- 56 - and the danger teachers and students face every day, the latter are not discouraged from continuing to teach and study. The progress that Algeria has been making in respect of education despite these difficult circumstances must be appreciated and encouraged. 287. The Committee takes note of the statement by the delegation that the process of ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is under way. 288. The Committee notes with satisfaction that the Algerian authorities have begun to pay more attention to allocate greater resources for the construction of housing, particularly for low-income groups. C. Factors and difficulties impeding the implementation of the Covenant 289. The Committee notes that the implementation of the economic, social and cultural rights guaranteed by the Covenant has been seriously hampered by the grave economic crisis which the country is undergoing. The economy’s heavy dependence on hydrocarbons, the foreign debt and the drought that has affected agriculture are recurring constraints which have an impact on the State budget and social spending. 290. The Committee also notes that the high population growth rate has led to a rapid increase in the number of job applicants, thereby increasing unemployment. 291. Lastly, the Committee notes that the acts of terrorism which are affecting the very heart of Algerian society are liable to impede its human development and its capacity for promoting the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. D. Principal subjects of concern 292. The Committee expresses its deep concern about the political turmoil in daily life in Algeria, which is impeding the full realization of the rights guaranteed in the Covenant. 293. The Committee is deeply concerned by the fact that the philosophy of the Covenant, based on the principle of non-discrimination and on the idea of the universality of human rights, has not fully taken root in Algerian society. Furthermore, many forms of discrimination against women, both in legislation and in everyday life, prevent women from exercising their economic, social and cultural rights. 294. The Committee also deplores the fact that such fundamental freedoms as the right to work, to education, to freedom of movement, and the right freely to choose a spouse are not fully guaranteed for Algerian women. The violence exercised against women in the family, and outside the family by fanatical groups, is of profound concern to the Committee. A husband’s absolute right to keep the conjugal home in the case of divorce is a further subject of concern.