150 British companies operating in Algeria, says Prince Andrew

The number of British companies investing in Algeria is growing. Their number has reached 150 thanks to efforts by the Algerian government in this field, UK Prince Andrew told Echorouk in an interview.

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• What is the number of British companies operating in Algeria?
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• There are some 150 British Companies that are operating in Algeria.
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• What do you think about the investment environment in Algeria?
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• I have no doubt that there are abundant business opportunities in Algeria. I am aware that the number of UK companies exploiting these opportunities is growing each year. In fact since my previous visit some large British companies such as Astra Zenica and HSBC have started operating in this country.
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• UK companies remain committed to investing in this country provided the conditions are right.
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• Liberalising the economy and not resorting to protectionism will lead to greater foreign investment in the country. Heavy bureaucracy, lack of access to information and decision-makers, lengthy registration processes, delays in granting trading licences and complicated tax regimes are barriers to trade and hinder businesses from functioning effectively.
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• The Algerian Government has done a great deal to attract foreign investment to Algeria, and I am hopeful that they will continue to do more.
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• What is the rate of exchange between the countries? What are their horizons?
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• Bilateral trade exceeds over £1 billion each year. It stands to reason that this figure will rise as more UK companies start operating in Algeria.
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•  Is there any progress made in terms of economic and commercial cooperation between Algeria and the U.K. since your last visit to the country?
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• Yes. Lord Mervyn Davies, Minister for Trade and Investment held a productive round of bilateral trade talks with His Excellency Minister Temmar earlier this year (2 March 2009).  Among other things, the 2 Ministers agreed to develop and encourage greater exchange between British and Algerian companies.  We hope to receive a Sonatrcah delegation to the UK in the near future.
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• UK has also signed some significant agreements with Algeria that will develop cooperation in several industries. For example the British National Space Agency signed a memorandum for collaboration on civil space with the in July 2006.
• On air services, we signed an agreement and a memorandum of understanding on 16 December 2008. These initiatives will allow additional UK-Algeria flights in order to increase capacity in relation to the anticipated increase in demand over the next few years.
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•  To Which extent, the British companies operating in Algeria rely on the local manpower?
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• British companies have an excellent record for not only employing but also for investing in training and transfer of skills to local people. Companies such as Unilever, GlaxoSmithKlyne, HSBC and BP employ over 1,000 Algerian workers between them.
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•  Are there any new details about bilateral double taxation convention with Algeria?
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• The UK Government gives priority on double taxation agreement to those countries where the British business community expresses an interest in establishing a DTA (Double taxation agreement). We have not received any representations for a DTA with Algeria from the British business community to date and therefore at this time the UK is not in a position to enter into negotiations. However, as trade between the UK and Algeria continues to grow, the UK will keep this issue under consideration.