CHAPTER FOUR: ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT human resources, local development, youth employment (with a target of 1 million jobs between 2000 and 2009), social housing (with a target of 1 million units), the restructuring of public enterprises and the attraction of private national and foreign investors. 423. Once public finances were dealt with, the state privatised a large amount of internal credit – 50 per cent in 2005, as opposed to 29 per cent in 2000. 424. In addition to building the capacity of banks to evaluate risks correctly and the ability of the private sector to design bankable projects, the government intends to focus on two sets of activities: accelerating implementation of the public investment programme and completing structural reforms to solidify a diverse and competitive economy. 425. Basis for formulating economic forecasts. The annual finance law offers an opportunity to establish three-year macro-economic forecasts. The external and internal data used for this exercise were the world economy, results of the preceding financial year, forecasts for the current year, projections of crude oil prices, and the exchange rate of the dinar against the dollar. From these data, indicators were identified for economic growth, inflation, foreign trade flow, budget financing, and global equilibrium. 426. With adjustment mechanisms, significant variations were treated using sources of principal information such as the National Bureau of Statistics, the Central Bank of Algeria and Sonatrach. There is concern about reducing discrepancies between forecasts and actual performance, and enlightening businesses on long and short-term issues. With this in mind, a Department of Planning and Forecasts was set up under the National Bureau for Statistics, to address the matter of finding appropriate solutions for recognised shortcomings. 427. Sectoral and micro-economic policies. The government has implemented sectoral policies in many areas to promote sustainable development. The CSAR mentions seven key areas as examples. Some of these cut across the various areas (e.g. investments), touch on sectors that traditionally generate growth (e.g. industry) or emerging sectors (e.g. art and crafts, and tourism), critical constraints (e.g. industrial land), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and areas of significant social impact (e.g. employment). 428. Investment. A new Investment Code was adopted in 2001 to improve on that of 1993. In 2006, additional provisions were made to offer financial, fiscal and technical advantages to investors (“one-stop shopping”). 429. The national agency was given the responsibility to support employment of the youth, micro-credit and employment insurance, with provisions for about 15 different special funds for agriculture, fishing and industrial competitiveness. These are being financed by the state budget, but the business community will need to be consulted to obtain an assessment of their physical and financial performance. 139

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