Life in Algeria: Every Number That Shapes It (1800–2100)

To look at Algeria through the lens of data is to see the slow reconstruction of a human life. It is the difference between a home with electricity at home at 20 percent and one at 96 percent, or the quiet shift from 6.8 to 2.8 children per woman. These figures represent more than percentages; they are the tangible markers of security, from a homicide rate that decreased from 4 to 2.5 per 100,000 to the physical growth of a population where average male height shifted from 167 to 172 cm.

The trajectory from the 1950s to the 2020s is a story of fundamental rewriting. A society once defined by extreme poverty at 40 percent has seen that figure drop to 4 percent. The landscape has shifted from the rural to the urban, as those living in cities rose from 27 to 64 percent. This era replaced a world of 1.5 years of schooling and 0 percent internet access with 8.5 years of education and 66 percent connectivity, extending life expectancy from 43 to 74 years.

For a child born in Algeria in the 2020s, the birth lottery offers a vastly different starting point. This individual can expect to live 74 years on an average income of 15,000 international dollars, benefiting from a drop in child mortality from 250 to 22 per 1,000 births. With annual working hours shifting from 2,200 to 1,950 hours/year, the modern Algerian experience is defined by expanded access and a profound increase in the baseline of human dignity.

You can now compute your own parallel lives by exploring these data points.