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Economic Reckoning Is Coming for Algeria

A municipal worker disinfects a street in Algiers on April 9. — A municipal worker disinfects a street in Algiers on April 9.
Photographer: Ryad Kramdi/AFP via Getty Images

By

Souhail Karam and

April 20, 2020, 8:00 PM UTCUpdated onApril 21, 2020, 7:26 AM UTC

One of the Arab world’s most isolated economies is fast succumbing to the coronavirus pandemic and the unprecedented crash in oil prices.

Algeria, already rocked by a year of anti-government protests after the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, is staring down its fiercest economic challenge yet. While practically unburdened by external debt, hardly any corner of the $173 billion economy will escape the global shockwaves.