Mauritania: Nouakchott data centre inaugurated

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould El-Ghazaouani, Minister of Digital Transformation and Modernisation of Administration Ahmed Salem Bede Etvagha, EU Ambassador to Mauritania Joaquin Tasso Vilallonga and EIB Head of Unit for West and Central Africa Public Sector Financing Svetla Stoeva inaugurated the Nouakchott data centre on Thursday 8 May 2025. This project will bolster Mauritania’s digital sovereignty and help expand connectivity and private sector contributions to national and regional development, all of which are objectives of the West African Regional Communications Infrastructure Programme (WARCIP).

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has provided a €15 million loan to back the creation of a tier 3 data centre, including the construction of the data centre building, the construction monitoring and auditing contract and tier 3 certification by the Uptime Institute, which will attract high-level banks and private companies with optimum data security standards.

Speaking on behalf of Team Europe, EU Ambassador to Mauritania Joaquin Tasso Vilallonga said: “Digital technology development in Africa is a priority for the European Union and the EIB, in line with the EU strategy for digital transformation in Africa and the Global Gateway initiative. This data centre will provide Mauritania with a secure and efficient digital transition tool to digitalise the public sector and offer hosting solutions to the private sector.”

EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle added: “I am delighted that the Bank is supporting such an important project for Mauritania’s development. The financing of the Nouakchott national data centre and its tier 3 certification is a major step forward for digital infrastructure in the country. I would like to thank Mauritania for working with us and for the quality of our partnership. Our development arm EIB Global aims to back the EU Global Gateway initiative and key sectors in partner countries (including in Africa), such as innovation, the digital economy, renewable energy, water, agriculture and transport.”

Minister of Digital Transformation and Modernisation of Administration Ahmed Salem Bede Etvagha said: “Today’s inauguration is a key step in implementing our national digital strategy and our digital infrastructure strategy in particular. Building, commissioning and certifying this tier 3 data centre will provide a solution meeting Mauritania's needs for national and international data hosting and security. Behind this solution is the greater regional and global connectivity offered by our backbone network of national, regional and submarine cables, making Mauritania a regional connectivity hub.”

This data centre will strengthen Mauritania’s digital sovereignty, enable it to host national data within the country and improve compliance with digital data exchange security standards. It is a key tool for the digital transition, contributing to the digitalisation of the Mauritanian public sector and economy.

The project is part of the West African Regional Communications Infrastructure Programme (WARCIP) co-financed with the World Bank, which is responsible for the construction of fibre-optic backbone links in north-eastern, southern and south-eastern Mauritania, with international connection points close to the borders with Senegal and Mali.

The data centre is also a major addition to Mauritania’s European Union-backed efforts to improve its connectivity and facilitate its digital transition, including connection to the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) submarine cable in 2010 and more recently the award of a contract to Ellalink to deploy a second submarine cable – both of which were financed by the EIB.

Once operational, the data centre will be managed by International Mauritania Telecom (IMT), which brings together the government (via Mauripost) and the country’s three telecom operators.

Background information

EIB

The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. It finances investments that contribute to EU policy objectives.

The EIB has been a strong partner for African countries for more than 55 years. Through EIB Global, the Bank is strengthening its presence in Africa. Over the past decade, the EIB has provided more than €28 billion for investment in innovative technologies, green energy, water, education, agriculture, telecommunications, healthcare and businesses in 40 countries across the continent. Since 2019-2020 and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic alone, the EIB has provided more than €8.5 billion for new private and public investments across Africa.

EIB Global is the EIB Group’s specialised arm devoted to increasing the impact of international partnerships and development finance. It is designed to foster strong, focused partnerships within Team Europe, alongside fellow development finance institutions and civil society. EIB Global brings the EIB Group closer to local people, companies and institutions through our offices around the world.

About the European Union’s priorities in Mauritania

The European Union has been active in Mauritania for 50 years. Alongside the EU Member States (Team Europe), it works to promote socioeconomic development in the country, with a focus on healthcare, education, technical and vocational training, the environment, energy and support for the private sector, particularly in fishing, agriculture and livestock. It also supports the country's governance, working to modernise public administration, in addition to its involvement in the fields of security, stability and migration management. Since 2021, human development, the transition to a green and blue economy, and improved governance have been the guiding priorities of our partnership under the Global Gateway strategy, which aims to develop sustainable and reliable connections serving people and planet.