Algeria has embarked upon a hugely ambitious project to build five major new cities from scratch. Already 3 million people have benefitted from the distribution of 800,000 housing units and 2 major sports stadiums.
ADVERTISEMENTAlgeria is embarking on ambitious housing and infrastructure projects and entire cities are rising from the ground and completely transforming the urban space.
170 kilometres south of Algiers the new city of Boughezoul is under construction and it is planned to accommodate some 400 inhabitants.
This futuristic 20,000-hectare urban development project, divided between housing, business districts, and agricultural areas, was launched in a strategic region at the crossroads of the North-South and East-West axes.
"We have built a modern city in order to attract the population and create a balance between the coast, the High Plains and the south. These are pilot new cities. We hope to extend this experience later to other cities." Explains Mourad Ghouati, the General Manager of, the Public Establishment Of The New City Of Boughezoul.
The future city will house the Algerian space agency, a new railway station, and a new international airport. The basic infrastructure is complete and 28 kilometres network of tunnels for electricity, fibre optics, drinking water, and irrigation networks for green spaces.
"The technical gallery is sustainable work. Because the new city of Boughezoul has a sustainable character." Says Abdelghani Zerrouki, Technical Manager of, the Public Establishment Of The New City Of Boughezoul. "So if we have to change a pipe, or some electric cable, it is very easy, efficient, and doesn't make a noise."
Boughezoul is one of five new cities being constructed in Algeria. Sidi Abdallah, in Algiers, is another, as Abdelhak Sedaoui, General Manager of, the Sidi Abdallah New City Development Committee explains. "Our project for the new city of Sidi Abdallah is to create an attractive city, a city with sustainable development indicators and we want to ensure comfort for our inhabitants. It is a smart, resilient, and connected city."
One of Algeria's priorities has been to eradicate slums and derelict housing. In the Saharan regions, new housing estates are being built to promote inter-regional balance. To relieve congestion in large cities, low-cost housing and interest-free loans are offered by the State in satellite neighbourhoods.
Another priority was to build numerous stadiums, including the Jeunesse Sportive de Kabylie a 50,000 seater for the country's most successful club, from Tizi Ouzou. The work is inspected in person by the Minister of Housing, Mohamed Tarek Belaribi.
"The realisation of all these stadiums is linked to the enthusiasm of the whole population in sport and competition. This youthful enthusiasm has been accompanied by the public authorities in the making of these buildings, starting with the sports complex of Oran, where we organized the Mediterranean Games which went perfectly. We are also in the process of completing two other stadiums in the capital Algiers, one in Baraki, with 40,000 seats, and another in Douera in order to organise competitions on an African scale."
In addition to this, the last two years have seen three million citizens benefit from 800,000 new housing units. "I would say that we are no longer managing a housing crisis, but rather we are responding to a demand. And that's why we started building these new cities in Algeria, following the instructions from his excellency Mister the president of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune." Says Tarek Belaribi.
"We are in the process of creating satellite cities. The new Algeria is being built. We are builders, in all fields relating to architecture, peace, humanity... Anyone who wants to predict our future needs only look at what we are achieving now. The new Algeria is now." Continues Belaribi.
A symbol of contemporary Algeria is the recently inaugurated Great Mosque of Algiers, whose minaret, the highest in the world at 265 metres, offers a clear view of the country's advances.