The African Development Bank Group is intensifying its support for Mauritania’s private sector, aiming to channel more resources into private sector-led investment, strengthen cooperation with local and regional banks, and back projects that generate jobs and value. During a workshop co-organized with the Investment Promotion Agency of Mauritania (APIM) on 26 March, Malinne Blomberg, Deputy Director General for North Africa at the Bank, highlighted the importance of recent reforms, including the new investment code, enhanced mining regulations, and strengthened public-private partnerships, emphasizing the private sector’s central role in economic diversification, employment creation, and structural transformation.
The Bank’s strategy for private sector development focuses on improving the business environment, developing quality infrastructure, and enhancing enterprise capabilities. In Mauritania, this includes providing technical assistance to APIM, supporting public-private partnerships, and financing transformative projects such as the Rosso Bridge and the Mauritania–Mali Power Interconnection Project, alongside operations supporting the National Industrial and Mining Company (SNIM) and commercial banks. Mauritania’s Minister of Economic Affairs and Development, Abdallah Souleymane Cheikh-Sidia, stressed that the main challenge lies in transforming potential opportunities into bankable projects, highlighting the significance of the Bank’s presence.
Tah Ahmed Meouloud, Director General of APIM, noted that the workshop helped private sector actors understand how to access the Bank’s financing instruments and emphasized the Bank’s role as a catalyst for credibility and risk reduction. The discussions also contributed to preparations for the Bank’s North Africa Regional Integration Strategy, identifying private sector priorities to better position Mauritanian businesses in regional and continental markets. The African Development Bank reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Mauritania in improving the business climate and strengthening enterprise capabilities to boost national productivity.
