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The material posted here was provided to the Division for the 
Advancement of Women by the Government in response to a note 
verbale. It has being made available in electronic format from
the form received. In cases where it was not possible at this 
time to reproduce charts and tables supplied, these can be 
obtained by contacting the Division for the Advancement of 
Women directly.
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Translated from Arabic

PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ALGERIA

Minister assigned to the Head of Government and responsible for
national solidarity and the family

Summary of the most important measures taken in Algeria with a
view to implementing the recommendations of the Fourth World
Conference on Women

     In the context of the implementation of the recommendations
of the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in
September 1995, Algeria has adopted a number of measures and
initiatives with a view to supporting the achievements of women
and the promotion of their rights. The most important measures
are as follows:

1. Establishment of a Standing Committee entrusted with following
up the implementation of those recommendations

     By decision of the Head of Government, a Standing Committee
was established under the chairmanship of the woman Minister
responsible for national solidarity and the family. Its functions
include following up the implementation of the recommendations of
the Beijing Conference.

     The members of this Committee comprise female and male
representatives of the major ministerial departments in question
and the national organizations active in the protection of
women's rights, as well as women prominent at the national level
and known for their work in this field.

     The first task which this Committee embarked upon was the
submission of a comprehensive report to the Head of Government
concerning the status of women in Algeria and the prospects for
their advancement.

     This document touched upon the fields in which women
continue to suffer from unjust practices, and proposed a set of
measures to strengthen the role of women in the economic and
social fields, to provide them with better safeguards, especially
in legal matters, as well as to support their active role in the
family and the workplace.

     It may also be pointed out here that the establishment of
this Committee provides enhanced benefits for women in Algeria
and is in pursuance of the recommendation in chapter V, paragraph
296, of the report of the Fourth World Conference on Women, which
called for the establishment of national mechanisms at the
highest level with the mandate to follow up the implementation of
the recommendations.


This Committee embarked upon its work, and set up the following
four subcommittees:

- Subcommittee on Legal Protection and Policy; 
- Subcommittee on Education, Training and History; 
- Subcommittee on Health, Social Affairs and Development; 
- Subcommittee on Information, Communication and Culture.

     The setting up of these standing subcommittees is designed
to achieve the integration of women~s issues in all policies,
plans and measures aimed at equality between men and women.

     With regard to the legal subcommittee, the proposal was made
for several amendments to the law of the family adopted in 1984.
These amendments are aimed at achieving the effective promotion
of women's rights within the family, and are concerned primarily
with provisions considered inequitable in the light of the
growing role of women within the family and society. The law
therefore needs to be brought into line with the development of
society and to reflect its aspirations. These amendments do not
conflict in any way with our values or the teachings of our true
religion; rather, they derive their strength from these liberal
teachings, which are aimed at promoting equality between women
and men.

     These amendments are also designed to provide better
protection for children in the event of a divorce, to make
children responsible for looking after their parents, and also to
impose mandatory regulations for protecting the family from being
broken up and scattered, ensuring greater stability for the
family and greater protection for the woman as the fundamental
component of the household.

     With regard to the subcommittee on policy and
decision-making, some measures were proposed with a view to
enhancing the level of women's representation at the political
level. The proposals were designed to:

- Ensure the political will and the commitment to appoint women
to high positions in conformity with a quota to be agreed upon,
to decision-making posts, in the administration, in elected
bodies, ministerial portfolios and diplomatic representation; 

- Enact a law designed to ensure representation of women within
the higher-level organs of political parties.

Subcommittee on health, social affairs and development

     This Subcommittee worked on the formulation of effective
proposals for the adoption of the necessary implementation
measures in this field.

These proposals are designed to:

- Promote family planning in the context of reproductive health
measures through the provision of contraceptives and the
reduction of taxes imposed thereon;

- Enhance the health of women in the workplace by monitoring the
implementation of and respect for labour legislation, especially
with regard to women;

- Support and protect disabled persons, especially disabled
women, through the provision of specialized training and efforts
to ensure their social and vocational integration;

- Assign doctors and experts to remote areas;

- Review health legislation, particularly with a view to
establishing compulsory medical examinations for women and men
prior to marriage.

     As regards the area of development, the Subcommittee notes
that the proportion of women workers is no more than 11 per cent,
whereas women constitute over 50 per cent of the population.

