## 1. Public Employment Programs in Algeria, 1999

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---

### Introduction and research question
- Recent Algerian performance:
  - Real nonhydrocarbon GDP grew on average by 5.5 percent for the last five years.
  - Unemployment, though cut in half, still reached 15.3 percent in 2005.
- Comparative position:
  - Algeria’s unemployment rate in 2005 is above the average for both Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries and Eastern European transition countries.
- Core questions:
  - Why is unemployment so high in Algeria?
  - Do labor market institutions matter?
  - Is unemployment affected by macroeconomic shocks?
- Purpose:
  - Investigate the extent to which labor market institutions and macroeconomic shocks account for high unemployment in Algeria.

### Stylized facts (labor supply and participation)
- Demographics and labor supply:
  - Population growth declined from an annual rate of 3.3 percent in 1980 to 1.5 percent in 2004—1 percentage point lower than the MENA average.
  - Fertility fell from 7 children per woman in 1980 to 2.5 in 2004.
  - The population grew on average by 2.3 percent a year from 1980 through 2004.
  - Algeria is undergoing a demographic transition; declining population growth has affected the working-age share with a lag.
- Labor force participation trends:
  - Labor force participation increased by 10 percentage points between 1980 and 2004, mainly from young workers.
  - Young workers account for nearly 50 percent of the active population.
  - Female share in total population roughly constant (1980–2004), but:
    - Female share in the labor force rose by almost 50 percent.
    - Female participation rate increased by 70 percent.
  - Work at home category rose by 34 percent in 2004; without the rise in work at home in 2004 and 2005, the unemployment rate would have been about 22 percent in 2004 and 21 percent in 2005.

### Public employment programs, government employment, and labor productivity
- Government employment share:
  - Declined from 23 percent (2000) to 18 percent (2005).
- ERP (Economic Recovery Program):
  - Goal: create nearly 850,000 jobs between 2001 and 2004.
  - Authorities estimated ERP actually generated 728,000 jobs and launched a supplementary program for 2005–09.
  - Other estimates: public employment programs created 1.4 million jobs between 1997 and 2001; most were temporary.
- 1999 programs (Table 1 key figures):
  - ESIL: Target low-skilled young workers; Number of Jobs Created (full-time job equivalent) 68,300; Share of Permanent Jobs (percent) 72; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 8,571; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 35,580.
  - AIG: Target poor people; Number of Jobs Created n.a.; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 68,421; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 37,333.
  - TUPHIMO: Target unskilled unemployed persons; Number of Jobs Created 7,174; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 50,000; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 82,038.
  - CPE: Target skilled young workers; Number of Jobs Created 12,191; Share of Permanent Jobs 15; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 64,800; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 147,000.
  - ANSEJ: Target young people who wish to set up independent activities; Number of Jobs Created 39,260; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) n.a.; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 1,123,540.
- Cost performance:
  - Many employment programs cost 25 percent to over 100 percent more than projected.
- Productivity:
  - Labor productivity in agriculture and public works is low; activities have been sustained by public spending financed by hydrocarbon revenues.

### Unemployment trends and profile (1995–2005)
- Total unemployment:
  - 30 percent in 2000.
  - 15.3 percent in 2005.
- Youth unemployment:
  - 48 percent in 2001.
  - 31 percent in 2005.
- International comparison:
  - In 2004 Algeria’s unemployment was 7 percentage points higher than the MENA average.
- Age profile (2005):
  - Unemployment rate ranges from 34 percent for ages 15–19 to less than 5 percent for people over 50 years old.
  - People under 30 account for 70 percent of the unemployed.
- Gender and education (2005):
  - Unemployment rate for women: 17.5 percent.
  - Unemployment rate for men: 15 percent.
  - In 2003 public sector accounted for 56 percent of female employment and 37 percent of male employment.
  - Unemployment likelihood increases with education: secondary school and university graduates had the highest unemployment rates; higher-educated women more likely to be unemployed than higher-educated men.

