The government supports the SME sector by investing in private sector companies through the National Investment Development Agency. While 2016 saw a 9.6% reduction to 7185 in the number of such investments, the amount invested increased by 24.8% to AD1.8trn ($14.9bn), and the number of jobs supported by these firms grew by 9.1% to 164,000.

In 2011 the authorities launched a national programme worth AD380bn ($3.2bn) to revamp the country’s SME sector, with a target of more than tripling the number of SMEs from just over 600,000 to approximately 2m by 2025. Although this programme benefitted more than 20,000 SMEs across multiple sectors, it was judged in many quarters to be falling short of its objectives. With this in mind, the government stepped up its efforts to stimulate the SME sector in 2017.

New Law 

On January 10, 2017 Law No. 17-02 on the development of SMEs was adopted. The new legislation aims to encourage the establishment of new SMEs, and to improve both their competitiveness and export capacity. The law tasks the National Agency for the Development of SMEs with the growth and modernisation of the SME sector, as well as the execution of the country’s accompanying development strategy. The law also provides for the creation of a coordination council, which brings together the specialist and representative organisations relevant to Algerian SMEs. This council was formally launched on August 1, 2017.

Lastly, the law foresees the establishment of two funds to support the development of SMEs, including the Algerian Credit Guarantee Fund and a seed capital fund. The latter helps finance costs related to the development of product prototypes, such as business plans, research and development.