Abdelmadjid Tebboune ( ar, عبد المجيد تبون, ʿAbd al-Majīd Tabbūn; born 17 November 1945) is an Algerian politician currently serving as the
President of Algeria
The president of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian People's National Armed Forces.
History of the office
The Tripoli Program, whi ...
since December 2019 and as
Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in so ...
.
He took over the power from former President
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika (; ar, عبد العزيز بوتفليقة, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Būtaflīqa ; 2 March 1937 – 17 September 2021) was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as President of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 201 ...
and former Acting Head of State
Abdelkader Bensalah. Previously, he was
Prime Minister of Algeria
The prime minister of Algeria is the head of government of Algeria. Aymen Benabderrahmane has been the prime minister since 30 June 2021.
The prime minister is appointed by the president of Algeria, along with other ministers and members of ...
from May 2017 to August 2017. In addition, he was also
Minister of Housing A Housing minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for Housing Policy.
Country-related articles and lists
* Australia: Minister for Housing
** Victoria: Minister for Housing
** Western Australia: Minister for ...
from 2001 to 2002 for a year and again from 2012 to 2017 for 5 years.
Early life and education
Abdelmadjid Tebboune was born on 17 November 1945 in
Mécheria, in the current
Naâma Province
Naâma Province ( ar, ولاية النعامة) is a province ('' wilaya'') of Algeria named after its provincial seat, the town of Naâma. The region is dominated by a large sabkha. There is an airport in Mécheria.
History
The province was ...
, in Algeria, back then
Aïn-Sefra territory. He comes from a family from the commune of
Boussemghoun, currently in
El Bayadh Province
El Bayadh (Arabic: ولاية البيض) is a province (''wilaya'') in Algeria, named after its capital El Bayadh. It is surrounded by mountains from the South, North, and Northeast of the state.
History
The province was created from Saïda P ...
, located in the region of the
High Plains High Plains refers to one of two distinct land regions:
* High Plains (United States), land region of the western Great Plains
*High Plains (Australia)
The High Plains of south-eastern Australia are a sub-region, or more strictly a string of adja ...
of southwest Algeria. His father was a sheikh member of the
Association of Algerian Muslim Ulema (and Abdelmadjid studied in a school that was controlled by the Association of Ulema in Sidi Bel Abbes before the start of Algerian War between 1953 and 1954). and also a soldier. He is married to Fatima Zohra Bella, and has five children: Saloua, Maha, Salaheddine Ilyes, Mohamed and Khaled. He graduated from the on 29 July 1969.
Political career
Tebboune was Minister-Delegate for Local Government from 1991 to 1992, during the last months of
Chadli Benjedid
Chadli Bendjedid ( ar, الشاذلي بن جديد; ALA-LC: ''ash-Shādhilī bin Jadīd''; 14 April 1929 – 6 October 2012) was the third President of Algeria and an Algerian Nationalist. His presidential term of office ran from 9 February 1 ...
's presidency. Later, under President
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika (; ar, عبد العزيز بوتفليقة, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Būtaflīqa ; 2 March 1937 – 17 September 2021) was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as President of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 201 ...
, he served in the government as Minister of Communication and Culture from 1999 to 2000 and then as Minister-Delegate for Local Government from 2000 to 2001. He was the Minister of Housing and Urban Planning from 2001 to 2002. Ten years later, in 2012, he returned to the post of Minister of Housing in the government of Prime Minister
Abdelmalek Sellal
Abdelmalek Sellal ( ar, عبد المالك سلال, ʿAbd al-Mālik Silāl; born 1 August 1948) is an Algerian politician who was Prime Minister of Algeria from 3 September 2012 to 13 March 2014 when he took a leave of office to support Presiden ...
. He was also found in the Panama Papers.
Following the
May 2017 parliamentary election, President Bouteflika appointed Tebboune to succeed Sellal as Prime Minister on 24 May 2017. The appointment of Tebboune was considered surprising by Algerian political elites, who had expected Sellal to be reappointed.
The new government headed by Tebboune was appointed on 25 May.
Tebboune served as Prime Minister for less than three months. Bouteflika dismissed him and appointed
Ahmed Ouyahia
Ahmed Ouyahia ( ar, rtl=yes, أحمد أويحيى, Aḥmad ʾŪyaḥyā; 2 July 1952) is an Algerian politician who was Prime Minister of Algeria four times (1995–98, 2004–2006, 2008–2012, 2017–2019). A career diplomat, he also served a ...
to succeed him on 15 August 2017; Ouyahia took office the next day.
On 12 December 2019, Tebboune was appointed president following the
2019 Algerian presidential election, after taking 58% from a turnout of less than 40% the voters, against candidates from both main parties (the
National Liberation Front and the
Democratic National Rally
The Democratic National Rally ( ar, التجمع الوطني الديمقراطي, french: Rassemblement National Démocratique, RND) is a political party in Algeria. The party held its Second Congress on 15–17 May 2003.
History
The RND ...
).
