Algerian Prime Minister, Sifi Ghrieb, highlighted on Monday in Algiers the comprehensive reform recently underway at the Algerian Agency for Investment Promotion (AAPI), which will transform it from a traditional administrative single window into a fully integrated and restructured administration, with a comprehensive simplification of the investment system, in a way that allows for strengthening trust between investors and the state.
Speaking at the opening of an information day on the new legal provisions governing the investment single window, Ghrieb said that pursuant to instructions from the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, directing that the agency become the sole, effective and fully operational point of contact for investors, a comprehensive reform of the agency has been set in motion, transforming it from a conventional administrative single window into a fully integrated body structured around the genuine needs of investors and on-the-ground requirements.
The Prime Minister underscored that the agency’s restructuring and the recent revision of key sectoral texts are aimed at achieving a comprehensive simplification of the entire investment system, with a view to ending the sluggishness of application processing, the fragmentation of responsibilities and the administrative complexity that stands in the way of project implementation.
The reforms being pursued also reflect “a deeply held conviction that investment can only thrive in an environment built on mutual trust, clear rules and rapid decision-making,” Ghrieb said, pointing out that what is being implemented “is not simply a marginal improvement in procedures, but a fundamental shift in the relationship between the state and the investor.” In this regard, a comprehensive capacity-building process has been launched for administration representatives stationed at the single windows, enabling them to fully exercise the powers vested in them.
This speaks to a fundamental change in the nature of the relationship between the state and the investor, these agents, he added, are no longer mere intermediaries acting on behalf of their central administration, but have become fully empowered decision-makers in their own right.
Through this approach, Algeria has opted for “tangible change,” Ghrieb added, underscoring that the investment law has strengthened legal protection for investors, and that the step being taken today is aimed at streamlining procedures, building an investment framework resting on two fundamental pillars: legal protection and procedural simplification, so as to make Algeria “a land of initiative, capable of attracting investment and unleashing entrepreneurial energies.”
The Prime Minister highlighted the importance of strengthening the investment framework to adapt it to a world changing at an accelerating pace, in which economic competition is no longer based solely on costs or availability of resources, but on the quality of the investment environment.
He said that the new regulation introduces strict and binding control over application processing timeframes, setting a general deadline of 25 days, and 20 days for classified installations, while emphasizing that “this is not a target or indicative guideline, but a regulatory commitment that is mandatory and enforceable on all institutions concerned.” Administrative procedures are also being simplified through reduced documentation requirements and increased digitalization, which, according to him, will enhance traceability, transparency, and overall administrative efficiency.
The Prime Minister also addressed the issue of land, which plays a decisive role in investment dynamics, noting that the new texts introduce substantive changes to the conditions governing the allocation of economic land, whereby “project evaluation will henceforth be based on a revised scoring grid built on clearer criteria, designed to better assess project viability and their effective contribution to national economic development.”
