Government Spokesman: Oil Recycling Plant will only open after Meeting Environmental and Health Standards

The Minister of Culture, Arts, Communication and Relations with Parliament, Government Spokesman, El Houssein Ould Medou, confirmed that the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development rejected a request to open an oil recycling plant in Toujinine in northern Nouakchott, which was recently closed for not complying with environmental and health standards.

In response to a question on the subject, the government spokesman denied the news circulated last week about the reopening of the factory.

He said that the authorities, in response to complaints submitted by citizens about the factory, entrusted an international (French) office to study its work, and the study revealed significant damage that may result from the work of the factory, so the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development decided to close it.

In response to a question about migration, the government spokesman reiterated Mauritania’s commitment to international and bilateral conventions in the field of migration, highlighting the facilities and incentives provided to migrants to encourage them to regularize their legal status, especially those coming from brotherly countries such as Senegal, Mali and Ivory Coast, stressing that the deportation that took place targeted irregular migrants only, and the dismantling of irregular migration networks.

He refuted media and some social media networks reported that displaced persons were subjected to ill-treatment, stressing that Mauritania was keen to ensure that the deportation process takes place in accordance with legal controls.

on the statement on the National Plan for Continuous Training 2025-2029 for health staff, His Excellency the Minister of Health, Abdallahi Ould AWedih, said that the statement targets nursing staff, and will benefit 7,500 workers, who will undergo training ranging from five to 30 days depending on the type of training, adding that the plan includes four levels, such as reproductive health, pedagogy of health sciences, and quality of health services.

He explained that the two components will be distributed in several wilayas, where the Health School in Nouakchott will host the components in the wilayas of Nouakchott, Adrar, Inchiri, Noudhibou and Tiris Zemmour, and the Rosso Health School will host the components of the wilayas of Trarza and Brakna, while the Health School in Kiffa will embrace the wilayas of Tagant and Assabba, while the School of Health in Nema will embrace the wilayas of the two hodhs, and the Health School in Selibaby will embrace the wilayas of Guidimagha and Gorgol

The Minister stressed that the President of the Republic decided to allocate financial resources for this training, noting that the sector adopted a plan for continuous training, for the first time, after funding remained an obstacle to carrying it out, and it will be comprehensive and continuous, and will include a mechanism for follow-up and evaluation.

He said that this training comes in implementation of the directives of His Excellency the President of the Republic in his electoral program, indicating that the announcement of it at this early time of the mission confirms His Excellency’s commitment to this pledge and his keenness to develop the skill of health workers.

For his part, Minister of Public Service and Labour, Mohamed Ould Soueidatt, said that the statement on the strategic plan to enhance the capabilities of the state’s human resources focuses on continuous training and reviewing the legislative framework for continuous training, in order to correct previous imbalances in this aspect, and will work to include training in the path of workers’ progress.

He added that the plan includes the ratification of the ILO Convention on the Valuation of Human Capital, and allows the preparation of a diagnostic study to assess the capabilities of a sample of human resources, the preparation and implementation of a preliminary program to enhance the capabilities of human resources, and the adoption of reference evidence for comprehensive audit of the human resources of the State.

The Minister stressed that the statement mainly aims to present the current context of the continuous training of state workers, recall the legal framework for continuous training, diagnose its current situation, identify its weaknesses and develop practical proposals, to ensure better handling of this problem.

For his part, the Minister of Animal Development, Mokhtar Ould Gaguih, said during his comment on the statement on the results of the General Census of Livestock, that the census organized by the sector last year in cooperation with the National Agency for Statistics and Demographic and Economic Analysis and international institutions, revealed the presence of about 29 million and 340 thousand head of cows, camels, sheep and goats, and revealed an increase in the number of cows by about 4 million compared to previous estimates, in addition to a significant increase in camels amounting to 27%

He added that the census showed a decline in the number of sheep by 20% compared to previous estimates, but in terms of the ranking of the states in this wealth, the census revealed that the state of the eastern hodh topped by 33%, followed by the state of the western hodh by 13%, then the state of Trarza by 12%, after that the pastoral states in the country rolled.

The Minister highlighted that the census showed that 45% of our livestock was in a state of reproduction, 30% of which was outside the country, and the census revealed huge information about this wealth, which the Ministry will reveal later, stressing the importance of this statistic in drawing up the government’s general policies related to livestock.

He pointed out that this census, which remained an urgent requirement for those in charge of the sector, came in response to the vision of His Excellency the President of the Republic in the field of animal development within his electoral program, where His Excellency committed to carry out this census and the development of livestock in general.