On 19 December, he assumed office and received the
National Order of Merit An order of merit is conferred by a state, government or royal family on an individual in recognition of military or civil merit.
Order of merit may also refer to:
* FIFA Order of Merit, for significant contribution to association football
* PDC ...
from the acting President
Abdelkader Bensalah.
Presidency
On the eve of the first anniversary of the
Hirak Movement, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune announced in a statement to the
Algerian national media that 22 February would be declared the Algerian "National Day of Fraternity and Cohesion Between The People and Its Army For Democracy."
In the same statement, Tebboune spoke in favor of the Hirak Movement, saying that "the blessed Hirak has preserved the country from a total collapse" and that he had "made a personal commitment to carry out all of the
ovement'sdemands."
On 21 and 22 February 2020, masses of demonstrators (with turnout comparable to well-established Algerian holidays like the
Algerian Day of Independence) gathered to honor the anniversary of the Hirak Movement and the newly established national day.
In an effort to contain the
COVID-19 pandemic, Tebboune announced on 17 March 2020 that "marches and rallies, whatever their motives" would be prohibited. After protestors and journalists were arrested for participating in such marches, Tebboune faced accusations of attempting to "silence Algerians." Notably, the government's actions were condemned by Amnesty International, which said in a statement that "when all eyes
..are on the
management of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Algerian authorities are devoting time to speeding up the prosecution and trial of activists, journalists, and supporters of the Hirak movement." CNLD estimated that around 70 prisoners of conscience were imprisoned by 2 July 2020 and that several of the imprisoned were arrested for
Facebook posts.
On 28 December 2019, the then-recently inaugurated President Tebboune met with
Ahmed Benbitour
Ahmed Benbitour ( ar, أحمد بن بيتور; born June 20, 1946) is an Algerian politician who was Head of Government of Algeria from 1999 to 2000.
Life and career
Born at Metlili, Ghardaïa in the Chaamba Arab tribe, Benbitour received his ...
, the former
Algerian Head of Government, with whom he discussed the "foundations of the new Republic."
On 8 January 2020, Tebboune established a "commission of experts" composed of 17 members (a majority of which were professors of
constitutional law
Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in feder ...
) responsible for examining the previous constitution and making any necessary revisions.
Led by
Ahmed Laraba, the commission was required to submit its proposals to Tebboune directly within the following two months.
In a letter to Laraba on the same day, Tebboune outlined seven axes around which the commission should focus its discussion.
These areas of focus included strengthening citizens' rights, combatting
corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...
, consolidating the
balance of powers in the Algerian government, increasing the
oversight powers of
parliament, promoting the independence of the
judiciary, furthering citizens' equality under the law, and constitutionalizing
elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
.
Tebboune's letter also included a call for an "immutable and intangible" two-term limit to anyone serving as president — a major point of contention in the initial Hirak Movement protests, which were spurred by former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika's announced intention to run for a fifth term.
In January 2020, Tebboune also instructed Prime Minister Djerad to prepare a bill against all forms of
racism, regionalism and
hate speech based on political convictions, religion, belief or race.
The preliminary draft revision of the constitution was publicly published on 7 May 2020, but the
Laraba Commission (as the "commission of experts" came to be known) was open to additional proposals from the public until 20 June.
By 3 June, the commission had received an estimated 1,200 additional public proposals.
After all revisions were considered by the Laraba Commission, the draft was introduced to the
Cabinet of Algeria
The Council of Ministers is an Algerian government body established by the Algerian Constitution of 1996, Algerian Constitution to discuss and adopt some of the main acts of Executive (government), executive power, such as the tabling of governme ...
(Council of Ministers).
On 4 July 2020, Tebboune announced that the referendum would occur in September or October 2020.
On 24 August 2020, the date for the referendum was set for 1 November, the anniversary of the start of
Algeria's war of independence.
The revised constitution was adopted in the
Council of Ministers on 6 September, in the
People's National Assembly on 10 September, and
Council of the Nation
The Council of the Nation ( ar, مجلس الأمة, Majlis al-Ummah) is the upper house of the Algerian Parliament. It is composed of 144 members, 2/3 of which are elected indirectly and 1/3 of which are appointed by the president of Algeria.
...
on 12 September, but its implementation was contingent on the results of the 1 November referendum.
In October 2020, Tebboune was tested positive for
COVID-19 and flew to
Germany for treatment. Meanwhile, prime minister
Abdelaziz Djerad
Abdelaziz Djerad ( ar, عبد العزيز جراد; born 12 February 1954) is an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Algeria from 28 December 2019 to 30 June 2021. In September 2021, he was appointed ambassador to ...
assumed his tasks. On 29 December 2020, Tebboune resumed his duties.
The constitutional changes were approved on
the 1 November 2020 referendum, with 66.68% of voters participating in favour of the changes.
On 10 January 2021, Tebboune flew back to Germany for treatment of complications in his foot resulting from the COVID-19 infection. On 12 February 2021, he returned to Algeria.
