EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. THE APRM AND ITS PROCESSES IN ALGERIA 1.1 Algeria’s commitment and launching of the exercise 1.1 Algeria was one of the first countries to accede to the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), along with Ghana, Rwanda and Kenya. The country voluntarily acceded to the APRM in March 2003, in Abuja, Nigeria. As a result of its adherence a Deputy Minister for African and Maghreb Affairs was appointed to act as the Focal Point, and a National Governing Council (NGC) was instituted by the Head of Government on 12 March 2005. 1.2 From 21 to 25 July 2005, Mrs Marie-Angélique Savané, a member of the Panel of Eminent Persons of the APRM, visited Algeria to support and also launch the implementation of the self-assessment process. More specifically, the team: (i) signed the Technical Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) of the APRM; (ii) assessed the procedures and mechanisms put in place by the NGC for the self-assessment exercise and then prepared a draft Programme of Action; (iii) met with the NGC and the technical assessment institutions of the APRM to explain the process and discuss the self-assessment questionnaire; and (iv) agreed on a road map to accelerate the different stages. 1.3 The discussions on the role and quality of the technical assessment committees revealed that it would be necessary to call in other specialised research institutions to support the National Economic and Social Council (CNES), which had been proposed as the technical partner in the self-assessment process. The Country Support Mission (CSM) recommended that there should be four institutions, each of which would be responsible for one of the four APRM thematic governance areas contained in the Base Document, namely Political Governance, Economic Governance, Corporate Governance and Socio-Economic Development. 1.4 The large number of members (99) of the NGC reflects the focus on ensuring that all stakeholders were effectively and significantly represented, including the private sector, civil society organisations, elected representatives and government authorities. It should be noted that the Focal Point is also a member of the NGC. 1.5 On 30 November and 1 December 2005, at the personal invitation of the President of the Republic of Algeria, Mrs Savané, accompanied by the Coordinator for Algeria and the Secretariat, experts from the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB), attended a meeting at the Palais de la Nation in Algiers, held for Ministers involved in the implementation of the 2005–2009 Five-Year Plan. The main objective was to strengthen the credibility of the APR process in the country 1