     Accordingly, the Subcommittee calls for immediate action to
enable women to obtain and hold gainful employment and achieve
occupational advancement. The Subcommittee also suggests, in
cases of establishments facing financial difficulties, that women
workers should not be dismissed.

     These are proposals with a short time horizon, i.e.
proposals that are expected to be implemented in the course of
the coming year, since the necessary financial resources are to
be programmed into the Finances Act of 1997.

Subcommittee on Information, Communication and Culture

     As regards the low educational level, which contributes so
greatly to the marginalization of women and the decline of their
role in society, the Committee has called for the establishment
of an agency for communication concerning women, in order to help
them to break out of their imposed isolation, express their
aspirations and defend their rights.

2. Establishment of a National Committee for the Protection and
Promotion of the Family

     The Ministry is well aware that a society cannot be stable
unless its fundamental cell, namely the family, is stable.
Accordingly, on the occasion of the International Day of
Families, celebrated on 15 May 1996, it established a National
Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Family. The
Committee includes representatives from relevant departments
within the Ministry itself, the Social Movement, which is
concerned with the family, and experts who are known for their
studies on the family.

     One of the fundamental tasks of this National Committee,
which is headed by the woman Minister responsible for solidarity
and the family, is to formulate a viable national policy aimed at
protecting the family, fostering its stability, enhancing its
socio-economic role, and strengthening cohesiveness and
solidarity among its members.

     The establishment of this Committee - which is to be a
permanent institution - fits neatly into the context of the
Government's continuing concern for the advancement of society at
large and its several constituent groups. It will also serve to
give material form to the recommendations of the Beijing
Conference concerning the family.

3. Establishment of a Supreme Council on Education

     The Government has been at pains to ensure that women will
be represented on this Council, which will be concerned with the
formulation of a comprehensive national policy for the
improvement and development of the level of education in Algeria.
The authorities have accepted a suggestion put forward by women
members of the Subcommittee on Education, namely, that a number
of the seats on this important national body should be reserved
for women.

     It may be relevant to note at this point that recently, in a
number of Algeria's governorates, women have been appointed to
head boards of education. This is evidence of the Government of
Algeria's concern for the advancement of women and its efforts to
ensure that they will share in decision-making at the central and
local levels.

4. The advancement of rural women

     The Government of Algeria, working in close coordination
with the Social Movement and the local authorities, is making a
special effort to improve the lot of rural women in particular.
Many of the country's governorates recently joined in the signing
of agreements concerning the establishment of small cooperatives,
to be funded in part from the National Solidarity Fund, in the
field of traditional trades such as sewing and embroidery,
agriculture, shopkeeping and so on.

     Concurrently, the Government, working in conjunction with
the Iqra' ("Read") Society, which works to promote literacy, and
the Societies for the Protection of Rural Women, has drafted a
far-reaching programme aimed at eradicating illiteracy among
rural women.

     Hundreds of branches have already opened, run by volunteers
interested in pursuing this noble endeavour.

5. Promotion of the Social Movement

     Pursuant to the recommendations of the Beijing Conference
concerning the need to interact with, encourage and strengthen
non-governmental organizations with a view to enabling them to
serve poverty-stricken groups most effectively, in April 1996 a
series of workshops was organized on the theme "Protection of
women and promotion of their rights". Over 70 Algerian
associations active in various fields participated in these
workshops, and more than 350 women took part in their work. These
women participants came from all walks of life and all social
strata, and a number of them were of national prominence,
including even some former women government ministers.

     After discussions that were sometimes sharp and contentious,
the participants were able to issue a consensus document
expressing the concern of Algerian women, despite the difficult
socio-economic situation, to transcend marginal differences and
devote their efforts to promoting all their rights in Algerian
society. The document contained a number of suggestions and
recommendations directed to the country's highest authorities,
for adoption and subsequent implementation by degrees, as the
opportunity might arise.

     In addition, a high-level body known as the National Women's
Council has been established, reporting directly to the Head of
Government. The Council's functions include following up the
recommendations of the Beijing Conference and formulating
appropriate proposals for the advancement of Algerian women in
all areas. The Council's membership includes representatives from
the Women's Social Movement, women experts in various fields, and
women representatives from a number of government agencies.

     The foregoing is a brief summary of some of the fundamental
measures that have been taken to implement the recommendations of
the Beijing Conference on Women, just under a year and a half
after that conference was held.