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Mokhtar Ould Djay
Mokhtar Ould Djay
المختار ولد أجاي
	Ould Djay in 2019
Prime Minister of Mauritania
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 2 August 2024
President	Mohamed Ould Ghazouani
Preceded by	Mohamed Ould Bilal
Head of the President's Office
	In office; 4 July 2023 – 2 August 2024
President	Mohamed Ould Ghazouani
Minister of Economy and Finance
	In office; 9 February 2016 – 5 August 2019
President	Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
Prime Minister	Yahya Ould Hademine; Mohamed Salem Ould Béchir;
Preceded by	Himself (Finance); Sid'Ahmed Ould Raiss (Economy);
Succeeded by	Ckeikh El Kebir Ould Moulay Taher (Economy and Industry); Mohamed Lemine Ould Dhehbi (Finance);
Minister of Finance
	In office; 16 January 2015 – 9 February 2016
President	Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
Prime Minister	Yahya Ould Hademine
Preceded by	Himself (Finance)
Succeeded by	Himself (Economy and Finance)
Personal details
Born	28 December 1973 (age 50); Moudjéria, Tagant, Mauritania
Political party	El Insaf (since 2022)
Other political; affiliations	Union for the Republic (until 2022)
Residence	Nouakchott
Alma mater	National Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics; University of Toulouse;
Cabinet	Ould Djay government (2024–present)

Mokhtar Ould Djay (also spelled as Moctar Ould Diay and Mokhtar Ould Diaye, among other variations, Arabic: المختار ولد أجاي; born 28 December 1973) is a Mauritanian politician serving as the prime minister of Mauritania since 2 August 2024.^[1] He previously served as Minister of Finance and Minister of Economy and Finance under the presidency of Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, and more recently as Head of the Office of President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani.

Early life

Mokhtar Ould Djay was born on 28 December 1973 in Moudjéria, Tagant. He later moved to Magta Lahjar, in the wilaya of Brakna, to complete primary and secoundary studies in the town, obtaining a baccalauréat specialised in mathematics in 1992.^[2]

He obtained a bachelor's degree in Engineering from the National Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics of Rabat, Morocco, in 1997.^[2]

From 1998 to 2003, he was responsible for labour market data, involved in the national employment policy project funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). At the same time, between 2000 and 2002, he completed his higher education by obtaining a master's degree in Statistics and Econometrics at the University of Toulouse through distance education.^[2]

From 2003 to 2008, he was responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of the Education and Training project and was the Director of the Office of Specialised Studies in the field of Statistics and Economics.^[2]

Political career

In 2003, he joined the Ministry of Education as an Advisor for Strategies, Monitoring and Evaluation. After seven years in this position, he was appointed Director General of Taxes in 2010.^[2]

Minister of Economics and Finance

He became Minister of Finance in 2015 under Yahya Ould Hademine, with his portfolio later extending to also cover the Ministry of Economics following a cabinet reshuffle.^[2]

During its mandate, Mauritania experienced an economic shock related to the fall in commodity prices and in particular, the fall in the price of iron ore.^[3] Two months before the end of his mandate, he concluded the agreement between the Mauritanian government and the Australian company BCM International, for the exploitation of mines belonging to the National Industrial and Mining Society [fr] (SNIM) in the town of F'Déirick.^[4]

His name was considered in 2018 as a potential candidate to succeed Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz due to his close ties to the president,^[5] however Mohamed Ould Ghazouani became candidate instead. He was nominated by Ghazouani to become the Director of SNIM in September 2019,^[6]^[1] holding the office until March 2021.^[2]

Head of the President's Office

He was appointed on 4 July 2023 as Head of the Office of the President of the Republic by Mohamed Ould Ghazouani.^[1]

He coordinated El Insaf's campaign for the 2023 Mauritanian parliamentary, regional and local elections in the city of Nouakchott.^[1]^[7]

Prime minister

Djay was appointed prime minister by Ghazouani on 2 August 2024 following Mohamed Ould Bilal's resignation and government reshuffle in the aftermath of the 2024 Mauritanian presidential election.^[1]

Private life

Ould Djay is married and a father of seven children. He speaks Arabic and French.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "ولد غزواني يعين ولد اجاي وزيرا أول" [Ghazouani appoints Ould Djay as Prime Minister] (in Arabic). Al Akhbar. 2 August 2024. Archived from the original on 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Mokhtar Ould Diay" (in French). Prime Minister of Mauritania. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
^ Faujas, Alain (21 December 2016). "Mauritanie : pour le ministre Moctar Ould Diay, la crise liée à la chute du cours du fer est jugulée" [Mauritania: for Minister Mokhtar Ould Djay, the crisis linked to the fall of the iron price is curbed] (in French). Jeune Afrique. Archived from the original on 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ "Mauritanie: polémique autour du nouvel accord signé pour la mine de Fdérick" [Mauritania: controversy over the new agreement signed for the F'Déirick mine] (in French). Radio France Internationale. 27 May 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ Spiegel, Justine (28 November 2018). "Mauritanie : Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz cherche son Medvedev" [Mauritania: Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz is looking for his Medvedev] (in French). Jeune Afrique. Archived from the original on 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ Dia, Ibrahima Jr. (5 September 2019). "Mauritanie: l'ancien argentier aux commandes de la SNIM" [Mauretania: the former silversmith at the helm of the SNIM] (in French). Financial Afrik. Archived from the original on 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ Ben Yahmed, Marwane (25 May 2013). "Qui est Moctar Ould Diay, l'homme lige du président Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani ?" [Who is Moctar Ould Diay, President Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani's henchman] (in French). Jeune Afrique. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 3 August 2024.