SHARECountry Data
Algeria (People's Democratic Republic of Algeria) has a Bicameral parliament with the use of voluntary party quotas and legislated quotas for the single/lower house and at the sub-national level. 33 of 407 (8%) seats in the Al-Majlis Al-Chaabi Al-Watani / National People's Assembly are held by women.
At a glance
Structure of Parliament: Bicameral
Are there legislated quotas...
- For the Single/Lower House? Yes
- For the Upper House? No
- For the Sub-National Level? Yes
Are there voluntary quotas...
- Adopted by political parties? Yes
Is there additional information?...
- Yes
Last updated: Sep 28, 2021
Single/Lower House
Al-Majlis Al-Chaabi Al-Watani / National People's Assembly
| Total seats | 407 |
| Total Women | 33 |
| % Women | 8% |
| Election Year | 2021 |
| Electoral System | List PR |
| Quota Type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details | IDEA Voter Turnout - IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Constitution | Article 59 of the 2020 Constitution states: "The State shall work towards promoting the political rights of women by increasing their chances of access to representation in elected assemblies. The modalities of implementing this Article shall be determined by an organic law”. |
| Electoral law | Article 2 of the 2012 Law for the Representation of Women requires variable quotas between 20%-50% of the candidates for Parliament to be women, depending on the number of seats in each electoral district. The law prescribes the following quotas in relation to the magnitude of the electoral constituencies: 20% for Constituencies with 4 seats; 30% for those with 5 or more seats; 35% for those with 14 or more seats; 40% for those with 32 or more seats and 50% for the Constituencies abroad. Article 3 states: ‘The seats are assigned in function of the number of votes obtained by each list. The proportions fixed in Article 2 above are necessarily reserved to women candidates according to their position within the lists.’ In addition, political parties can be awarded specific state funding according to the number of their women candidates elected at the national and sub-national levels (Article 7). |
|
| Political funding legislation | ||
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | Any list of candidates for election established in violation of the quota requirements will be rejected (Article 5 (1)). Article 5 (2) provides an opportunity for parties to make changes to their candidate lists to comply with the gender-based quota requirements 1 month before the date of the election |
| Rank order/placement rules | No | |
| Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? | No | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
| Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? | No | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
Upper House
Majlis al-Oumma / Council of the Nation
| Total seats | 141 |
| Total Women | 8 |
| % Women | 6% |
| Election Year | 2018 |
| Electoral System | Indirectly elected / appointed |
| Quota Type | No legislated> |
| Election details | IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: No legislated | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | ||
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | No data available | |
| Rank order/placement rules | No data available |
Quota at the Sub-National Level
- Quota type: Reserved seats
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Reserved seats | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | Candidate lists presented for elections to the Wilaya Assemblies must contain at least 30% women candidates if there are 35, 39, 43 or 47 seats to be filled in the respective Wilaya, and 35% if there are between 51 and 55 seats. Candidate lists presented for elections to the Communal Assemblies located in the municipal capitals of dairas and in communes with more than 20,000 inhabitants must comprise at least 30% women candidates (Article 2). In addition, political parties can be awarded specific state funding according to the number of women candidates elected at the national and sub-national levels (Article 7). |
|
| Political funding legislation | No. Art. 206. - 'All candidates in the presidential election are entitled, within the limits of the costs actually incurred, to a lump sum reimbursement of the order of ten per cent (10%). When the candidates in the presidential election have obtained a rate higher than ten percent (10%) and less than or equal to twenty percent (20%) of the votes cast, this reimbursement is increased to 20% of the actual expenses incurred and in the limit of the authorized ceiling. The reimbursement rate is increased to thirty percent (30%) for the candidate having obtained more than twenty percent (20%) of the votes cast. Reimbursement can only be made after the results have been declared by the Constitutional Council.' Electoral code 2012 |
|
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | Any list of candidates for election established in violation of the quota requirements will be rejected (Article 5 (1)). Article 5 (2) provides an opportunity for parties to make changes to their candidate lists to comply with the gender-based quota requirements. These changes must be made 1 month before the date of the elections. |
| Rank order/placement rules | No |
Voluntary Political Party Quotas*
| Party | Official name | Details, Quota provisions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Liberation Front | Front de Libération Nationale [FLN] | In each province, 2 out of the first 5 names on a list must be women in each of the 48 provinces. |
* Only political parties represented in parliament are included. When a country has legislated quotas in place, only political parties that have voluntary quotas that exceed the percentage/number of the national quota legislation are presented in this table.
Additional Information
While providing mandatory candidates quotas for women candidates, the legal framework does not specify mechanisms for the allocation of seats to women in a manner that would translate the quota requirements into actual seat allocations in the elected Parliament.
In order to address this issue, an Inter-Ministerial circular was issued in advance of the 2012 Parliamentary Elections, specifying the formula for the allocation of seats for women. During the 2012 legislative elections, political parties largely respected the women’s quota requirements, nominating a total of 7700 women candidates, or approximately 31 per cent of the total number of candidates. However, given that the law falls short of specifying ranking rules, a limited number of party lists were headed by women and relatively few party lists in certain constituencies alternated male and female candidates
Sources
LEGAL SOURCES:
- Organic Law No. 12-03 (i) of January 2012 establishing the modalities for improving the representation of women in elected asamblies for the representation of women (French version)
- Organic Law No. 59-11 on the elction of Council Members of Local Authorities (French version)
OTHER SOURCES:
- European Union Election Observation Mission (Final Report, Leg. Elections 2012)
- National Democratic Institute (Report on Algeria's Legislative Elections)
Additional reading
- Arendt, C. (2018). From Critical Mass to Critical Leaders: Unpacking the Political Conditions behind Gender Quotas in Africa. Politics & Gender, 14(3), 295-322.
- Valentine M. Moghadam (2020). Gender Regimes in the Middle East and North Africa: The Power of Feminist Movements. Social Politics 2020 Volume 27 Number 3.
- Congressional Research Service (2020). Women in the Middle East and North Africa: Issues for Congress. Available Here
- Youssef, M., Aissa, M., & Abdou, S. (January 25, 2021). Women's rights have improved in North Africa, but the struggle continues. Available Here
- Ryan, J. M., & Rizzo, H. (2020). Gender in the Middle East and North Africa: Contemporary Issues and Challenges.