Mauritania's draft 2027 budget projects taxes on international trade rising 18.1% to 18.30bn MRU (€407mn), the fastest increase among the main tax categories, according to the bill's explanatory statement published by the finance ministry. Total tax revenue is projected to grow 11.2% to 104.17bn MRU, while import volumes are forecast to rise 5.7%, the document says.
Analysis: Trade tax receipts are expected to increase more than three times as fast as import volumes, suggesting an anticipated rise in import values, stronger collection or both. Mauritania plans to apply transaction-value customs assessments more widely by September 2028 and has budgeted 112.5mn MRU (€2.5mn) for customs scanner trucks next year. Those measures could tighten scrutiny of import declarations, though their effect on 2027 receipts is uncertain. Food, fuel and equipment importers may face closer checks at the border. The draft still requires parliamentary approval before the fiscal year begins in January.
Source: Ministère des Finances, Mauritanie, Ministère des Finances, Projet de loi de finances pour l'année 2027 (Octobre 2026), exposé général des motifs and tax provisions, 2027 (draft) and 2027 (assumption)
Mauritania's central bank raised its policy rate by half a percentage point to 7.25% and nearly doubled the share of deposits banks must hold in reserve, to 15% from 8%, citing inflation and risks to price stability, according to a Monetary Policy Council communiqué issued after a meeting in the week of October 26 and reported by Mauritanian news sites. Both measures will be phased in, Sahara Medias said, without giving a date.
Analysis: The policy rate returns to its end-2024 level but remains about two percentage points below September's 9.3% inflation rate. Raising required reserves from 8% to 15% may have the greater immediate effect: Sahara Medias estimates that it would absorb about 10.2bn MRU (€226mn) in bank liquidity. Reported excess reserves stood at 4.35bn MRU (€96.6mn) on October 27, more than four times the central bank's target, suggesting that draining liquidity is a central objective. The measures will be phased in on a timetable yet to be disclosed. November debt auctions should offer an early indication of the effect on financing costs.
Source: Al Wiam (Mauritanian news site), BCM Monetary Policy Council communiqué, as reported by Al Wiam (November 2, 2026), Decision of the BCM Monetary Policy Council, meeting in the week of October 26, 2026 and Decision of October 2026 and Before the October 2026 decision; Sahara Medias, Sahara Medias, 'Mauritanie : le taux d’intérêt porté à 7,25 % et celui de la réserve obligatoire à 15 %' (November 1, 2026), After the October 2026 decision (estimate) and Before the October 2026 decision; Sahara Medias, Minutes of the BCM Monetary Policy Council (October 2026 meeting), as reported by Sahara Medias from a version seen by Reuters (November 1, 2026), October 27, 2026 and October 2026; AMI (state news agency), AMI home page exchange-rate box (BCM rates), page dated Monday, November 2, 2026, November 2, 2026; Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM), BCM, Procès-verbal N°2026/02 du Conseil de Politique Monétaire, réunion du 14 juillet 2026, Decision of July 14, 2026; ANSADE, ANSADE, Note mensuelle de l’Indice National des Prix à la Consommation (INPC), septembre 2026, September 2026; International Monetary Fund, IMF Country Report No. 24/362, staff report for the 2024 Article IV consultation and third ECF/EFF review, Decision of 22 October 2024; RegAlert (regulatory document aggregator), BCM Instruction No. 020/GR/2024 on the modification of rates applicable to monetary policy operations (RegAlert copy), Instruction of 31 December 2024; Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM), Direction du Marché Monétaire, BCM, Résultats Obligations du Trésor du 28/10/2026 (OT, 5 ans), Auction of October 28, 2026
Mauritania's commerce ministry closed 19 bakeries in Nouakchott on November 1 over what it called unjustified price increases, Points Chauds reported, citing a ministry communiqué. Bread and cereal prices were unchanged from August in September and 6.2% higher than a year earlier, the statistics agency ANSADE said in its consumer price report.
Analysis: Official figures show no abrupt increase in September: bread and cereal prices were unchanged in September and 6.2% higher year on year, compared with 12.5% for food overall. Their 12-month average rose 17.4%, pointing to earlier price pressure. Reports from residents of a doubling to 20 MRU (€0.44) per loaf would mark a sharper change if confirmed. The commerce ministry has disclosed neither the prices charged by the closed bakeries nor the benchmark used to judge them. October's consumer price report, expected around November 10, may clarify whether increases have spread more widely.
Source: Points Chauds, Points Chauds, 'Flambée du prix du pain : le ministère du Commerce ferme 19 boulangeries à Nouakchott' (November 2, 2026), citing a Ministry of Commerce and Tourism communiqué, November 1, 2026 and Late October 2026 and Before late October 2026; ANSADE, ANSADE, Note mensuelle de l’Indice National des Prix à la Consommation (INPC), septembre 2026, September 2026 and INPC base and September 2026 (last 12 months against the previous 12); AMI (state news agency), AMI home page exchange-rate box (BCM rates), page dated Monday, November 2, 2026, November 2, 2026
Mauritania has begun drafting a ten-year national rice development strategy with Japan's development agency JICA and the Coalition for African Rice Development, aiming for self-sufficiency, the agriculture ministry said on October 26, according to state news agency AMI. Rice imports rose 84% to 81,000 metric tons between 2021 and 2025, while the import bill climbed to $44mn from $25mn, Agence Ecofin reported, citing Trade Map data.
