São Paulo – The 44th edition of Algiers International Fair, the main business event in the country, will take place from June 1st to 6th, in the Algerian capital. Companies interested in participating may enrol up to April 15th. "The event is compulsory for foreign companies interested in the Algerian market and in that of neighbouring countries, seeking partnerships and interesting business opportunities," said to ANBA, by e-mail, the ambassador of the Arab country to Brazilian capital Brasília, Djamel Eddine Bennaoum.
As the fair is multisectorial, he pointed out the opportunities opened in the second five-year development plan, launched by the government of Algeria, for 2010 to 2014, forecasting investment of US$ 286 billion in several areas, of which US$ 130 billion should go to enterprises that are already being developed, mainly railways, highways and water supply, and US$ 156 billion should go to new projects.
Bennaoum mentioned examples of initiatives that are part of this program, like the creation of 5,000 teaching establishments, 600,000 seats at universities, 400,000 beds in university housing and 300 units in professional teaching, as well as 1,500 health units, among them 172 hospitals, 45 specialty complexes, 377 polyclinics and another 70 units turned to assistance to disabled people. The country also plans to build 2 million housing units, of which 1.2 million should be delivered by the end of the five year plan. One million homes should also be connected to the natural gas network and 220,000 rural properties should be connected to electric energy.
Regarding water supply, a sector that is critical to the country, as some 70% of its territory is covered by the Sahara desert, the ambassador said that the plan includes the construction of 35 dams and 25 distribution systems, as well as installation of sea water desalination plants.
He added that 40% of the budget of the programme is turned to the sector of basic infrastructure and to the development of public services. One of the objectives of the plan, according to Bennaoum, is to fight unemployment. The government has established a target of creating three million jobs in five years.
The ambassador pointed out that the macroeconomic indicators of Algeria are very positive. According to him, his country grew 4% last year, inflation was 3.34% and unemployment was at 10%. The country’s reserves in foreign currency totalled US$ 150.3 billion. “It is also worth recalling that Algeria paid almost all of its foreign debt in 2006," he said.
Exports from Brazil to the Algerian market are also on the rise. According to the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, shipments generated US$ 396.3 million in the first quarter of this year, growth of 238% in comparison with the same period in 2010. The country came in third place among the main destinations for Brazilian products, losing only to Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
In the other direction, Algeria was the second main Brazilian supplier among the Arab nations in the first quarter of 2011. The country was second only to Saudi Arabia. Imports totalled US$ 471.8 million, reduction of 29% as against the first quarter of last year. The trade balance between both nations is traditionally negative for Brazil.
Event
The fair will once again take place at Palais des Expositions de Argel, which covers an area of 68 hectares, with 50,000 square meters of covered exhibition grounds and 25,000 square metres of uncovered grounds. To Bennaoun, the fair should not receive fewer than the 200,000 visitors of last year.
In the 2010 edition, according to him, the event included the participation of 835 exhibitors from 43 countries, six in the Americas (United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Cuba and Chile). The main pavilions in the last edition were the Chinese, Italian and French.
In the political area, Algeria lived protests in early 2011. The ambassador pointed out, however, that the situation is now calm and that the protests took place mainly due to the price of food. "The problems in other Arab countries in the same period was no more than pure coincidence and there is no connection to what happened in Algeria. The end of the state of emergency, put in place in 1992, is another proof of stability in the country," said Bennaoum.
In February, after protests that resulted in five deaths, the government of Algeria announced measures like tax breaks on sugar and cooking oil, aimed at lowering prices, and repealed the state of emergency that had been in place in the country since 1992.
Further information
Site fair (enrolment may be done online)
www.fiasafex.com
Embassy of Algeria in Brasília
Tel.: (+55 61) 3248-4039 / 1949
E-mail: sanag277@terra.com.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
