CHAPTER THREE: DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL GOVERNANCE contract sets out objective and measurable assessment criteria, using as a point of reference the programme of activities of the structure in which the public official works. This enables the responsibility and effectiveness of the official to be increased and renders the mechanisms for promotion more coherent. It allows training and retraining needs to be identified, rationalised and planned. The reform, currently tested in the Ministry of Finance and notably in the financial departments (Customs and Tax), would benefit from being extended to all public offices. This would necessitate a clear redefinition of jobs and their related responsibilities in public service structures, in accordance with the objectives to be achieved in the framework of the missions entrusted to them. 273. The issue of public service staffing is particularly important in the new direction taken in public service management policy, given the need to ensure effectiveness and efficiency in the management of public affairs. The Algerian public service is generally seen to be too large, comprising about 1 526 000 public agents – 1 280 000 of whom are public servants, 129 000 contractual staff and 107 000 temporary staff. The communal administration has least staff, representing only 12.8 per cent of the total. In 2005, public salaries made up one third of the total state budget (DA630 billion), a figure that would appear be excessive. 274. Moreover, even though salaries consume the major part of the state budget, Algerian public officials are not satisfied with their level of remuneration. It was indicated that salaries, bonuses and other indemnities are insignificant, especially for public officials in the Grand Sud. The lack of motivation of these agents of the state is reflected in their high level of absenteeism. Thus, the majority of public officials, especially at the medium and lower levels, are happy to put in an appearance in the morning and temp in informal jobs in the afternoon. The CSAR notes 22 115 dismissals on the grounds of employees abandoning their posts and 10 576 dismissals for serious professional offences between 2000 and 2004. These figures were, however, called into question by the Director-General of Public Service, who feels they are excessive and incorrect. He believes that they refer to the decade of national tragedy and are not as high as is claimed. However, the figures were not formally contested either by the Director-General of Public Service or the National Commission on Governance. 275. Several factors would explain this phenomenon and should be considered by the authorities responsible for the public service. The CRM was informed that an estimated 40 000 persons at intellectual and scientific managerial level had fled the country after 1990. Initially, many Algerians left the country because of the deteriorating standard of living and work as from the mid-1980s, as well as the insecurity that disrupted society as a whole. The advent of terrorism in the 1990s, which was primarily aimed at intellectuals, journalists, artists, scientists and academics, increased this exodus. Today, with the return to normality and opening up of the economy to private entrepreneurs, an exodus of public officials to the private sector is observed. Bureaucracy, corruption, favouritism, insufficient motivation to work and the low level of salaries in public office have been identified as some of the reasons for their departure. 94