Ismail Ould Bedde Ould Cheikh Sidiya

Ismail Ould Bedde Ould Cheikh Sidiya (born 17 March 1961) is a Mauritanian politician who served as the 15th Prime Minister of Mauritania from 5 August 2019[1] to 6 August 2020. He headed the Ministry of Housing, Town Planning and Regional Development from 2009 to 2014, as well as once being president of the Nouadhibou Free Zone.[2] He was one of the founding members of the Union for the Republic party.[3]

Ismail Ould Bedde Ould Cheikh Sidiya
Prime Minister of Mauritania
In office 5 August 2019 – 6 August 2020
President	Mohamed Ould Ghazouani
Preceded by	Mohamed Salem Ould Béchir
Succeeded by	Mohamed Ould Bilal
Personal details
Born	17 March 1961 Boutilimit, Mauritania
Political party	Union for the Republic
Alma mater	École Centrale Paris

Biography

Sidiya was born in Boutilimit[4] and holds an engineering degree from Central School of Paris, with his graduate studies between Toulouse and Paris.

Sidiya began his career as head of the Bureau of Studies and Programming of the National Industrial and Mining Company (SNIM) then General Manager of CompuNet. He became the General Manager of the ETASCO Research Department before becoming coordinator of the new town project of Boutilimit. He was the general director of the government agency in charge of the town of Tindame's reconstruction after it was washed away by torrential rains in 2008.[3] He served as the Minister of Housing, Town Planning and Regional Development from 2009 to 2014, as well as once being president of the Nouadhibou Free Zone.[2] He did not have a specific position after this period but continued working with his political party.[3]

On 3 August 2019, Sidiya was designated as the Prime Minister of Mauritania by President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani,[4] who Sidiya had campaigned for in the Gorgol Region.[5] Some observers criticized his appointment as a continuation of the old system.[3]

Politics

In 2010, as the Minister of Housing, Town Planning and Regional Development, Sidiya stated that the housing problem was exacerbated by economic inequality and that homelessness was the most pressing factor in poverty and exclusion, as well as noting that most of the Arab world were struggling with increased rural flight and urbanization over the past decades. He stated that Mauritania had a plan to remove outlying districts of Nouakchott, regional capitals, and inner cities to allow the poor to access resources, though he did not state how.[6]

References

1. "August 2019: Mauritania". Rulers. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
2. "Mohamed Ould Ghazouani appoints Ould Bedda Ould Sheikh Sidiya as new Prime Minister". AllAfrica (in French). 2019-08-05.
3. "Mauritanie: Ismael Cheikh Sidiya, un Premier ministre pas si nouveau". Afrique - RFI (in French). 4 August 2019. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
4. jeuneafrique1, ed. (5 August 2019). "Mauritanie : Ismaïl Ould Bedda Ould Cheikh Sidiya nommé Premier ministre – JeuneAfrique.com". JeuneAfrique.com (in French). Retrieved 21 August 2019.
5. "Mauritanie: Ismail Ould Bedda Ould Cheikh Sidiya nouveau Premier ministre". Points Chauds [Mauritania] (in French). 2019-08-03.
6. "Pour une garantie de l'habitat decent dans les pays arabes". AllAfrica (in French). 2010-05-13. Ouvrant la rencontre, le ministre de l'habitat, de l'urbanisme et de l'amenagement du territoire, M. Ismail Ould Bedde Ould Cheikh Sidiya, a indique que les circonstances dans lesquelles se tient ce colloque sont marquees par l'acuite et la complexite du probleme de l'habitat face à une mondialisation impitoyable où les riches s'enrichissent davantage et les pauvres s'appauvrissent davantage et où le manque d'un toit constitue l'aspect le plus saillant de la pauvrete et de l'exclusion. Il a ajoute que la presente reunion a ete decidee par les ministres de l'habitat arabes au cours de leur session tenue au Caire le 24 decembre 2009. Le ministre a egalement rappele que la plupart des pays arabes ont connu, pendant la deuxieme moitie du siecle passe, des mutations profondes marquees par l'aggravation du probleme de l'habitat et l'apparition des quartiers peripheriques sous l'influence de plusieurs facteurs dont l'exode anarchique des populations rurales vers les villes. Il a affirme que la Mauritanie s'efforce, à travers une strategie claire, à eradiquer definitivement les quartiers peripheriques aussi bien à Nouakchott, dans les capitales regionales que dans les villes interieures dans le cadre d'une approche permettant l'acces des couches les plus pauvres à l'eau potable, à l'electricite, à la sante, à l'education et à la communication.