### Determinants of labor market performance — Labor market institutions
- Employment protection and dismissal procedures:
  - Algeria ranks relatively high on the World Bank Rigidity of Employment Index (index range 0–100; higher = more rigid).
  - Severance pay requirements since 1994: minimum of one month’s wages per year of tenure up to a maximum of six months’ salary.
    - Employers pay on average three months of salary in severance.
  - Nonprice restrictions increasing adjustment costs:
    - Need for prior authorization, notification period, appeal procedures.
    - Average of six months to lay off a worker.
    - For collective dismissals, employer must negotiate with unions which workers will be laid off.
    - For privatized firms, employer not allowed to lay any worker off right after takeover.
    - To allow a laid-off worker to receive unemployment benefits, employer must pay the unemployment insurance system 80 percent of the worker’s monthly wage for each year of tenure up to 12.
- Labor taxation:
  - Social security contributions account for 34 percent of the gross wage; 9 percent is paid by the employee.
  - The 1 percent payroll tax was abolished in 2006.
  - Tax wedge for a single person with average earnings in Algeria: 41 percent of total labor costs.
  - Family total tax wedge in Algeria: 28 percent.
  - Table 2 (2005 comparisons):
    - Algeria: Single Person Tax Wedge 41; Family Total Tax Wedge 28.
    - Czech Republic: 44; 27.
    - Estonia: 40*; ...
    - Hungary: 51; 40.
    - Latvia: 42**; ...
    - Lithuania: 43**; ...
    - Poland: 44; 42.
    - Slovak Republic: 38; 23.
    - Slovenia: 43**; ...
    - Turkey: 43; 43.
  - *Data from 2001. **Data from 2003.

### Determinants of labor market performance — Macroeconomic shocks
- Productivity growth:
  - Algeria’s real nonhydrocarbon GDP growth:
    - Averaged –1.3 percent from 1992 to 1994.
    - 3 percent from 1995 to 2001.
    - 5.7 percent from 2002 to 2005.
  - Labor productivity is low in Algeria and below the average of MENA and transition countries.
  - Recent slight increase in productivity coincided with the decline in unemployment.
- Real interest rate and inflation:
  - Effects discussed qualitatively; literature provides mixed empirical evidence.
- Terms of trade:
  - Favorable terms of trade shocks (buoyant oil revenues) boosted domestic demand and increased employment, particularly via public infrastructure investment and construction/public works sectors.

### Econometric model, data, and methods
- Base model: builds on the 2003 WEO specification — unemployment rate explained by macro variables (productivity growth, real interest rate, terms of trade shocks, inflation) and labor market institutional indicators.
- Modified model: examines differential between Algeria and sample average using panel data.
- Sample: 24 countries (excluding Algeria); 10 MENA and 14 Eastern Europe; annual data for 1995–2005; institutional indicators one observation per country.
- Key variable definitions:
  - Productivity growth: change in output per worker (labor productivity).
  - Terms of trade shocks: percentage change in the terms of trade weighted by trade openness.
  - Institutional indicators: hiring and firing costs, employment rigidity index, percentage of managers ranking labor market regulation as a business constraint, tax wedge.
- Estimators:
  - Random effects, Fixed effects (including AR(1) correction), System GMM (Blundell and Bond, 1998) to address endogeneity.

### Key econometric results
- Mean differentials (Algeria minus sample average, 1995–2005):
  - Unemployment rate: 15.2 (t-statistic (30.69)***).
  - Employment rigidity index: 4.5 (t-statistic (4.87)***).
  - Tax wedge: 2.0 (t-statistic (3.28)***).
  - Labor productivity growth: -4.6 (t-statistic (6.28)***).
  - Real interest rate: -5.1 (t-statistic (4.34)***).
  - Inflation: -15.6 (t-statistic (2.30)**).
  - Terms of trade shocks: 3.9 (t-statistic (3.07)***).
- Random effects (highlights):
  - Institutional variables (hiring/firing costs, tax wedge, rigidity index, managers ranking regulation) are not significant in explaining the differential.
  - Political instability dummy (1995–2001 = 1) coefficient positive and significant (examples: 4.90***, 5.80***, 2.68***).
  - Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged) negative and significant (examples: -8.18**, -4.69**).
  - Δ Terms of trade shocks (lagged) negative and significant (examples: -0.07***, -0.06***).
  - Δ Unemployment rate (lagged) highly persistent (0.97***).
- Fixed effects and System GMM (robustness):
  - Political instability dummy positive and significant (e.g., 5.75***, 2.99***, 2.52***; System GMM: 2.61***, 2.68***).
  - Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged) negative and significant across estimators (examples: -7.76**, -4.97**, System GMM -4.58***, -4.84***).
  - Δ Terms of trade shocks (lagged) negative and significant (approx. -0.06***).
  - Δ Unemployment rate (lagged) coefficient ~0.86–0.99*** depending on specification.
  - Hansen test: does not reject instrument exogeneity; AR(2) tests: do not reject no second-order autocorrelation.
- Subgroup analysis (System GMM):
  - Interaction Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged)*MENA positive and significant: productivity differential matters less when comparing Algeria with MENA than with transition countries.
  - Marginal impacts:
    - Compared with MENA: productivity growth differential marginal impact is –1.05.
    - Compared with transition countries: productivity growth differential marginal impact is –8.40.

