Economic Liberalization and Political Change in Algeria: Theory and Practice (1988–92 and 1994–99)

Contrary to the dominant literature and policy orientations, evidence from the Algerian case in two periods of study suggests that no positive link exists between economic liberalization and democratization. Instead, placing the focus on the content and context of these processes reveals that they are seldom objectives in themselves. Between 1988 and 1992, democratization was clearly instrumental in liberalizing the economy and this proved to be fatal for both. As for the period 1994–99, economic liberalization and democratization were complementary strategies aimed at keeping the regime in place. Although they were successful in this goal, neither of them was consistently implemented or pursued.