Algeria:Preferential treatment for domestic firms competing for US$286billion investment plan
Description
The President of Algeria has announced a series of measures giving preferential treatment to local firms over foreign ones, competing for a share of the US$286billion five-year investment plan (2010-2014). The plan is intended to contribute to efforts to diversify the Algerian economy away from its dependency on oil, promote human development and strengthen infrastructure. The measures however do not apply to the energy sector and are intended to develop the capacity and quality of services of local firms and create employment for the youth.
Specific measures favouring the domestic firms are:
i) The increase from 15% to 25% of the maximum margin of preference accorded to the local company whose capital is mostly domestic, as well as local products and services, in the bidding for public contracts.
ii)All contracts must be put to a national tender but only Algerian firms are eligible to participate. If that fails or no local firms win the tender, foreign firms will be invited to bid.
Also, for international tenders, there must be a commitment by the foreign firm to enter into an investment partnership with an Algerian company.
Any Evidence-Based Deliberation:
| Question | Result |
|---|---|
| Is there anything in the public record to suggest that evidence of the effectiveness of the proposed measure was considered during official deliberations? | |
| Is there any evidence that alternatives to the proposed measure were considered? | |
| Is there anything in the public record that suggests that empirical evidence informed the comparison across the alternatives available to government? | |
| Was such evidence identified? | |
| Is such evidence publicly available? | |
| Did the official decision-maker in question provide an explanation as to why a chosen measure was favoured over alternatives? | |
| Is there any evidence to suggest that potentially affected trading partners were consulted before the measures were taken? | |
| Is there any evidence that safeguards have been put in place to ensure that implementation of the initiative is transparent and non-discriminatory? | |
| Did the government state its intention to review the measure within one year of implementation? |
Date Discovered: 29/07/2010
Implemented: Yes
Date of inception: 11 Jul 2010
GTA Evaluation: Red
Source:
Présidence de la République. 2010. 'Conseils des Ministres.' http://www.el-mouradia.dz/francais/president/communiques/Presidentrech.htm
Reuters Africa. 2010. 'Algeria adopts new measures favouring local firms.' http://af.reuters.com/article/algeriaNews/idAFCHI13847720100711
Government Response:
- 418 reads