Analysis: Imports of 81,000 metric tons in 2025 were equivalent to about one-fifth of the 431,700 tons of domestic output the FAO reported for 2024, by our calculation, although the figures may refer to rice at different milling stages and are not directly comparable. Production fell 8.2% in 2024 after a 2023 peak. The ministry identifies water management, irrigation upkeep and access to seed, credit and machinery as obstacles to expansion. It has yet to publish production targets, financing or an implementation schedule. Until it does, importers and millers have little basis for estimating how quickly domestic supply might replace imports.
Source: Agence Ecofin, Ecofin Agency, 'Mauritania Targets Rice Self-Sufficiency With New 10-Year Development Strategy' (27 October 2026), 2025 and 2021 and 2024; AMI (state news agency), AMI, 'La Mauritanie lance un processus d'élaboration d'une stratégie nationale visant à renforcer la souveraineté alimentaire' (26 Oct 2026), Strategy launched October 26, 2026
Mauritania's National Assembly approved on October 27 a €50mn loan from Spain's state lender Instituto de Crédito Oficial for a resilience and community development project in the Senegal River valley, repayable over 30 years with a five-year grace period at 1.42% a year, Finance Minister Codioro Moussa N'Guenore said, according to state news agency AMI. The project is set to expand to 34 communes from 17, reaching about 300,000 people, Sahara Medias reported.
Analysis: The 1.42% interest rate is less than one-third of the 4.82% yield Mauritania paid on five-year domestic bonds on October 28, although the two loans differ in currency and maturity. Annual interest on the full €50mn would be about €710,000 before principal repayments, by our calculation. The project will support local economic activity in Brakna, Gorgol and Trarza and is also intended to help reduce emigration. It could create opportunities for local contractors and suppliers, but the financing law still awaits promulgation. Authorities have not announced an initial tender or disbursement timetable.
Source: AMI (state news agency), AMI, 'L'Assemblée nationale adopte un projet de loi portant sur un accord de prêt destiné au financement du Projet de résilience et de développement communautaire' (27 Oct 2026), Agreement of July 17, 2026; law adopted October 27, 2026 and Agreement of July 17, 2026; Sahara Medias, Sahara Medias, 'Le projet Résilience et développement communautaire sur les rives du fleuve Sénégal va s'élargir à 17 nouvelles communes' (23 Oct 2026), Announced October 22, 2026; Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM), Direction du Marché Monétaire, BCM, Résultats Obligations du Trésor du 28/10/2026 (OT, 5 ans), Auction of October 28, 2026
Chart of the week
Tasiast gold production, gold equivalent ounces per quarter
120,934
125,625
130,014
133,311
120,232
Q3 25Q4 25Q1 26Q2 26Q3 26
Gold equivalent ounces produced at Kinross Gold's Tasiast mine, from the company's quarterly results, third quarter of 2025 to third quarter of 2026. Fourth-quarter results are usually published in February.. Source: Kinross Gold Corp (SEC Form 6-K), Kinross Gold MD&A, three and nine months ended 30 September 2025 (SEC 6-K Ex. 99.1), Q3 2025; Kinross Gold Corp (SEC Form 6-K), Kinross Gold news release, 'Kinross reports 2025 fourth-quarter and full-year results' (SEC 6-K Ex. 99.1), Q4 2025; Kinross Gold Corp (SEC Form 6-K), Kinross Gold MD&A, three months ended 31 March 2026 (SEC 6-K Ex. 99.1), Q1 2026; Kinross Gold Corp (SEC Form 6-K), Kinross Gold MD&A, Q2 and six months ended 30 June 2026 (SEC 6-K Ex. 99.1), Q2 2026; Kinross Gold Corporation, Kinross Gold, 'Kinross reports 2026 third-quarter results' (October 28, 2026), Q3 2026.
Tender of the week
Ten pastoral water ponds, simplified design (two lots)
Buyer
PROGRES natural resources and producers project
Scope
Construction of ten pastoral water ponds (boulis) of 4,800 cubic meters each under the project's 2026 work plan; two separate lots; national open tender.
Value
Not published
Funding
Not stated in the notice summary
Closes
Friday, November 13, 2026
Alama Pro members get the link to the official notice for this and every other tender.
In Alama Pro this week
Deep dive: Mauritania's public works pipeline: water, power and road tenders this quarter
12 stories with workings, from trade, macro and prices, agriculture, projects, energy and gas, mining and construction
Key figures: inflation, GTA LNG cargoes, Tasiast gold output and the policy rate; open tenders with deadlines, led by ten pastoral water ponds for the PROGRES natural resources project
