The French Never Despair of Turning Algeria into a Market For Their Products

France does not despair of working to preserve its economic interests in Algeria, to the point that its officials have a firm feeling that the favour it enjoyed until recently on more than one level no longer exists in the way it has always tried to establish over the years, driven by a kind of guardianship that returns to the Evian Agreements: “Algeria is an independent state cooperating with France.”

This “cooperation” has lost much of its meaning over the decades, after the Algerian authorities confirmed that Paris is using this title as an entry point to establish its hegemony over the national economy, contrary to the “win-win” logic, which is supposed to be the standard in any partnership, or so all the French officials say when they visit Algeria.

After about four years of turmoil that characterized bilateral relations, during which France lost many of its interests in Algeria, today it is trying to feel the pulse. It hopes it can make up for what it lost due to the selfishness of its officials, who still believe or look at Algeria as just a “cash cow”.

In this context, the fourth edition of the Algerian-French Industrial Partnership Forum, organized by “Business France Algeria”, was held under the supervision of the French Ambassador to Algeria, Stéphane Romatet, on Tuesday, June 4, 2024.

The French Embassy said in a tweet on its “X” account (formerly Twitter), that this forum constitutes “an opportunity to encourage the twelve French institutions active in the industry, which moved to Algiers to meet with more than 200 Algerian economic actors.”

Participants in “round tables related to industrial machinery and equipment, the pharmaceutical industry, packaging and textiles, engineering, energy transformation, as well as financing projects and regulations”, the French embassy to Algeria added.

The presence of the French ambassador in this economic activity is an indication of the presence of a strong desire on the French side to revive the economic momentum of Paris in Algeria, which has declined significantly in favour of old competitors such as China, and new ones such as Turkey, which has become a major investor in Algeria, competing with the experience and expertise of the Chinese companies.

In Algeria, there are about 250 subsidiary companies owned by more than 50% of the French capital, with cumulative investments amounting to 3 billion euros, in addition to hundreds of French companies owned by less than 50% of the French capital, according to statements issued by Romain Keraval, Director of Business France Algeria.

As for the French ambassador, Stéphane Romatet, he believes that the volume of trade between the two countries, amounting to about 11.8 billion euros in 2023, increased by 5.3% compared to 2022, a figure that did not live up to his ambitions, given the historical relations between the two countries as well as Algeria’s status as a historical partner of France.

However, for any development in economic relations between any two countries, there must be seriousness, credibility and openness, which remains absent in the Algerian-French case, due to the painful accumulations of the colonial past, and which French officials and pressure lobbies in Paris were unable to overcome by assuming state responsibilities that cannot be subject to statute of limitations, as is known.

France’s official opposition to some of the sensitive interests of the Algerian state also stands as a stumbling block to progress on the economic level. The French position on the Western Sahara issue, which is considered an extension of Algeria’s national security, does not honour bilateral relations, as the French side tries to portray it every time in the words of more than one official.