The US Department of State has issued the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, which strives to provide a factual and objective record on the status of human rights worldwide in 2021, covering 198 countries and territories.
The report indicated that corruption constitutes a real problem in Mauritania, affirming that authorities don’t effectively enforce the law, which provides criminal penalties for corruption by government officials.
Officials often engaged in corrupt practices with impunity, the report said, noting that there were numerous reports of government corruption during 2021.
Corruption was a serious problem in public administration, and the government rarely held officials accountable or prosecuted them for abuses, the report warned.
There were reports government officials used their power to obtain personal favors, such as unauthorized exemption from taxes, special grants of land, and preferential treatment during bidding on government projects.
The report further pointed out that corruption was most pervasive in government procurement but was also common in the distribution of official documents, fishing and mining licenses, land distribution, as well as in bank loans and tax payments.
