Government Spokesperson: The Qualitative Presence of the Madain Heritage Festival in Chinguetti opens New Horizons for Partnership

The Minister of Culture, Arts, Communication and Relations with Parliament, Government Spokesman, Mr. El Houssein Ould Medou, said that the qualitative attendance witnessed by the last edition of the Mada’in Heritage Festival in Chinguetti opens new horizons for partnership and cooperation between Mauritania and international institutions concerned with heritage and culture, such as UNESCO, ISESCO and ALESCO, and a practical proof of the government’s recommendation.

In response to a question about the festival, commenting on the results of the cabinet meeting, on Wednesday evening at the pronouncement hall of the headquarters of the Mauritanian Press Agency in Nouakchott, accompanied by Their Excellencies the Ministers of Economy and Finance, Health, Water and Sanitation, he added that work has already begun in this framework with these organizations, as UNESCO has ensured the restoration of the old city of Chinguetti.

He said that the festival witnessed a qualitative transformation that relied on the achievements of the past editions and introduced new additions, turning it into a cultural and scientific summit by upgrading the scientific component in an unprecedented manner, which allowed the printing of 11 Mauritanian authors and the organization of 40 cultural lectures revived by international researchers.

He stressed that the development in the festival was not limited to the aforementioned two components, but extended to the development component, as for the first time the isolation from the city is lifted, in addition to carrying out many development and service projects, and the sector also provided assistance to all exhibitors in this edition to encourage them, thanking His Excellency the President of the Republic and the government for what has been achieved, and the residents of Adrar for the success of the festival, which is considered a success for Mauritania.

For his part, Minister of Economy and Finance Sid’Ahmed Ould Bouh said that the draft law containing the Investment Code, which was approved by the Council, includes a fundamental reform of the Investment Code, in line with the electoral program of the President of the Republic, which aims to reform the business climate, adding that this project will provide companies investing in the country with a set of privileges, such as a 10% deduction from the value added instead of 16%.

He added that the new system of the code includes key systems, including a basic stimulus through which the financial threshold for granting licenses to investors is determined, and the creation of development poles to develop a production base, such as the establishment of a pole in its Brakna for animal reefs, and the establishment of other specialized poles in Rosso, Nouadhibou and Zouerate.

He stressed that the code includes a focus to establish the necessary guarantees to secure against the confiscation of investors’ property except in special cases, in addition to allowing them to access hard currencies, and transfer their profit margin abroad, pointing out that the code will apply to all investments except for specific categories, such as commercial operations, banking systems, insurance companies and institutions investing in the minerals, hydrocarbons and green hydrogen sector.

The Minister pointed out that the draft decree consists of four axes aimed at valuing the productive sectors and diversifying the national economy instead of relying on the rentier economy, to advance development, and enhance local content so that citizens can benefit from the projects implemented on the homeland and avoid excessive use of natural resources.

Regarding the statement related to the investment policy announcement, the Minister explained that he added new reforms to the investment code prepared since 2012, to facilitate the work of investors, which helps in developing the national economy and creating new job opportunities, as he added new sectors to the code for the first time, such as the health, logistics, digitization and environment sectors.

He said that the statement included valuing the productive sectors, motivating and encouraging investors, diversifying the national economy, supporting the digital economy and developing infrastructure, as well as reducing the licensing period for investors, as it was specified in eight years instead of twenty years in the previous code.

For his part, His Excellency the Minister of Health, Mr. Abdallah Ould Wedih, said that the draft decree specifying the conditions and procedures for the direct parents of the main insurers to access the basic health insurance system represents a new addition in the field of health coverage, to enhance health coverage for this age group due to its need.

He added that the social insurance will provide under the project coverage that includes treatment costs related to illness and accidents in the public and private sectors, and also bears compensation for the expenses of parental treatment, and the project specified the percentage that the insurer will pay when enrolling one of the parents at 1.5%, and may reach 2 and 3 in the event that there is more than one main insurer.

The Minister pointed out that the project comes in implementation of the electoral program of His Excellency the President of the Republic, which aims to expand health coverage among citizens, to enhance social justice, and comes as an embodiment of the government’s objectives aimed at improving access to target groups and ensuring the integration of parents.

For her part, the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Mrs. Amal Mouloud, stressed the importance of the vital project related to sanitation launched by His Excellency the President of the Republic the day before yesterday in Nouakchott, and funded by the Mauritanian state treasury by 100%, pointing to the difficult situation in which the capital is located as a result of the absence of sanitation in the city, as well as rainwater and pipes, and the accumulation of this situation for several decades.

She stressed that the project was distributed to three poles, the first of which will include the western province of Nouakchott and parts of the provinces of Teyaret and the port, given the special situation of this region, and will be implemented this pole, which was inaugurated the day before yesterday within 45 months, explaining the technical characteristics of the project in figures and details.

She said that the implementation of the project was carried out after a transparent international tender, after which a Chinese company specialized in the deal won, stressing that the project will be completed within the specified deadlines, and will be supervised by specialized international offices, as well as the follow-up of the local administration.