Tebboune Mandates Urgent Meat Probe, Faster Water and Rail Projects
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has issued comprehensive directives aimed at enhancing market oversight, protecting consumer purchasing power, and accelerating national infrastructure development. During a recent Council of Ministers meeting, President Tebboune ordered an immediate investigation into certain meat importers, who are accused of monopolistic practices and contributing to price increases. This inquiry, specifically tasked to the Prime Minister, will also examine price disparities for imported meat across different regions and even neighborhoods, alongside scrutinizing butchers who sell imported meat at the same rates as locally produced meat.
To further stabilize the market, President Tebboune instructed the government to prepare legislation for stricter regulation of commercial intermediaries operating between producers and consumers. A new nationwide system for monitoring the prices and availability of essential consumer goods is to be developed, which includes establishing price ceilings and regulated profit margins for items such as vegetables, pulses, pasta, and meat, considering various stages of production and distribution. The Ministry of Domestic Trade will also double the number of price-control inspection teams for continuous field operations, supported by a digital database for rapid monitoring and early warning, coordinated by the Interior Ministry and the High Commission for Digitalisation.
Regarding infrastructure, President Tebboune called for the rapid acceleration of strategic railway and water projects. He ordered the swift completion of downstream connection works for new seawater desalination plants in Chlef, Mostaganem, and Tlemcen, ensuring these priority provinces receive desalinated water as soon as possible. The President also mandated the immediate launch of the railway project linking Laghouat, El Meniaa, In Salah, and Tamanrasset from Tamanrasset, complementing the ongoing work on the mining railway connecting Bled El Hadba to the port of Annaba and its planned mineral terminal, which he described as a crucial regional and Mediterranean objective. Furthermore, rigorous oversight of well-drilling permits to protect groundwater resources was reiterated and is to be integrated into the forthcoming agricultural orientation law.
