You are here: Home › OZHM › Mediterranean wetlands › Countries and sites

Algeria

Country

 

  • Surface: 2 381 741 km²
  • Total population 34.46 million (2009) and density: 14.7 persons/km². Very dense in coastal area: 7000 persons/km² in Alger and very low in the South : 3.9 persons/km² in the Sahara.
  • Government: presidential republic
  • GDP per capita: 4,845 current US$ (2008)
  • Agricultural GDP: 6.9 % of GDP
  • Urbanization: 65 %
  • Human Development Index: 0.754 (medium human development, 2007)
  • Human Poverty Index value: 17.5% (rank 71/135 countries, 2009)

Wetlands

 

  • Wetland total area: about 6 million ha including  47 Ramsar sites
  • Main wetlands types: Lakes, chotts, sebkhas, oases, gueltas, marshes
  • Protection framework for wetlands:
    • National park
    • Nature reserve
    • Biosphere reserve
    • Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Interest.
  • Human-wetlands interactions:
    •  Coastal : urbanization, infrastructure, industry, water supply, sewage, drainage, agriculture, hunting, fishing, tourism.
    •  Atlas Tellien : extensive agriculture, animal breeding, dams, water transfer, urbanization, infrastructure, sewage, fishing, hunting
    •  Sahara : urbanization, agro-pastoralism, intensive groundwater agriculture, date-palm groves, tourism.
  • Pressure:Erosion due to extensive agriculture (rainfed cereal openfield), over-grazing, poor watershed management; urbanisation and industrialisation.
  • Success stories: the recent decision of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to design a wetlands national strategy and to create a wetlands inter-ministries comity might be a positive step to improve wetlands protection and management.
  • Status and trends of wetlands:overall, algerian wetlands are decreasing, suffering from filling due to a high level of erosion, drainage overuse of water for irrigated agriculture, and pressure from urbanization and public infrastructures (dams, road, etc.). This trend leads to extinction of some rare vegetal species. Designation as Wetlands of International Importance of a high number of wetlands is a first step to build a wetlands management.
  • Main stakeholders involved in wetlands:
    • Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
    • General Direction of Forests
    • Ministry of Territory managment, Environment and Tourism
    • Ministry of hydraulic resources and fisheries
    • Commissariat National du Littoral
       
  • Main events (related to wetlands and environment in general) : World Wetlands Day, World Environment Day, World Water Day
  • Sample sites considered by MWO for qualitative monitoring: Blue Lake, Chott Tinnsilt, Black Lake peatlands
  • List of main wetlands