Mokhtar Ould Djay

Mokhtar Ould Djay (Arabic: المختار ولد أجاي; born 28 December 1973), also spelled Moctar Ould Diay or Mokhtar Ould Diaye, is a Mauritanian politician serving as the Prime Minister of Mauritania since 2 August 2024.

He previously served as Minister of Finance and Minister of Economy and Finance under the presidency of Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, and more recently as Head of the Office of President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani.

Mokhtar Ould Djay was born on 28 December 1973 in Moudjéria, Tagant. He later moved to Magta Lahjar, in the wilaya of Brakna, to complete primary and secondary studies in the town, obtaining a baccalauréat specialised in mathematics in 1992.

He obtained a bachelor's degree in Engineering from the National Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics of Rabat, Morocco, in 1997.

From 1998 to 2003, he was responsible for labour market data, involved in the national employment policy project funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). At the same time, between 2000 and 2002, he completed his higher education by obtaining a master's degree in Statistics and Econometrics at the University of Toulouse through distance education.

From 2003 to 2008, he was responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of the Education and Training project and was the Director of the Office of Specialised Studies in the field of Statistics and Economics.

In 2003, he joined the Ministry of Education as an Advisor for Strategies, Monitoring and Evaluation. After seven years in this position, he was appointed Director General of Taxes in 2010.

He became Minister of Finance in January 2015 under Yahya Ould Hademine, with his portfolio later extending to also cover the Ministry of Economics following a cabinet reshuffle.