• Algeria plans to open more than 285,000 new vocational training places starting February 15, 2026.

• Authorities will expand workplace apprenticeships and residential training to improve youth employability.

• Youth unemployment stood at about 29.7% in 2024, underscoring pressure on the labor market.

Ahead of the next vocational training intake scheduled for February 15, 2026, Algerian authorities plan to expand capacity with more than 285,000 new training places. Fouad Khettal, director of studies at the Ministry of Vocational Training and Education, announced the plan in remarks reported by Algeria Press Service on Friday, January 23.

The program relies in part on a scaling-up of workplace-based apprenticeships, which should benefit more than 57,000 participants. Authorities will also strengthen residential training in specialized centers by adding more than 32,000 places. In addition, the program includes evening classes and tailored courses for homemakers, rural populations, people with special needs and recipients of unemployment benefits.

According to the official statement, this training model aims to consolidate technical skills deemed essential to economic competitiveness. Authorities seek above all “to link training to the labor market and facilitate professional integration, as it combines theoretical training delivered within training institutions with practical application within economic enterprises.” The strategy also emphasizes innovation and entrepreneurship through the gradual establishment of centers of excellence in strategic sectors and the development of professional training networks.

This push comes as access to employment remains particularly difficult for young people. In 2024, the unemployment rate among 15- to 24-year-olds reached about 29.7%, according to World Bank modeled data based on national and international labor statistics. Meanwhile, Algeria’s National Statistics Office (ONS) put the overall unemployment rate at 9.7% at the end of the same year, based on its national employment and unemployment survey.

Against this backdrop, the government has stepped up efforts to modernize the vocational training system. During the October 2025 intake, nearly 385,000 new trainees and apprentices enrolled in vocational training institutions nationwide, according to the Ministry of Vocational Training and Education.

This article was initially published in French by Félicien Houindo Lokossou

Adapted in English by Ange J.A. de BERRY QUENUM