President of Republic Receives World Bank Group Delegation
On 10 September, in Nouakchottn His Excellency Mr. Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, the President of the Republic, received a delegation from the World Bank Group (WB), led by Mr. Ousmane Diagana, the Vice President of the Bank for West and Central Africa.
The meeting focused on the areas of cooperation and partnership between Mauritania and this international donor and the means to strengthen them in the service of the economic development of our country.
The Vice President of the World Bank Group said that he and his colleague had the privilege of being received by the President of the Republic who gave them details of his government program at the start of his term.
For their part, the WB officials explained to the Head of State the objectives of their current joint mission, which is the first of its kind between the WB and the IFC as part of the preparation of their new partnership strategy for the next 5 years.
Mr. Ousmane Diagana indicated that he had recorded a convergence between the priorities of the President of the Republic on the development of human resources, the fight against corruption, the promotion of human rights, and the strengthening of infrastructure which constitute a base for inclusive development.
In this regard, the WB Vice President expressed to the Head of State their availability to make their expertise in this area available to Mauritania. Mauritania which, they affirm, has made remarkable progress in some sectors, has benefited from the mobilization of significant financing given the visible progress recorded.
Regarding development, they stressed that it is a long-term process with many challenges but that the Bank is committed to supporting a sector, such as electricity, to accelerate access and ensure that it is affordable because it is a sector that supports the transformation of the economy and the creation of conditions that can generate employment; an element that is an absolute priority for the WB. Human development was also discussed, particularly education, which represents a priority sector for the Bank.
In this context, they will work with the government, particularly the Ministry of Economy and Finance, to see to what extent all these elements fit together and fit into the government’s growth strategy to present them to partners in the context of a consultative group that will take place during the year 2025.
Moreover, Mr. Sergio Pimenta, the IFC Vice President, stressed that the side that the International Finance Corporation (IFC) supports within the World Bank, and this is the purpose of this joint visit, is to be able to deploy the instruments of the WB not only on the public side but also those of the IFC on the private side.
“We discussed with the President some important sectors such as energy, but also others where the private sector can play an important role in the development of the country. This is the case for agriculture, especially Small and Medium Enterprises, both of which create jobs where the IFC can encourage financing. So this visit aims to see the country’s priorities to align them with those of the World Bank.”, as he put it.