Mr. Bouteflika joined Algeria's national liberation movement at a young age. In 1962, he was named Minister of Youth, Sports, and Tourism in the first government of independent Algeria, and in the following year he was elected to parliament and appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. During his sixteen-year tenure as Foreign Minister, Algeria became a prominent member of the international community, and was regarded as a leader of the Non-Aligned Movement.

In recent years, Algeria has passed through one of the most dramatic periods in its history, confronting a multi-dimensional (political, economic, and security) crisis. Mr. Bouteflika was elected president of Algeria in 1999, and successfully re-established political and institutional stability through the organization of legislative and local elections. The resulting liberalization and renewal of the economic life of the country led to an annual growth rate of 7 per cent last year. President Bouteflika has also worked to restore security throughout the country and reduce the destructive effects of terrorism.

President Bouteflika's lecture will be followed by a brief question and answer session. Simultaneous French-English-Japanese interpretation will be provided. The public is invited to attend, but advance registration (by 3 December) is required. A registration form is available online at http://archive.unu.edu/hq/rector_office/events2004/Bouteflika-reply.doc. For those unable to attend, the lecture will be "webcast" live (and archived) at http://c3.unu.edu/unuvideo/?51.

Media representatives are cordially invited to attend. Please contact the UNU Office of Communications to reserve a media space (tel. 03-3499-2811).