On 16 February 2021
mass protests and a wave of nationwide rallies and peaceful demonstrations against the government of Abdelmadjid Tebboune began. On 18 February 2021, Tebboune announced changes to the cabinet. He dismissed the Minister of Energy, the Minister of Industry, and the Minister of Water Resources among others. He also dissolved the
lower house of the
Algerian Parliament
The Parliament of Algeria consists of two chambers:
*The Council of the Nation (Upper Chamber)
*The People's National Assembly (Lower Chamber)
See also
*Politics of Algeria
*List of legislatures by country
References
External linksPeople ...
and called early legislative elections within six months.
In July 2021, Tebboune formed a new government with
Ayman Benabderrahmane as Prime Minister.
On 28 July 2021, Tebboune stated that Algeria offers Libya "total assistance," as he was hosting Mohammad Younes el-Menfi, the president of Libya's Presidency Council.
On 8 December 2021, French minister of foreign affairs
Jean-Yves Le Drian
Jean-Yves Le Drian (; born 30 June 1947) is a French politician who served as Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs in the governments of Prime Ministers Édouard Philippe and Jean Castex (2017–2022) and as Minister of Defence under Preside ...
and Abdelmadjid Tebboune held a meeting. They discussed bilateral relations and peace in
Libya and
Mali.
On 24 January 2022, Tebboune visited Egypt's President
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil el-Sisi; (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has served as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. Before retiring as a general in the Egyptian mil ...
in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
. They discussed bilateral relations, the situation in
Libya after the
indefinite postponement of elections, the
Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
, image =
, image_caption = The main dam after first filling
, image_alt =
, location_map_caption =
, coordinates =
, country = Ethiopia
, location = Guba, Benishangul-Gumuz Region
, purpose = Power
, status = UC
, construction_began ...
, and the potential return of
Syria to the
Arab League
The Arab League ( ar, الجامعة العربية, ' ), formally the League of Arab States ( ar, جامعة الدول العربية, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world, which is located in Northern Africa, Western Africa, E ...
. It was the first official visit of an Algerian president to Cairo since 2008.
On 15 February 2022, Tebboune announced that the government will introduce unemployment benefits for young adults, with the unemployment rate in the country being over 15% . The president announced that payments to job hunters aged 19 to 40 will begin in March, with the goal of preserving "young people's dignity." He also stated that the increase in the disputes between his country and Morocco is due to Israeli intervention.
On 26 May 2022, during a state visit to
Rome, Tebboune agreed to increase
gas
Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).
A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
supply for Italy and Europe after the
Russian invasion of Ukraine. On 18 July 2022, Tebboune signed an energy contract worth €4 billion for additional gas supply to Italy with
Italian Prime Minister
The Prime Minister of Italy, officially the President of the Council of Ministers ( it, link=no, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri), is the head of government of the Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is ...
Mario Draghi
Mario Draghi (; born 3 September 1947) is an Italian economist, academic, banker and civil servant who served as prime minister of Italy from February 2021 to October 2022. Prior to his appointment as prime minister, he served as President of ...
in Algiers, making Algeria Italy's biggest gas supplier. In September 2022, Tebboune announced a further diversification of Algeria’s economy to increase non-hydrocarbon exports. Tebboune stated that "the goal we set is to achieve exports from outside oil and gas at $7 billion for the current year". Algeria’s non-hydrocarbon exports reached US$5 billion in 2021.
On 18 December 2022, Tebboune met with
French Minister of Interior Gerald Darmanin in
Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques d ...
. They discussed bilateral relations, migration, security, and ended the visa issue with France which had limited the number of visas issued to Algerians since September 2021.
Honours
*:
**
Grand Master & Grand Collar of the
National Order of Merit An order of merit is conferred by a state, government or royal family on an individual in recognition of military or civil merit.
Order of merit may also refer to:
* FIFA Order of Merit, for significant contribution to association football
* PDC ...
*:
**
Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the
Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (3 November 2021)
*
**
Grand Cordon of the
Supreme Order of the Renaissance
The Supreme Order of the Renaissance (, "Medal of the Nahda") is the second knighthood order of the Kingdom of Jordan.
History
The order was instituted in 1917 by Emir Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca. According to correspondence between the ...
(4 December 2022)
*
**
Grand Collar of the State of Palestine (6 December 2021)
*
**
Grand Collar of the
National Order of Merit of Tunisia
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
(15 December 2022)
See also
*
Cabinet of Algeria
The Council of Ministers is an Algerian government body established by the Algerian Constitution of 1996, Algerian Constitution to discuss and adopt some of the main acts of Executive (government), executive power, such as the tabling of governme ...
References
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tebboune, Abdelmadjid
1945 births
Living people
National Liberation Front (Algeria) politicians
Presidents of Algeria
People from Naâma Province
COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria
Prime Ministers of Algeria
Communication ministers of Algeria
Culture ministers of Algeria
Defense ministers of Algeria
Housing ministers of Algeria
Urban planning ministers of Algeria
21st-century Algerian people
Recipients of Grand Collar of the State of Palestine