### Conclusions from econometric analysis
- Slower labor productivity growth in Algeria increased the unemployment rate differential relative to the sample average.
- Positive terms of trade shocks (rising oil prices) reduced the unemployment differential by increasing labor demand.
- Labor market regulation indicators and the tax wedge do not appear to account for Algeria’s higher unemployment relative to the sample average.
- Political instability (civil violence) during 1995–2001 significantly increased the unemployment differential.
- The unemployment differential exhibits persistence (high coefficient on lagged unemployment).

### Policy recommendations
- Pursue growth-enhancing policies to create sufficient long-term employment to absorb the growing workforce and reduce unemployment.
- Structural reforms to increase productivity:
  - Promote financial development, trade liberalization, private investment, and human capital accumulation to boost productivity growth.
  - Encourage private sector-led growth and investment as the main engine of job creation; productivity improvements and moderate wage increases would stimulate employment growth.
- Ease labor market restrictions to increase flexibility and reduce unemployment:
  - Shorten the notification period and duration of dismissal procedures.
  - Lower employer contributions tied to unemployment benefit eligibility.
  - Remove obligation to maintain employment and activity of privatized firms.
  - Allow employers greater discretion in selecting workers for layoff.
  - Broaden unemployment insurance coverage to lessen social impact of these measures.
- Use fiscal space from higher oil revenues to reduce tax burden on labor-intensive activities to stimulate job creation.

### Data sources (Annex I) and sample (Annex II)
- Variable sources include: World Bank Doing Business Indicators Database (2006); OECD (2006); World Bank (2005); Groningen Growth and Development Centre; World Development Indicators (2006); Algerian authorities.
- Sample (24 countries excluding Algeria): 14 Eastern European transition countries listed; 10 MENA countries listed (notes: Pakistan* and Turkey* not officially listed as MENA countries).

*Italic: IMF working paper content from the provided PDF (_wp07210).*

### 1. Public Employment Programs in Algeria, 1999 ........................................................................ 

### 1. Public Employment Programs in Algeria, 1999

### Introduction and research question
- Recent Algerian performance:
  - Real nonhydrocarbon GDP grew on average by 5.5 percent for the last five years.
  - Unemployment, though cut in half, still reached 15.3 percent in 2005.
- Comparative position:
  - Algeria’s unemployment rate in 2005 is above the average for both Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries and Eastern European transition countries.
- Core questions the paper addresses:
  - Why is unemployment so high in Algeria?
  - Do labor market institutions matter?
  - Is unemployment affected by macroeconomic shocks?
- The paper’s intent:
  - To investigate the extent to which labor market institutions and macroeconomic shocks account for high unemployment in Algeria.

### Stylized facts (labor supply and demand)
- Demographic and labor-supply context:
  - Population growth declined from an annual rate of 3.3 percent in 1980 to 1.5 percent in 2004—1 percentage point lower than the MENA average.
  - Fertility fell from 7 children per woman in 1980 to 2.5 in 2004.
  - The population grew on average by 2.3 percent a year from 1980 through 2004.
- Implication noted:
  - Algeria is undergoing a demographic transition; declining population growth has affected the working-age share with a lag (temporary increase in the share of potential workers).

### Literature context and hypotheses
- Established expectations from the literature:
  - Stricter labor market regulation and higher taxation of labor are asserted to deter job creation and increase unemployment, though the effect of regulation is ambiguous because it can also reduce worker dismissals.
  - Macroeconomic shocks are critical determinants of unemployment; expected effects include:
    - Higher productivity growth reduces unemployment.
    - A moderate inflation rate reduces unemployment.
    - A lower real interest rate reduces unemployment.
    - Favorable terms of trade shocks reduce unemployment.

