Opportunity Where Others See State Wreckage

“Thus, the theory of industrializing industry crashed not because it was bad, but because it faced the underestimation of implementation issues, particularly the multiplicity of objectives imposed on state enterprises and the increasingly frequent intervention of pressure groups supporting one objective or another. The resulting politicization discouraged managers, demobilized staff, and questioned the objective. The goodwill of everyone, from the minister to the last employee, is not in question. It’s the system that was too complex and therefore could not be reasonably managed centrally. It is telling that B. Abdesselam, in his latest book, criticizes practically everyone; civil servants, private entrepreneurs, politicians, no one finds favor in his eyes, because he naively believes that wanting is enough to achieve. This great patriot is thus defeated by his own beliefs that he cannot confront with reality.”

“The Algerian economy, after more than four decades of centralized public management, remains highly dependent on resources, particularly oil. Despite particularly fertile sources of opportunity, such as the availability of energy at a reduced price, the vast size of the territory, relatively good water resources, proximity to important markets, a rapidly developing domestic market, and a population accustomed to working hard to survive, the development of the non-hydrocarbon economy remains below expectations.”