Ahmed Ould Bahya has been appointed as Minister of Secondary and Higher Education in the new Mauritanian government. Bahya was an ICTP Associate from 1996 to 2000 in Mathematics.

"The appointment of a mathematician to this eminent position represents a real opportunity to develop higher education in Mauritania, especially in the domain of mathematics," said Dr. Isselkou Ould Ahmed Ould Izidbih, president of Mauritania's University of Nouakchott and a colleague of Bahya's.