Naha bint Mouknass ( ar, الناهة بنت مكناس; born March 10, 1969) is a Mauritanian politician. She was the former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of

Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...

, serving in this capacity between 2009 and 2011.

Early life and education

Bint Mouknass was born in 1969 in

Nouakchott , image_skyline = Nouakchott.jpg , image_caption = City view of Nouakchott , pushpin_map = Mauritania#Arab world#Africa , pushpin_relief = 1 , mapsize = , map_caption ...

, the daughter of

Hamdi Ould Mouknass Hamdi ( ar, حمدي) is a masculine Arabic given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Hamdi Aslan (born 1967), Turkish footballer and coach * Hamdi Al Banbi (1935–2016), Egyptian engineer and politician * Hamdi B ...

, who served as Foreign Minister under

Moktar Ould Daddah Moktar Ould Daddah ( ar, مختار ولد داداه, Mukhtār Wald Dāddāh; December 25, 1924 – October 14, 2003) was a Mauritanian politician who led the country after it gained its independence from France. Daddah served as the country's ...

. Her family belongs to the El-Gor warrior tribe from the

Dakhlet Nouadhibou Region Dakhlet Nouadhibou Region ( ar, ولاية داخلة نواذيبو, ''Wilayat Dakhlet Nouadhibou'', "Interior Nouadhibou Region") is an administrative division of Mauritania. Its regional capital is Nouadhibou, which is located at its northwes ...

. She attended the Superior Institute of Management in Paris, graduating in 1995.

Career

Following her graduation she returned to

Nouakchott , image_skyline = Nouakchott.jpg , image_caption = City view of Nouakchott , pushpin_map = Mauritania#Arab world#Africa , pushpin_relief = 1 , mapsize = , map_caption ...

to work for the Coca-Cola Company. In

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

she became the President of the

Union for Democracy and Progress The Union for Democracy and Progress (, UDP; ar, الاتحاد للديمقراطية والتقدم) is a political party in Mauritania. The UDP is led by Naha Mint Mouknass, She later became an Advisor to

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Maaouya Ould Taya Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya ( ar, معاوية ولد سيد أحمد الطايع, Ma‘āwiyah wuld Sīdi Aḥmad aṭ-Ṭāya‘ / Mu'awiya walad Sayyidi Ahmad Taya; born 28 November 1941) is a Mauritanian military officer who served as the ...

, serving in such a capacity between 2000 and 2001. Following this she was appointed Minister Advisor to the Presidency, serving from 2001 to the military ouster of President Ould Taya in August 2005. Mouknass speaks both

Hassaniya Arabic Hassānīya ( ar, حسانية '; also known as , , , , and ''Maure'') is a variety of Maghrebi Arabic spoken by Mauritanian Arabs and the Sahrawi. It was spoken by the Beni Ḥassān Bedouin tribes, who extended their authority over most of M ...

and French. Mouknass was appointed as Foreign Minister in 2009, the first woman in Mauritania to head such an important ministry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mouknass, Naha Mint 1969 births Living people Female foreign ministers Foreign ministers of Mauritania People from Nouakchott 21st-century Mauritanian women politicians 21st-century Mauritanian politicians Women government ministers of Mauritania Mauritanian women diplomats