Algeria to privatize 1,000 corporations before year's end

Algerian Minister of Small and Medium-sized Industries Bougerra Soltani said that the government will begin privatizing 1,000 general corporations and selling their shares to workers within the coming months.

In declarations he made in Algeria's capital, Algiers, yesterday, he said the privatization process will end before the end of the current year. He estimated the number of bankrupted corporations and factories at 200, blaming the bankruptcies on "bad administration," pointing out that this requires cultivating an economic and investment culture based on market economic forces.

The minister urged industrial leaders to prepare their corporations to face external competition as Algeria is getting ready to sign a partnership agreement with the European Union similar to the two previous agreements with Morocco and Tunisia.

He said that date for Algeria's joining to the World Trade Organization is not far off, emphasizing that Algerians must create the proper preparations for this agreement.