Mauritania’s system of local government is inherited from the French. The old system of prefectures, departments and arrondissmements has undergone some changes over the past decades. Reforms in the institutional division of the country changed the old French prefectures to wilaya-s or provinces of which there are 13, including the capital of Nouakchott. Wilaya-s are further divided into 49 departments and 219 municipal councils. From 1986 onwards local elections were held first in the 13 largest urban areas and subsequently in other municipalities. Whereas municipal councils are elected locally, governors and prefects of the wilaya-s are appointed and controlled by the Ministry of Interior. Most recently local elections were held in 2006, valid for a period of five years and thus due in 2011.
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To support decentralization several reforms have been made such as fiscal and budgetary decentralization and the transfer of responsibilities to local authorities. These reforms were started in 2007 following the first democratic elections in Mauritania. Localities have the power to levy taxes and approve budgets. However these legislative improvements have only a limited practical effect. The central government in Nouakchott is still responsible for the largest part of the decision making process. For example local budgets are developed in the capital, the local authorities themselves can only approve or disapprove them but have little influence on the contents of these budgets.
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Although the legacy of local government in Mauritania is more than twenty years old, practical implementation is lagging behind. The political unrest of 2008 stopped short of any new democratic reforms. Before the political upheaval, development organizations focused primarily on humanitarian aid but also paid attention to strengthening the capacity of localities. All development aid was frozen in the wake of the 2008 developments. In 2010 the international community recommitted during a round table meeting to provide aid to Mauritania once more. The focus of these new external activities are on democratization, decentralization and good governance in addition to humanitarian aid. With the help of external donors Mauritania has a good opportunity to open up the political arena and give local government a chance.
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