
semiarid; mild, wet winters with hot, dry summers along coast; drier
with cold winters and hot summers on high plateau; sirocco is a
hot, dust/sand-laden wind especially common in summer
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GOVERNMENT
Government Structure: After a century
of rule by France, Algeria became independent in 1962. The surprising
first round success of the fundamentalist FIS (Islamic Salvation
Front) party in December 1991 balloting caused the army to intervene,
crack down on the FIS, and postpone the subsequent elections. The
FIS response has resulted in a continuous a civil conflict with
the secular state apparatus, which nonetheless has allowed a multi-party
political system and the formation of political parties. FIS's armed
wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, dissolved itself in January 2000
and many armed insurgents surrendered under an amnesty program designed
to promote national reconciliation. Nevertheless, the state of unrest
and violence continued in some areas. Abdul Aziz Boutafliqa was
elected president of the republic in November 1999.
Head of State: Mr. Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA
Head of Government: Mr. Ahmed BENBITOUR
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Heritage and Traditions of Algeria:
ALGERIA HOLDS a singular place for Arab culture as a region in which
the musical traditions of Islamic Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the eastern
Arab countries (the Mashriq), Saharan and West Africa, Berbers, Bedouin
and Europe have all interacted to various degrees. Morocco to the
west was never as directly exposed to Ottoman and eastern Arab musical
traditions; Tunisia and Libya to the east have had far less contact
with sub-Saharan and West African musics and far more direct contact
with the musics of their eastern neighbors.
To simplify this complex musical landscape to
some degree, the many distinct musical traditions
of Algeria can be roughly divided into five groups: 1) Andalusian
traditions, 2) Urban popular traditions, 3) Arabic-language folk traditions,
4) Berber and Saharan traditions, 5) the modern rai, or
"pop-rai," phenomenon. Recordings listed below have been
selected for their representativeness and availability
in the United States and Canada.
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COMMUNICATION
Telephone: general assessment: telephone
density in Algeria is very low, not exceeding five telephones per
100 persons; the number of fixed main lines increased in the last
few years to a little more than 2,000,000, but only about two-thirds
of these have subscribers; much of the infrastructure is outdated
and inefficien
Mobile telephone:
Fax: International fax numbers are
dialled in precisely the same way as telephone numbers.
More and more Algerian companies have fax machines
( much communication is still done by telex).
Internet: Cybercafes and internet
facilities are now available in Algiers and other main towns.
Post: There is a letter delivery
service from Saturday to Thursday. Parcels sent by the surface route
may take up to two months to reach Algeria. For this reason exporters
are advised to despatch all mail by air. All parcels, including
those containing literature and samples, whether sent by air or
by the surface route, are subject to long delays in customs.
Radio Stations: AM 25, FM 1, shortwave
8 (1999).
Television: 46 (plus 216 repeaters)
(1995)
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(Sources:Tradepartners.gov.uk)
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