### Key empirical findings (from the paper)
- Determinants of Algeria’s unemployment differential (relative to a sample of MENA and transition countries, 1995–2005):
  - Lower growth of labor productivity in Algeria is associated with a higher unemployment rate differential between Algeria and the sample.
  - Positive terms of trade shocks helped Algeria to reduce the unemployment rate differential.
  - Labor market rigidities and taxation do not appear to explain the unemployment differential.

### Structure of the paper (as organized)
- Section 2: Recent labor market developments in Algeria.
- Section 3: Review of determinants of the unemployment rate (labor market institutions and macroeconomic shocks).
- Section 4: Model specification, data, and empirical results.
- Section 5: Conclusions and policy recommendations.

*Source: IMF working paper excerpt — "Public Employment Programs in Algeria, 1999" (section and figures listing as provided).*

### 3.4 percent annually, raising the labor supply and creating the potential for employment and

### _wp07210 - 3.4 percent annually, raising the labor supply and creating the potential for employment and

### Trends in labor supply and participation
- Labor force participation increased by 10 percentage points between 1980 and 2004, mainly from young workers.
- Young workers account for nearly 50 percent of the active population.
- The share of women in the total population was roughly constant between 1980 and 2004, but:
  - Their share in the labor force rose by almost 50 percent.
  - The female participation rate increased by 70 percent.
- Work at home category rose dramatically in 2004, increasing by 34 percent; without the rise in work at home in 2004 and 2005, the unemployment rate would have been about 22 percent in 2004 and 21 percent in 2005 (Kpodar, 2007).

### Public employment programs, government employment, and labor productivity
- Government employment as a share of total employment declined from 23 percent (2000) to 18 percent (2005).
- Public employment programs:
  - ERP (Economic Recovery Program) goal: create nearly 850,000 jobs between 2001 and 2004.
  - Authorities estimated ERP actually generated 728,000 jobs and launched a supplementary program for 2005–09.
  - Other estimates: public employment programs created 1.4 million jobs between 1997 and 2001; most were temporary.
- Table 1 (1999 programs) key figures (as presented):
  - ESIL: Target low-skilled young workers; Number of Jobs Created (full-time job equivalent) 68,300; Share of Permanent Jobs (percent) 72; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 8,571; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 35,580.
  - AIG: Target poor people; Number of Jobs Created n.a.; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 68,421; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 37,333.
  - TUPHIMO: Target unskilled unemployed persons; Number of Jobs Created 7,174; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 50,000; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 82,038.
  - CPE: Target skilled young workers; Number of Jobs Created 12,191; Share of Permanent Jobs 15; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) 64,800; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 147,000.
  - ANSEJ: Target young people who wish to set up independent activities; Number of Jobs Created 39,260; Share of Permanent Jobs n.a.; Projected Annual Cost per Job (DA) n.a.; Actual Cost per Job (DA) 1,123,540.
- Many employment programs cost 25 percent to over 100 percent more than projected.
- Labor productivity in agriculture and public works is low; activities have been sustained by public spending financed by hydrocarbon revenues.

### Unemployment trends and profile (1995–2005)
- Total unemployment:
  - 30 percent in 2000.
  - 15.3 percent in 2005.
- Youth unemployment:
  - 48 percent in 2001.
  - 31 percent in 2005.
- In 2004 Algeria’s unemployment was 7 percentage points higher than the MENA average.
- Age profile (2005):
  - Unemployment rate ranges from 34 percent for ages 15–19 to less than 5 percent for people over 50 years old.
  - People under 30 account for 70 percent of the unemployed.
- Gender and education (2005):
  - Unemployment rate for women: 17.5 percent.
  - Unemployment rate for men: 15 percent.
  - In 2003 public sector accounted for 56 percent of female employment and 37 percent of male employment.
  - Unemployment likelihood increases with education: secondary school and university graduates had the highest unemployment rates; higher-educated women more likely to be unemployed than higher-educated men.

