rical and water
supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption, and the
continuing activities of extremist militants. The 2006 merger of the
Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) with al-Qaida
(followed by a name change to al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic
Maghreb) signaled an increase in bombings, including high-profile,
mass-casualty suicide attacks targeted against the Algerian
government and Western interests. Algeria must also diversify its
petroleum-based economy, which has yielded a large cash reserve but
which has not been used to redress Algeria's many social and
infrastructure problems.

Geography
Algeria

Location:

Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco
and Tunisia

Geographic coordinates:

28 00 N, 3 00 E

Map references:

Africa

Area:

total: 2,381,740 sq km
land: 2,381,740 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas

Land boundaries:

total: 6,343 km
border countries: Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km,
Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km, Western Sahara 42 km

Coastline:

998 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm

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

Terrain:

mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow,
discontinuous coastal plain

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m

Natural resources:

petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc

Land use:

arable land: 3.17%
permanent crops: 0.28%
other: 96.55% (2005)

Irrigated land:

5,690 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources:

14.3 cu km (1997)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

total: 6.07 cu km/yr (22%/13%/65%)
per capita: 185 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards:

mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and
floods in rainy season

Environment - current issues:

soil erosion from overgrazing and other poor farming practices;
desertification; dumping of raw sewage, petroleum refining wastes,
and other industrial effluents is leading to the pollution of rivers
and coastal waters; Mediterranean Sea, in particular, becom