Algeria: Diversifying the Economy

PADSEL NOA is a project aimed at diversifying the Algerian economy. Currently, the Algerian economy is strongly dependent on hydrocarbons, with oil and gas accounting for 97% of their current exports. Provincial municipalities face other challenges, including high unemployment rates, inadequate public transport, and a lack of funding to develop small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Despite those difficulties, municipalities also offer excellent opportunities towards the development of the agricultural sector, handicraft, and tourism. PADSEL NOA aims to support six 'willayas' (provinces) in the highlands and the center-north of Algeria (Saida, Tiaret, Tissemsilt, Ain Defla, Chlef, and Mééea) by contributing to their economic growth, and by aiming to raise the employability of vulnerable populations living in these provinces.

Through PADSEL NOA, DT Global will intervene and work with the most vulnerable sectors of the population, with a focus on women, youth, unemployed, ex-convicts, and people with disabilities. The unemployment rate for the youth workforce is 29.9%. PADSEL NOA will promote employment interventions and support SMEs who specifically work with vulnerable populations. At its end, it is estimated that the project will create 60 new cooperatives, employing approximately 3,000 women, as well as creating 150 new micro, MSMEs focused on handicraft.

Results to date include:

• The effective use of existing mechanisms to foster entrepreneurship and creation of MSMEs.
• Contribution to the implementation of mechanisms to promote and create employment through professional trainings at the managerial and technical levels.
• Creation and promotion of Income-Generating Activities and job creation through support for local products.