ALGERIA ON GENDER EQUALITY
Globally, some progress on women’s rights has been achieved. In Algeria, 3.8% of women aged
20–24 years old who were married or in a union before age 18. The adolescent birth rate is 12
per 1,000 women aged 15–19 as of 2017, up from 9.7 per 1,000 in 2015. As of February 2021,
26% of seats in parliament were held by women. In 2013, 77.2% of women of reproductive age
(15-49 years) had their need for family planning satisfied with modern methods.
However, work still needs to be done in Algeria to achieve gender equality. Women and girls
aged 10+ spend 20.8% of their time on unpaid care and domestic work, compared to 3.8% spent
by men.
As of december 2020, only 43.5% of indicators needed to monitor the SDGs from a gender
perspective were available, with gaps in key areas, in particular: violence against women and key
labour market indicators, such as the gender pay gap. In addition, many areas – such as gender
and poverty, physical and sexual harassment, women’s access to assets (including land), and
gender and the environment – lack comparable methodologies for reguar monitoring. Closing
these gender data gaps is essential for achieving gender-related SDG commitments in Algeria.
Gender data gaps and country performance
For this score, we use the 72 gender-specific SDG indicators in the Women Count Data Hub’s SDG Dashboard for the
193 UN Member States. For each indicator, we calculate the 33rd and 66th percentiles of the distribution and, based
on those two values, countries are classified as belonging to high performance, medium performance and low
performance categories. For more details, see the methodological note and the article “We now have more gender-
related SDG data than ever, but is it enough?”
CEDAW
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
adopted by resolution 34/180 of the United Nations General Assembly on
18 December 1979, was ratified by Algeria on 22 January 1996 by Presidential
Decree No. 96-51. The Algerian Constitution of 1989 provides, in article 122, that
treaties relating to the status of persons shall be ratified by the President of the
Republic after they have been given express approval by the National People's
Assembly. The revised Constitution of 28 November 1996 retains this same principle
in article 131.
The provisions of this international instrument entered into force for Algeria on 19
June 1996 and have since that date been part of national legislation.
This initial report, presented pursuant to article 18 of the Convention, reviews actions
undertaken by the public authorities to give effect to the rights of women in Algeria.
The intent is to provide the Committee with an overview of the current status of
Algerian women and the practical measures that have been taken since the Convention
came into force. A number of ministerial departments and institutions participated in
its preparation.
Consistent with the Committee's guidelines, this report contains two parts. The first
covers the general context in which efforts to overcome discrimination against women
are being pursued in Algeria, while the second provides specific information on each
of the Convention's provisions.
In introducing the report, the representative of Algeria underlined that his country had submitted its initial
report only two years after its accession to the Convention, despite the current difficult situation it was
facing. That was an indication of the sincere commitment of the Government to human rights and to the
advancement of women. 43. The representative noted that Algeria’ second Constitution of 1976,
proclaimed 13 years after independence, guaranteed for the first time equality before the law. The
Constitution of 1989, revised in 1996, reinforced principles of universal human rights, such as freedom of
speech and free elections. Article 123 also confirmed the primacy of all international treaties ratified by
Algeria over national law, a decision confirmed by the Constitutional Council on 20 August 1998. All
civil, penal, administrative and commercial codes conformed to the Constitution and the principles of
equality between men and women. However, despite the rapid progress with regard to de jure equality, de
facto equality had not been achieved because of stereotypical attitudes that existed in society. 44. A
number of measures had been taken by public authorities as part of the overall policy on women, in
particular after the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995). A permanent committee had
been established under the auspices of the Ministry of National Solidarity and Family; and to strengthen
the national mechanisms for the advancement of women, a secretariat of State upgraded to a Ministry and
headed by a woman Minister acted as a focal point for the advancement of women. The Council for the
Preservation and Promotion of the Family and the National Women’s Council were created in 1996 and
1997 respectively, to ensure the coherence of all policies for the advancement of women. As part of the
implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, Algeria had adopted a national action plan and
recently presented a report on the many actions undertaken since the Fourth World Conference on
Women. 45. The representative recalled that Algerian women had already played an active role in the
struggle for independence, but stereotypical attitudes, exacerbated by illiteracy, were obstacles to
achievement of equality with men. A great number of political parties and nongovernmental organizations
had emerged since the introduction of a pluralist democracy in 1984, but fundamentalist movements and
terrorism threatened advances made, particularly where women were concerned. 46. The representative
pointed out that education, which was free, had been decisive in women’s emancipation, providing access
to employment, medical and social services and breaking down stereotypical attitudes and social
obstacles. Certain sectors of employment were now dominated by women, including the magistrature,
education and health. 2 47. The representative noted that domestic violence against women was
considered a severe crime by the Constitution and penal code. Many non-governmental organizations also
existed to assist battered women. Several initiatives had been taken to care for victims of rape and
abduction, including centres to treat women and children traumatized by terrorist violence. 48. The
representative informed the Committee that progress had been achieved with regard to equality in
political and public life at the national level, although only a few women had reached decision-making
positions. Many women were active, including in leadership positions, in political parties, unions and
non-governmental organizations. The reform of voting procedures in 1995, which limited voting by proxy
to exceptional situations, returned the right to vote to many women whose guardian or husband had
customarily voted on their behalf. 49. The economic crisis affecting Algeria since 1986 had resulted in a
decline in jobs and had had a negative impact on the employment of women. Women’s participation in
the labour force was low and informal work at home was increasing. However, the representative noted
that under the current social security system women received specific benefits related to maternity and
retirement, including 14 weeks of maternity leave at full pay. 50. Family planning services were an
integral part of the health programme and had expanded since 1974. Today 99 per cent of women were
aware of methods of family planning, and the fertility rate, in particular among the younger age groups,
had been significantly reduced. 51. In concluding his presentation, the representative of Algeria
emphasized that the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women had to be viewed in the context of the political will to encourage the gradual
emancipation of women. Accession to the Convention had raised a debate in the country and although
accession was accompanied by reservations, it should be seen as a step towards social and normative
developments leading to withdrawal of the reservations. In particular, as a result of the accession to the
Convention, the Family Code of 1984 was currently being revised and suggested amendments, which
could result in removal of reservations, had emerged, as a result both of claims by women’s groups and of
the evolution of Algerian society.
