President of the Republic, the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and the Minister of National Defense, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, chaired the periodic meeting of the Council of Ministers.
According to a statement by the Presidency of the Republic “Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, President of the Republic, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and Minister of National Defense chaired today, Sunday, April 18, 2021, at the Presidency of the Republic, the periodic meeting of the Council of Ministers, which was devoted to examining and approving a number of proposals and decrees related to the sectors of foreign affairs, national education, higher education and scientific research as well as industry.
After listening to the presentation made by the Prime Minister on government activity during the last two weeks, the Council continued its proceedings by listening and approving the following proposals:
Higher Education and Scientific Research:
After the presentation made by the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research on the two projects relating to the creation of a national higher school for mathematics and a higher national school for artificial intelligence, with a capacity of 1,000 pedagogical seats each, at the technological pole in Sidi Abdellah, the President of the Republic stressed the need to enhance the pace of the creation and development of specialized higher schools directed towards the economy of tomorrow, which is a major step in the building of a new Algeria, stressing in particular the following:
– To approve of the creation of the Higher School of Mathematics and the Higher School of Artificial Intelligence, by two presidential decrees.
– To provide all pedagogical and service conditions to encourage the affiliates of these two schools and give them the necessary incentives to enable them to raise the level of educational attainment and facilitate their integration in la labor world at a later time.
– To find the legal mechanisms to support the graduates of these higher schools and fighting the phenomenon of brain drain.
– To direct Algeria towards higher training in the field of science with all its specializations while encouraging the exchange of experiences in the field of training with our partners abroad.
– To create new scientific cities that include specialized national higher schools in various regions of the country that restore consideration for elite training, based on a realistic and in-depth study of the national needs in terms of human resources, especially in the sectors of industry and agriculture, and all other sectors that generate wealth.
– To emphasize the role of higher national schools in strengthening national cohesion among the various elites, as it is the case for the Algerian University.
– To preserve the pure scientific and technological character of the technological pole of Sidi Abdellah.
National Education:
The Minister of National Education made a presentation on the creation of a national school to train teachers specialized in the teaching of the deaf and dumb, after which the President of the republic intervened, stressing the following:
– The need to take care of all citizens of all categories, including those with specific needs, to ensure education and learning that is adapted across all provinces of the country.
– To create a national higher school to train teachers specialized in teaching the deaf and dumb, to be operational by the beginning of the next school year, and to work on developing it later to become an institution with an African and Arab dimension in this field.
– To entrust the Ministry of Health, Population and Hospital Reform with creating a national hospital to support the deaf and the hearing-impaired people, with a focus on developing cochlear implants, in partnership with Algerian emerging institutions that are active in this field.
– To entrust the government with finding appropriate mechanisms to take care of children with autism.
As for the presentation related to the creation of the baccalaureate of arts (audiovisual, theater, cinema …), the President highlighted the expected role of culture and arts, in embodying the desired change project and contributing to the diversification of the national economy, stressing the need to:
– Strengthen art education in the educational milieu to make it an incubator for the development of talents nationally in various disciplines to move from the rules towards a real artistic industry.
– Direct students with real talents, starting from the first year of secondary school, to art specialties, with the aim of their early training and pave the way for Algerian youth to develop their talents and hobbies in various disciplines.
– Stress the importance of complementarity and coordination between the sectors of education, higher education and scientific research as well as vocational training, in the field of artistic training.
– Provide all conditions for the success of the project to introduce the baccalaureate of arts, which aims to ensure the training of a new generation of art professionals in the various disciplines offered by this promising field, by exploiting the great historical gains of Algeria in its international, African and Maghreb dimension, and promote it in artistic disciplines.
Industry sector:
After the presentation made by the Minister of Industry on a draft executive decree bearing the amendment of the executive decree that defines the conditions and modalities for practicing the activity of new vehicle dealers, the President insisted on:
– Adopting an approach that combines simplification and efficiency with enhancing coordination between the various sectors in order to fight all practices of fraud and deception around the specific conditions for practicing this activity.
– The necessity to take into consideration environmental safety standards and the requirements of supplying the national fuel market to rationalize the import of new vehicles.
– The engine capacity of the cars imported by the dealers should not exceed 1.6 cubic meters, while the freedom to import cars that exceed this capacity remains open to individuals.
– Allocating a share of 15% of all imported cars to electric vehicles, provided that importing diesel cars is reduced to the minimum.
As for the draft amendment of the executive decree related to the conditions and modalities for granting a customs license for production lines and equipment that have been refurbished within the framework of activities for the production of goods and services, the Minister of Industry requested to deepen the discussion on the project to be presented later.
The Council of Ministers also examined and approved three draft presidential decrees presented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, including Algeria’s accession to the founding agreement of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, signed in Paris on May 29, 1990 and its amendments dated January 30, 2004 and September 30, 2011, in addition to ratifying an agreement for cooperation with the Republic of Turkey in the field of transport and maritime navigation, and another with the Republic of Angola regarding the abolition of visas for citizens holding diplomatic passports and for a mission.
At the conclusion of the session, the President of the Republic agreed to consecrate May 27, the date of the execution of the martyr Mohamed Bouras, as a national day for Islamic Scouts, in memory of epics, preserving national memory, strengthening national solidarity, and expressing the state’s will to develop the voluntary educational movement that instills a spirit of giving and leadership.
The Council of Ministers also approved a number of individual decisions related to appointment and termination of tasks of higher positions in the state.
