ALGIERS- The President of the Republic, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Minister of National Defense, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, chaired, Sunday, a Council of Ministers meeting devoted to the finance bill 2023, the law on punishment of infringement of legislation and regulations on foreign exchange and capital movements from and to abroad, and presentations on several sectors, the Presidency of the Republic said in a statement.
After presenting the meeting’s agenda and giving the floor to the Prime Minister, Aimene Benabderrahmane to present the government’s activity in the past two weeks, the President of the Republic gave the following orders, instructions and directives:
Regarding the 2023 Finance Bill:
The adjournment of the discussion on the draft finance law to a special meeting of the Council of Ministers, slated for next week.
With respect to the fight against the violations of the legislation and regulation related to the exchange of foreign currency and the movement of capital to and from foreign countries:
– Reviewing the texts of the draft law according to the following orientations:
– The necessity to preserve, by all means, the people’s money and protect it from all forms of corruption.
– The President of the Republic stressed that harming the national economy is not a misdemeanor, but rather a crime that is not tolerated, and that violating the exchange laws and the movement of capital is also a crime that harms the interests of the country and requires the application of the most severe penalties.
Regarding the higher education and scientific research sector:
– The President praised Algeria’s tendency to promote higher studies and training in the field of science and technology.
– He ordered to :
– Increase the percentage of orientation towards specializations in the fields of science, mathematics and technology, stressing on the need to introduce profound and well-studied reforms for the higher education and scientific research system, and modernize university services.
– Grant the university a leading role as a locomotive for the national economy, through additional flexibility to access the knowledge economy, and to keep pace with economic transformations across the world, so that the university contributes to creating wealth, devoting competition and freedom of innovation and creativity.
– Give great importance to higher university schools, by creating effective training mechanisms, and adopting the preparatory years’ system, before specialization, with the aim of raising the level of scientific quality for graduating students.
Regarding the agricultural sector:
– Allowing the import of agricultural equipment of all kinds, and its spare parts, whether for private individuals, or for companies.
– Importing agricultural tractors, less than five years old, until a balance is achieved between the national production of tractors, and those imported.
– The necessity of removing the social character to agriculture and shift it to the scientific one, according to a modern view, which includes the formation and rehabilitation of the human resource.
– Adopting new techniques in building warehouses for agricultural crops, in order to speed up the construction process, especially in the provinces known for their abundant production.
– Tightening control over unplanned drilling of wells, which exposes potable groundwater to the danger of salinity, in parallel with the lack of rain and climate changes.
– Changing the traditional management of agriculture, and creating new branches in all provinces, like the existing branches at the national level.
– Encouraging the establishment of start-ups and micro-enterprises for oil presses and oilseeds, even if they aim to meet the needs of the local market.
Regarding the transportation sector:
– Modernization of the port management system, across the entire coast line, with the aim of expanding the capacity of various types of ships.
– The President of the Republic instructed the government to search, as soon as possible, for effective mechanisms to create a port authority, under the responsibility of a governor or wali, to define responsibilities for better management and better services.
– Establishing a special social protection system for the benefit of marine fishing professionals, as soon as possible, including the creation of their own spaces, in ports, and taking care of them in the form of cooperatives.
Regarding the sector of Public Works, Hydraulics and Basic Infrastructure:
– The initial approval of a water extraction project to provide the residents of the provinces of Bechar, El Knadsa and El Abadla with drinking water, starting from Beni Ouennif, provided that the technical, physical and chemical study is deepened, before starting the works.
General instructions:
– Rationalizing codification in all fields, taking into account economic transformations, and dealing with them with a purely economic logic, to give a greater impetus to the dynamic of progress in the areas of services and investment.
– Changing the laws that hinder the economic pace that the country is witnessing.
In conclusion, the Council of Ministers approved appointments and termination of tasks for senior officials of the state.
