Mauritania - Islamic Development Bank

Intervention Program (SIP) amounting to about
US$ 194.2 million. The SIP, representing 15% of
total public spending, increased the public deficit
by 1% and helped to avoid social unrest although
its effectiveness in alleviating food insecurity is
not clear—see Section V—and inflation fell to
3.9% (by yearend) in 2008, in comparison with
7.4% in 2007.
12. Poverty declined between 2004 and
2008 but remains high and is mainly a rural
phenomenon. Poverty incidence has declined
from 47.6 percent in 2004 to about 42 percent
in 2008 (Figure 3). The percentage of population
living in extreme poverty in rural areas increased
from 39.1% in 2004 to 40.8% in 2008. Recent
domestic and external shocks have likely slowed
progress on poverty reduction, highlighting the
need to protect social spending and develop
appropriate safety nets for the most vulnerable
segments of the population. In fact, the poverty
rate increased marginally in rural areas over the
period 2004 - 2008 (from 59% in 2004 to 59.4% in
2008).
13. Poverty is more pronounced among
households headed by persons employed in
the agriculture sector and is increasing with
the household size 1 . Data show that households
headed by people employed in agriculture
(including livestock) are the most affected by
poverty, followed by those employed in the
transport and communication sector. However,
households headed by public sector wagesearners
are less exposed to poverty.
1 According to the EPCV 2008.
4
14. There was a progress in the social sectors,
but the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) remains a key
challenge. Mauritania ranked 154 out of 182
countries according to the Human Development
Index in 2009. Overall, the most important
deficiencies in the progress toward the
achievement of the MDGs in Mauritania are
related to health, environment, employment
and some gender indicators (UNDP 2010). Table
1 shows that although Mauritania is likely to
meet its MDG relating to access to water, it faces
challenges in meeting the MDGs particularly
related to maternal and child mortality.
15. As in other countries, food insecurity is
associated with poverty and remains one of
the most important causes of malnutrition in
Mauritania. Based on FAO estimates, 29% of
Mauritanian households were food insecure in
2008. Almost half of households do not have
access to safe drinking water and diarrheal
diseases, malaria and acute respiratory infections
still claim the lives of many young children. The
underperformance of the agriculture sector,
characterized by an under exploitation of arable
lands and slow progress of irrigation, is an
important cause of food insecurity. In addition
to the hard climate conditions, weak productivity
of rural sector has exacerbated the threats of
food insecurity on the Mauritanian economy.
Land degradation, weak mechanization, high
production costs, low access to agricultural loans,
absence of loans devoted to livestock activities
and lack of supports to commercialization are
among the main factors contributing to these low
productivity of the rural sector.
16. More recently, lower food and fuel prices
accompanied by the normalization of relations
with the international community have helped
cushion the impact of the global economic
slowdown on the external position. The current
account deficit was 12.7 percent in 2009, down
from 15.7 percent in 2008. The decline in exports
was more than offset by a marked reduction in
imports, reflecting the contraction in economic
activity, lower world food and fuel prices, and
the foreign exchange rationing. The resumption
MCPS for Mauritania, 2011-2015