World Bank’s Erroneous Report on Algeria Not Surprising

The information used by the World Bank (WB) to write a report on Algeria would only be invented by a fabulist whose name is Farid Belhaj, World Bank Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and writer of this tendentious report. Much has been said and written about the false nature of this report. But the definitive proof has been communicated by French friends of Algeria. This report would have been written upon request from the Moroccan royal palace. Farid Belhaj, who is of Tunisian nationality, had held the position of Chief of Staff of the World Bank president, is a close friend of the Moroccan prince, Moulay Rachid and several Moroccan ministers.

This dubious and unhealthy character joined the World Bank in 1996 as a legal advisor, notably for Morocco, Egypt, Iran, Algeria and Thailand. He was responsible for WB operations for Morocco from 2002 to 2007, a position that justifies all his hatred towards Algeria. From 2007 to 2010, he was special representative of the WB to the United Nations (UN) in New York before being promoted in 2010 director of the Pacific region, a position he left in 2012 to direct the activities of the World Bank in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq and Iran from Beirut. During this period, he supervised the WB’s work on the Syrian refugee crisis and its consequences on the region.

In 2018, he is appointed WB Vice President for the MENA region. During this period, several complacent reports on Morocco have been written, the last of which ranks the kingdom of evil and misery as one of the few countries on which the Covid-19 pandemic has had a positive impact. What a big lie! From now on, no one should be surprised to read false reports on Algeria, ordered and directed by the Moroccan Makhzen. We expect other revelations about this strong friendship between the Makhzen and Farid Belhaj, especially as tongues begin to loosen.