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Algeria and Mauritania open border gate to increase trade

The presidents of Algeria and Mauritania opened on Thursday a gate at the border of the two north African countries to strengthen bilateral ties and boost trade.

The leaders have also accepted establish a free trade zone and develop a 847 kilometre (526 mile) road that will connect the Algerian town of Tindouf to Mauritania's Ezouirat.

Hotels, restaurants, cab driver and employees in the public sector and real estate sectors are happy, Dida Abdewahab, a Tindouf citizen, informed .

The agreement comes a couple of days after OPEC member Algeria announced it would invest $442 million in energy jobs in Mali, Niger and Libya.

Algeria has actually also announced it will open four other free trade zones in 2024 with Mali, Niger, Tunisia and Libya.

Algeria, greatly depending on oil and gas sales, is aiming to diversify its economy.

Its exports outside hydrocarbons reached a record of $7. billion in 2022, and totalled $5.3 billion in the first 11. months of 2023, according to main figures.

Algeria has a trade surplus in ceramics, clinker cement,. ferrous products, improved sugar, and dates.

This need to have taken place a long period of time ago but there was not. enough diplomatic attention offered to Mauritania, Geoff Porter,. an American analyst specialized in North Africa, told .

(source: Reuters)