### Determinants of labor market performance — Labor market institutions
- Algeria ranks relatively high on the World Bank Rigidity of Employment Index (index range 0–100; higher = more rigid).
- Severance pay requirements since 1994: minimum of one month’s wages per year of tenure up to a maximum of six months’ salary.
  - Employers pay on average three months of salary in severance.
- Algeria has a functioning unemployment insurance system funded by a mandatory payroll tax for formal sector workers and employers.
- Nonprice restrictions that increase adjustment costs:
  - Need for prior authorization, notification period, appeal procedures.
  - Average of six months to lay off a worker.
  - For collective dismissals, employer must negotiate with unions which workers will be laid off.
  - For privatized firms, employer not allowed to lay any worker off right after takeover.
  - To allow a laid-off worker to receive unemployment benefits, employer must pay the unemployment insurance system 80 percent of the worker’s monthly wage for each year of tenure up to 12.
- Labor taxation:
  - Social security contributions account for 34 percent of the gross wage; 9 percent is paid by the employee.
  - The 1 percent payroll tax was abolished in 2006.
  - Tax wedge for a single person with average earnings in Algeria: 41 percent of total labor costs.
  - Family total tax wedge in Algeria: 28 percent.
  - Table 2 comparisons (2005):
    - Algeria: Single Person Tax Wedge 41; Family Total Tax Wedge 28.
    - Czech Republic: 44; 27.
    - Estonia: 40*; ...
    - Hungary: 51; 40.
    - Latvia: 42**; ...
    - Lithuania: 43**; ...
    - Poland: 44; 42.
    - Slovak Republic: 38; 23.
    - Slovenia: 43**; ...
    - Turkey: 43; 43.
  - *Data from 2001. **Data from 2003.

### Determinants of labor market performance — Macroeconomic shocks
- Productivity growth:
  - Algeria’s real nonhydrocarbon GDP growth:
    - Averaged –1.3 percent from 1992 to 1994.
    - 3 percent from 1995 to 2001.
    - 5.7 percent from 2002 to 2005.
  - Labor productivity is low in Algeria and below the average of MENA and transition countries.
  - Recent slight increase in productivity coincided with the decline in unemployment.
- Real interest rate and inflation effects discussed qualitatively (mixed empirical evidence in literature).
- Terms of trade:
  - Favorable terms of trade shocks (buoyant oil revenues) boosted domestic demand and increased employment, particularly via public infrastructure investment and construction/public works sectors.

### Econometric model, data, and methods
- Base model builds on the 2003 WEO specification: unemployment rate explained by macro variables (productivity growth, real interest rate, terms of trade shocks, inflation) and labor market institutional indicators.
- Modified model examines differential between Algeria and sample average using panel data.
- Sample: 24 countries (excluding Algeria); 10 MENA and 14 Eastern Europe; annual data for 1995–2005; institutional indicators one observation per country.
- Productivity growth measured by change in output per worker (labor productivity).
- Labor market institution indicators used: hiring and firing costs, employment rigidity index, percentage of managers ranking labor market regulation as a business constraint, tax wedge.
- Terms of trade shocks defined as percentage change in the terms of trade weighted by trade openness.
- Estimators used: Random effects, Fixed effects (including AR(1) correction), System GMM (Blundell and Bond, 1998) to address endogeneity.

### Key econometric results
- Mean differentials (Algeria minus sample average, 1995–2005):
  - Unemployment rate: 15.2 (t-statistic (30.69)***).
  - Employment rigidity index: 4.5 (t-statistic (4.87)***).
  - Tax wedge: 2.0 (t-statistic (3.28)***).
  - Labor productivity growth: -4.6 (t-statistic (6.28)***).
  - Real interest rate: -5.1 (t-statistic (4.34)***).
  - Inflation: -15.6 (t-statistic (2.30)**).
  - Terms of trade shocks: 3.9 (t-statistic (3.07)***).
- Random effects (Table 4) highlights:
  - Institutional variables (hiring/firing costs, tax wedge, rigidity index, managers ranking regulation) are not significant in explaining the differential.
  - Political instability dummy (1995–2001 = 1) coefficient positive and significant (example coefficients: 4.90***, 5.80***, 2.68*** across specifications).
  - Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged) negative and significant (examples: -8.18**, -4.69**).
  - Δ Terms of trade shocks (lagged) negative and significant (examples: -0.07***, -0.06***).
  - Δ Unemployment rate (lagged) highly persistent (0.97***).
- Fixed effects and System GMM (Table 5) confirm robustness:
  - Political instability dummy positive and significant (e.g., 5.75***, 2.99***, 2.52***; System GMM: 2.61***, 2.68***).
  - Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged) negative and significant across estimators (examples: -7.76**, -4.97**, System GMM -4.58***, -4.84***).
  - Δ Terms of trade shocks (lagged) negative and significant (approx. -0.06***).
  - Δ Unemployment rate (lagged) coefficient ~0.86–0.99*** depending on specification.
  - Hansen test does not reject instrument exogeneity; AR(2) tests do not reject no second-order autocorrelation.
- Subgroup analysis (Table 6, System GMM):
  - Interaction term Δ Labor productivity growth (lagged)*MENA is positive and significant, indicating productivity differential matters less when comparing Algeria with MENA countries than with transition countries.
  - Marginal impacts example: when compared with MENA, productivity growth differential marginal impact is –1.05; compared with transition countries marginal impact is –8.40 (column 4 interpretation as stated in text).

