Turkey, Mauritania sign protocol on trade

By Mehtap Yilmaz

ANKARA

Turkey and Mauritania on Wednesday signed a preferential trade agreement.

"With the preferential trade agreement...we aim to increase the investments of Turkish investors in Mauritania," Turkey's Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said at a meeting with Mauritania's Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism Naha Mint Hamdi Ould Mouknass in the capital Ankara.

Zeybekci said Mauritanian products will come to Turkey by means of the agreement.

He added more developments were in the pipeline. "I hope to finalize them as soon as possible."

Mouknass said there were several issues that should be discussed and finalized between the two countries.

"As ministers, we need to maximize our efforts and put forward more concrete and clear results," she added.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Mauritania in late February as part of a five-day Africa tour and signed agreements on fishery, marine economy, agriculture, reciprocal promotion and protection of investments with his Mauritanian counterpart Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.