Algeria and Russia Hold Preparatory Meeting for 12th Joint Governmental Committee Session on Economic, Trade, and Technical Cooperation
Algiers hosted the preparatory expert meeting for the 12th session of the Algerian-Russian Joint Governmental Committee on Economic, Trade, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation, scheduled to take place next Thursday. The session will be co-chaired by Algeria’s Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development, and Fisheries, Youcef Cherfa, and Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister, Dmitry Patrushev.
The preparatory meeting was inaugurated by Tawfiq Gouamria, Director General for Europe at Algeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Community Abroad, and African Affairs, and Pavel Kalmychek, Director of Bilateral Cooperation Development at Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development. The event was attended by Algeria’s Ambassador to Russia, Smail Benamara, Russia’s Chargé d’Affaires in Algeria, Alexey Kochetkov, as well as officials and experts representing various ministries, agencies, and institutions from both countries.
In his opening remarks, Gouamria emphasized that this session is part of ongoing efforts to “strengthen high-level dialogue and consultation between the two nations, consolidate bilateral cooperation frameworks, and enhance the multifaceted ties linking Algerian and Russian institutions and companies.” He noted that the meeting takes place in a “highly positive bilateral context, marked by a growing dynamism in relations, thanks to significant steps taken by Algeria and Russia in recent years under the shared commitment of Presidents Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Vladimir Putin to deepen and solidify their promising bilateral ties.”
Gouamria described the session as a “new opportunity to reinforce the foundations of bilateral cooperation and expand economic and technical collaboration across various fields of mutual interest.” He also highlighted the Strategic Partnership Declaration signed by the two heads of state during President Tebboune’s official visit to Russia in June 2023, which, he said, “has injected new momentum into bilateral relations and provided a broader, deeper strategic dimension.”
In line with this shared commitment to building a mutually beneficial partnership, Gouamria invited Russian companies to invest in Algeria, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the country’s new investment law and the incentives introduced by Algerian authorities to encourage foreign direct investment. He also underscored Algeria’s entry into the African Continental Free Trade Area, positioning it as an “ideal gateway to the African market.”
For his part, Pavel Kalmychek affirmed Russia’s commitment to “deepening bilateral cooperation and expanding partnership areas with Algeria to encompass various economic, scientific, and cultural sectors.” He described Algeria as “one of Russia’s key partners and an important country in Africa,” highlighting the “significant potential for broadening dialogue and cooperation.” Kalmychek also expressed the interest of Russian institutions and companies in investing in Algeria and signing additional agreements across various economic fields to boost bilateral trade volumes.
Kalmychek further emphasized the importance of cooperation in higher education between Russian and Algerian universities, noting Russia’s readiness to expand this collaboration through agreements to host Algerian students and researchers.
Over the course of two days, participants in the preparatory meeting will assess the implementation of decisions from the 11th session of the Joint Committee, held in Moscow on October 25-26, 2023. Working groups will be formed to study and discuss various cooperation and partnership proposals, exploring ways to enhance and diversify collaboration across multiple sectors.
Both sides aim to strengthen cooperation and investment ties in agriculture, rural development, fisheries, trade, industry, energy, mining, finance, transport, public works, infrastructure, housing, urban development, higher education, scientific research, education, postal services, telecommunications, health, tourism, traditional industries, and environmental protection.
The session is expected to conclude with the signing of a memorandum outlining a joint roadmap for economic, trade, scientific, and technical cooperation between Algeria and Russia.