### Conclusions from econometric analysis
- Slower labor productivity growth in Algeria increased the unemployment rate differential relative to the sample average.
- Positive terms of trade shocks (rising oil prices) reduced the unemployment differential by increasing labor demand.
- Labor market regulation indicators and the tax wedge do not appear to account for Algeria’s higher unemployment relative to the sample average.
- Political instability (civil violence) during 1995–2001 significantly increased the unemployment differential.
- The unemployment differential exhibits persistence (high coefficient on lagged unemployment).

### Policy recommendations
- Pursue growth-enhancing policies to create sufficient long-term employment to absorb the growing workforce and reduce unemployment.
- Implement structural reforms to increase productivity:
  - Promote financial development, trade liberalization, private investment, and human capital accumulation to boost productivity growth.
  - Encourage private sector-led growth and investment as the main engine of job creation; productivity improvements and moderate wage increases would stimulate employment growth.
- Ease labor market restrictions to increase flexibility and reduce unemployment:
  - Shorten the notification period and duration of dismissal procedures.
  - Lower employer contributions tied to unemployment benefit eligibility.
  - Remove obligation to maintain employment and activity of privatized firms.
  - Allow employers greater discretion in selecting workers for layoff.
  - Broaden unemployment insurance coverage to lessen social impact of these measures.
- Use fiscal space from higher oil revenues to reduce tax burden on labor-intensive activities to stimulate job creation, given Algeria’s high unemployment rate.

*Italic: IMF staff/author source content from the provided PDF content.*

### Annex I. Data Sources

### Annex I. Data Sources

### Variable sources
- Hiring costs (as a percent of salary)
  - World Bank Doing Business Indicators Database (2006)
- Firing costs (weeks of wage)
  - World Bank Doing Business Indicators Database (2006)
- Employment rigidity index
  - World Bank Doing Business Indicators Database (2006)
- Tax wedge
  - OECD (2006), World Bank (2005), and author’s calculations
- Labor productivity growth
  - Groningen Growth and Development Centre, World Development Indicators (2006)
- Percentage of managers ranking labor regulations as a key business constraint
  - World Development Indicators (2006)
- Real interest rate
  - World Development Indicators (2006)
- Inflation
  - World Development Indicators (2006)
- Terms of trade shocks
  - World Development Indicators (2006)
- Unemployment rate
  - World Development Indicators (2006), Algerian authorities

### Annex II. The Sample
- Eastern European transition countries
  - Albania
  - Bulgaria
  - Croatia
  - Czech Republic
  - Estonia
  - Hungary
  - Latvia
  - Lithuania
  - Macedonia, FYR
  - Poland
  - Romania
  - Slovak Republic
  - Slovenia
  - Ukraine
- MENA countries
  - Algeria
  - Egypt, Arab Rep.
  - Jordan
  - Lebanon
  - Morocco
  - Pakistan*
  - Saudi Arabia
  - Syrian Arab Republic
  - Tunisia
  - Turkey*
  - Yemen, Rep.

- Notes
  - * Countries not officially listed as MENA countries.

*Annex I. Data Sources (source PDF: _wp07210 - Annex I. Data Sources)*

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_Source: https://www.imf.org/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/pubs/ft/wp/2007/_wp07210.pdf_