The World Bank has approved a $50 million financing package to aid Mauritania in enhancing public spending efficiency and service delivery within social sectors. This initiative combines $42 million in Program-for-Results financing with an additional $8 million in Investment Project Financing.
This operation supports the third phase of Mauritania's Public Financial Management Strategy 2025-2030, which aims to increase fiscal space and redirect resources towards impactful areas like health, education, and social protection. The program aligns with Mauritania's transition to program-based budgeting under the 2018 Organic Law on Finance Laws.
"Mauritania is undertaking important public financial management reforms that will strengthen how the government allocates and manages resources. This operation represents a significant step forward in the country's efforts toward more efficient and accountable public spending, ensuring that resources deliver maximum impact for the Mauritanian people, particularly in health, education, and social protection," said Ibou Diouf, World Bank Country Manager for Mauritania.
The support is delivered through an innovative financing approach designed to bolster public financial management systems. "This is Mauritania's first Program-for-Results operation, where disbursements are tied directly to achieving measurable development outcomes. This approach is particularly effective as it strengthens government systems while creating incentives for performance," stated Gael Raballand, Practice Manager for Governance Global Practice in Western and Central Africa.
Additionally, the financing will assist in deploying an electronic government procurement system (e-GP), developed under the Digital Transformation for Africa Program. This system contributes to environmental objectives by reducing paper use and travel needs.
"The operation supports the government's efforts to streamline budget execution and procurement processes. These reforms are expected to reduce procurement processing times, enable ministries to access their full annual budgets at the start of the fiscal year, and improve payment timelines to suppliers,” commented Fatou Mbacké Dieng, Senior Governance Specialist and Task Team Leader.
In healthcare, this program aids national initiatives aimed at improving vaccination coverage against diseases such as measles and rubella. It will help equip health centers with necessary tools while ensuring compliance with national standards.
Moreover, climate-smart criteria will be introduced into public investment project selection processes under this program. This ensures investments contribute toward sustainable development goals while enhancing resilience against climate-related risks.