19-12-2023 | di COOPI

Mauritania. Supporting productive and energy investments with the rural population

Hodh El Chargui is the farthest region from the centers of political and economic interest, the most susceptible to instability in the Sahel -affected by conflicts over the procurement of resources such as fertile land, water, and livestock- as well as the second most populous in Mauritania, a country where about 54 % of the population is under 20 years old.

In order to counter potential sources of social rivalry, derived from the anarchic occupation of natural resources, and to harness the agropastoral potential of the area, COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale has implemented the RIDMIR II project "Promoting community participation in the selection, construction and management of productive infrastructure in the Wilaya of Hodh-el-Chargui", funded by the European Union through ENABEL, the development agency of the Belgian federal government.

The RIMDIR II project will promote the active participation of the rural population in the process of identifying and implementing rural infrastructure to be built or renovated, promoting the socio-economic integration of vulnerable groups and the development of the region.

The labor-intensive approach adopted by COOPI will enable the construction of dams, wells, critical points, vaccination parks and other facilities through low and high-skilled local labor force and the use of local materials. Another crucial activity will involve training courses that would be introduced at the end of the construction process in order to educate the community and local authorities on the proper implementation and management of the facilities.

The full participation of youth and women as agents of change is a prerequisite for the success of the project's objectives. In fact, the collaboration with local youth and women's associations will encourage their participation in decision-making processes where they can learn useful tools for their future. It is precisely through the involvement of the vulnerable population, along with that of local authorities, that it will be possible to create mechanisms of governance and conflict prevention, ensuring the security of land at the sites identified for infrastructure construction.

COOPI has been present in Mauritania since 2019 with the aim of strengthening the economic independence of the refugee and host population, acting at various levels of the supply chain with an approach based on local labor and raw materials to discourage foreign dependence.