ers with hot, dry
summers along coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on high
plateau; sirocco is a hot, dust/sand-laden wind especially common in
summer

Terrain: mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow,
discontinuous coastal plain

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates,
uranium, lead, zinc

Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 13%
forests and woodland: 2%
other: 82% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 5,550 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes;
mud slides

Environment--current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing and
other poor farming practices; desertification; dumping of raw
sewage, petroleum refining wastes, and other industrial effluents is
leading to the pollution of rivers and coastal waters; Mediterranean
Sea, in particular, becoming polluted from oil wastes, soil erosion,
and fertilizer runoff; inadequate supplies of potable water

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban

Geography--note: second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan)

People

Population: 31,133,486 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 37% (male 5,911,910; female 5,696,538)
15-64 years: 59% (male 9,255,702; female 9,063,954)
65 years and over: 4% (male 559,570; female 645,812) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.1% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 27 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 43.82 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.24 years
male: 68.07 years
female: 70.46 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.27 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian

Ethnic groups: Arab-Berber 99%,