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Here is what candidate for US Ambassador to Mauritania said

The candidate for US ambassador to Mauritania, Cynthia Kierscht, said that Mauritania has made significant strides to address its legacy of slavery since the inauguration of Ould Ghazouani in 2019.

In a speech before the US Senate committee on foreign policy, she added that Mauritania had a poor record on human rights that the consecutive governments hesitated to address.

She pointed out that Mauritania was not only the last country in the world to outlaw slavery, but government officials kept denying its existence until recently. She considered that the situation has changed since the election of President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani.

The ambassador said that Mauritania is ‘’on the right track’’, declaring that the Mauritanian government approved new anti-trafficking legislation, the establishment of a ministerial committee charged with the implementation of the trafficking in-person recommendations, and the adoption of an anti-trafficking national work plan which demonstrate the Mauritanian political will to tackle this issue.

The ambassador added, ‘’ we seem to have a partner in the Ghazouani administration to make a real headway on human rights issues’’.

The ambassador said that Mauritania showed great potential on key issues of security and counterterrorism in the region.

On the economic field, the ambassador declared that the American companies have started to come to Mauritania for investment and that some hydrocarbon companies are already exploring opportunities in Mauritania with success.

The ambassador added that the fisheries field might be a potential market for US investment in Mauritania, considering it ‘’as a ripe area for export to the United States’’.

She stressed that if she is confirmed ambassador to Mauritania, she will work with American agencies and the private sector to boost the mutual economic prosperity.

The ambassador concluded that Mauritania is a place of opportunities for both Mauritanians and the United States and she is looking forward to ” working with the Embassy team, the interagency, Congress, American businesses and non-governmental organizations, and our Mauritanian partners to ensure that this potential is fully realized to the benefit of all’’.

The candidate Cynthia has worked in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco, and this, according to her, led her to recognize the strategic nature of Mauritania’s unique geography.

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