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Mauritania
Index
The 1961 Constitution kept the highly centralized colonial
structure of counties (cercles), subdivisions (souspréfectures ), and administrative posts. Local councils were
established in the twelve cercles--the French created
eleven cercles coterminous with the old amirates, and the
newly independent government created a twelfth cercle,
Tiris Zemmour, out of northern Adrar--as representative and
administrative bodies to replace the chiefs and councils of
notables through whom the French ruled. By 1961 urban and rural
communes had been created, and rudimentary representative
councils had been established with elected mayors in the urban
communes. There were five urban communes modeled after similar
bodies in France in Rosso, Kaédi, Atar, Bogué, and Nouakchott
(see
fig. 1). Three experimental communes were established in
Nouadhibou, `Ayoûn el `Atroûs, and Fdérik. Although the
government attempted to give the councils and mayors of the
communes control over communal legislation, the communes failed
to fulfill any meaningful function for lack of trained and
experienced managerial cadres and for want of resources to
support local administration. With the Law of March 4, 1968, the
rural communes were abolished, and less than a year later the
urban and experimental communes were also eliminated. Local
administration reverted to the traditional authorities, who
became the links between the rulers and the rest of the
population.
On July 30, 1968, the resources and functions of the former
communes were transferred to twelve regions and one district
(Nouakchott) in sweeping reforms of local administration. Each of
the regions, which were generally coterminous with the former
cercles, were subdivided into départements,
generally coterminous with the former sous-préfectures,
and further divided into arrondissements, corresponding to
the former administrative posts. A thirteenth region encompassing
al Gharbia (that part of Western Sahara claimed by Mauritania)
was created in 1976; however, it was abandoned when Mauritania
withdrew from the Western Sahara conflict. The state viewed the
regions as serving as administrative subdivisions and as
independent judicial districts.
Each region was headed by a governor representing the central
government. The governor headed the administrative bureaucracy of
the region, ensured the execution of laws and regulations, and
coordinated state services (except for military and judicial
activities). Under his authority were préfets, who
administered départements, as well as other civil servants
of the region. The governor's staff also included two assistants
responsible for administration and economic and social
development. The governor and his two assistants were appointed
by the president.
Each region had a regional assembly of twenty to thirty
members (conseillers) named by presidential decree from a
list of nominees presented by the party. The conseillers
served with no pay for five years. The regional assemblies had
only minimal autonomy. The regional budgets for which they voted
were prepared by the government in Nouakchott and included
mandatory expenses, such as the cost of administration and
maintenance of local roads and secondary airports. Regional
assemblies could also levy taxes on certain specified goods and
allocate a portion of their budgetary subvention from the central
government to discretionary items. In spite of these apparent
moves toward decentralization, effective control remained with
the central government in the name of forging national unity.
Regional assemblies served only to disseminate orders and
information from Nouakchott, and not to mediate between local and
centralized authority.
Under military rule, the government no longer pursued even
the pretense of democracy. Although the office of regional
governor was retained, the regional assemblies, like the National
Assembly, were eliminated. In addition to a regional governor
with responsibility for regional administration, six regions also
had a regional military commander responsible for maintaining
internal security, a task that included monitoring and
controlling political dissent within his region. The two regions
classified as autonomous military sectors also had military
commanders with responsibilities similar to those of the regular
commanders.
Data as of June 1988
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