New Tourist Zones, 294 Hotel Projects Drive Algerian Growth
The Algerian tourism sector is experiencing significant development, marked by 294 hotel projects currently underway across various tourist expansion zones. This extensive effort reflects the Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts' commitment to enhancing the nation's appeal as a destination, with a particular focus on growing both domestic and Saharan tourism. Minister Houria Meddahi recently chaired a coordination meeting to update the inventory of land available for tourism investment, underscoring the government's proactive approach to facilitating project realization and removing potential administrative or technical hurdles.
Among the 294 hotel projects, a substantial 183 are being developed on private land, demonstrating a significant reliance on private sector involvement, which accounts for over 62% of ongoing initiatives. The remaining 111 projects are concession-based on public land within these designated zones. Algeria's tourism land portfolio encompasses 238 classified expansion zones and sites distributed across 50 wilayas, covering diverse tourism types including coastal, thermal, mountain, cultural, and Saharan experiences. Of these, 86 zones already benefit from an established tourism development plan, with 25 having undergone initial development works.
Further expanding its offerings, the Ministry of Tourism has initiated the development of ten new tourist expansion zones (ZETs), an operation overseen by the National Agency for Tourism Land (ANFT) with an allocated budget exceeding 10 billion Algerian Dinars. These new zones, located in wilayas such as Biskra, Naâma, Djanet, El Oued, Khenchela, Skikda, Tizi Ouzou, Annaba, Mostaganem, and Boumerdès, are set to provide 70 land plots for investors to establish tourist villages, hotels, bungalows, and comprehensive resorts. Concurrently, efforts are underway to delineate and mark the borders of existing ZETs to protect them from encroachment and ensure their intended purpose, while also developing a national digital file for tourism land to provide clear and reliable information to investors.
