“Promises from Tebboune fall into the mud!” This is how Algerian journalist Walid Kibir described the crisis Algeria is facing. Following President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s official visit to China, which saw the announcement of a $36 billion Chinese investment, the ambitious project now appears to have turned into a mirage.
Two Chinese corporations, “Weihai” and “Tian’an,” have decided to withdraw from the phosphate project in Tebessa, an investment initially valued at $7 billion and envisioned as a promising fertilizer production initiative in Algeria.
In this context, economic researcher Mohamed Alilouch explained to El-Khabariya that “the Chinese investment, which has now become an illusion, was promoted in the military regime’s media as a game-changer capable of producing 5.4 million tons of fertilizer annually. This impressive figure was part of the economic propaganda by a regime struggling to attract the foreign investments necessary to diversify Algeria’s oil- and gas-dependent economy.”
Alilouch added, “The military regime also claimed the project would create about 12,000 jobs during its construction phase, 6,000 direct jobs, and 24,000 indirect jobs during its operational phase.”
The researcher pointed out that one of the main reasons for the Chinese companies’ withdrawal is Algeria’s politically unstable environment. Since the 2019 popular movement (Hirak) led to shifts in political leadership, the country has been experiencing a state of political uncertainty. This situation makes it challenging for foreign investors to accurately assess risks, prompting them to seek more stable investment climates.
It is worth noting that this is not the first withdrawal of its kind. A similar pullout occurred in the “Gara Djebilet” iron ore project in Tindouf. Such actions represent significant blows to foreign investor confidence in Algeria, potentially exacerbating its economic crisis.
