In a stark revelation to the People’s National Assembly, Minister of the Interior and Transport Saïd Sayoud exposed a sophisticated, large-scale criminal enterprise that has systematically plundered a vital social benefit. The scheme targets the state-funded travel allowance—a 750 euro grant designed to help Algerian citizens afford trips abroad—transforming a public welfare program into a lucrative engine for fraud, draining foreign currency reserves, and undermining national economic policy.
Minister Sayoud detailed how this well-intentioned program, aimed at facilitating international travel for citizens, was hijacked by a coalition of illicit networks, complicit intermediaries, and unscrupulous travel agencies. The fraud is not a matter of isolated opportunism but a highly organized operation that exploits systemic vulnerabilities for profit.
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The core mechanism of the fraud is a deceptively simple “border bounce” scheme, perfected through coordination with neighboring Tunisia. Here’s how it works: Algerian citizens, often unemployed individuals recruited by the networks, are legally entered into Tunisia and receive a passport stamp. Instead of completing a genuine trip, they are immediately returned to Algeria through monitored border posts, bypassing legal stay requirements. This creates a fraudulent travel record, allowing the individual—or more accurately, the network controlling them—to claim the 750 euro allowance. The same individual is then cycled back to repeat the process, generating multiple illicit payouts.
The State Alerts on Massive Fraud and Strengthens Controls
The scale of the operation is staggering. A joint Algerian-Tunisian investigation, initiated during an official visit by the Prime Minister, uncovered that nearly 100,000 fraudulent cases were recorded in just six weeks. This volume points to an industrialized process, not random abuse. The minister emphasized the profound economic damage: these funds, intended to support citizens, have been entirely captured by speculators and criminal groups, providing no benefit to either the Algerian or Tunisian economies and representing a direct hemorrhage of hard currency.
In response to this crisis, authorities have enacted immediate border restrictions and are rolling out a multi-layered strategy aimed at dismantling the fraud while preserving the legitimate right to the allowance.
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The first tactical measure is the mandatory prior authorization for international buses operated by travel agencies. This has already acted as a filter, exposing agencies that could not provide basic guarantees for the return of travelers, indicating their potential involvement in the “bounce” scheme. This control disrupts the logistical backbone of the fraud.
Critically, Minister Sayoud assured the public that the travel allowance will not be abolished, affirming it as a guaranteed right. The goal is not to punish legitimate travelers but to surgically remove the cancer of fraud. The long-term solution lies in modernizing the disbursement mechanism itself.
When the Travel Allowance Becomes a Fraud Pipeline
The centerpiece of this modernization is a proposed shift to a prepaid payment card system. This technological intervention is crucial for several reasons:
- Traceability: Funds loaded onto the card can be tracked, making it difficult to directly cash out and divert the 750 euros.
- Usage Control: The card could be restricted to specific, verifiable travel-related expenses (e.g., airline tickets, hotel bookings) within the destination country, ensuring the money is used for its intended purpose.
- Preventing Multiple Claims: A centralized digital system would make it nearly impossible for an individual to fraudulently claim the allowance multiple times in a short period.
This case serves as a textbook example of how a generous social policy, without robust verification and digital oversight, can be inverted into a vector for financial crime. Algeria’s response—combining immediate border enforcement with a planned shift to traceable digital finance—highlights the modern challenge of securing public funds in a globalized world.
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