With a budget of over 107 billion dinars dedicated to market regulation and the fight against speculation, the Ministry of Domestic Trade and National Market Regulation makes price stability and consumer protection a priority in its 2026 budget, placing transparency and efficiency at the heart of its strategy.
During a hearing organized by the Finance and Budget Committee of the National People’s Assembly (APN), the Minister of Domestic Trade and National Market Regulation, Amel Abdellatif, presented the budget for her sector as part of the 2026 Finance Bill (PLF 2026).
The minister specified that the PLF 2026 allocates the domestic trade sector a budget of more than 126.61 billion DA in commitment authorizations and nearly 130 billion DA in payment credits.
Accordingly, the programme for regulation, market supply, and competition promotion benefits from a sum exceeding 107 billion dinars. It aims to guarantee the regular availability of consumer goods and oversee commercial practices, notably through strengthening price control mechanisms.
This measure seeks to reduce speculation and consolidate the stability of the national market, aligning with the policy to support local production. In this context, the ministry pays particular attention to rehabilitating local markets and structuring commercial spaces to boost local economic activities.
The second strategic component concerns consumer protection, endowed with a budget of nearly 14 billion dinars in payment credits. It is based on developing quality control mechanisms and modernizing fraud repression laboratories.
Several concrete operations are planned, including equipping new laboratories in various provinces and creating commercial inspection offices to strengthen field coverage. The objective is to ensure the sanitary safety of products intended for consumption and to improve citizens’ confidence in commercial channels.
Furthermore, the PLF 2026 allocates the general administration of the sector a budget of 6.5 billion DA in commitment authorizations, intended for strengthening digital transformation, improving working conditions, and renewing IT equipment.
The Minister of Domestic Trade emphasized that this strategy is part of a reformist approach based on transparency, performance, and results-based management, in accordance with Organic Law No. 18-15 relating to finance laws and the 2026–2028 National Economic Development Plan.
According to the same official, the sector’s budget policy also focuses on service digitization, the creation of new commercial structures in border areas, and partnership with the agricultural sector through preventive regulation mechanisms (Syrpalac).
Moreover, the sector’s 2026 budget forecasts an increase of 4.5 billion DA compared to the current year’s budget, reflecting, according to the minister, “the importance of the missions entrusted to the ministry regarding market stability, consumer protection, and strengthening economic transparency, in an approach aiming to reconcile economic initiative freedom with control guaranteeing the protection of the public interest.”
In preparation for the upcoming Ramadan, Ms Abdellatif stated that the sector has begun coordination with all stakeholders to ensure the availability of all consumer goods, organise local markets across the country’s provinces, launch promotional sales programmes with reduced prices, and reinforce control operations.
The minister also underlined that this budget was prepared with realism and efficiency, taking into account international fluctuations affecting prices and supply, and aligning with the president’s vision to consolidate the country’s commercial and food sovereignty.