Wafa Holding

Wafa Holding is a Mauritanian family group headquartered on Rue 42-66 in Tevragh Zeina, Nouakchott. The group says it is heir to a long tradition of entrepreneurship and trade, and that in 1980 the brothers Sidi Mohamed and Brahim Ghadda took over the family business of wholesaling basic foodstuffs, then grew it through an import strategy built on partnerships with international companies. Its website calls the Import, Export and Distribution pole the spearhead of the group. The pole is made up of three companies: MIREX (Mauritanienne d'Importation et d'Exportation, formerly SMOAS, in its current form since November 1998), SIREX (Société Mauritanienne d'Importation et d'Exportation, formerly BOAS, since 2005) and SMID (Société Mauritanienne d'Importation et de Distribution, since November 2005). Each of them integrates the full value chain of modern trade. The group says the range it distributes on the Mauritanian market comes from a rigorous selection of suppliers and products across the five continents, and that it maintains special relationships with manufacturers, producers and wholesalers. It states that its logistics subsidiary, Générale de Transport et Logistique (GTL), moves goods from the capital to regional warehouses in Nouadhibou, Zouérat, Aleg, Kiffa, Aïoun, Néma and Rosso with a fleet of 53 trucks, and also handles stock management and order preparation. The website says the pole has created 150 direct and 70 indirect jobs. The website names five flagship products for the group: wheat, sugar, rice, oil and pasta. Its presentation page says that in 2016 the group was Mauritania's leading importer of wheat, sugar and edible oil and its leading importer and distributor of rice. A chart on the site ranks it second in pasta imports, and its rice business covers both imported and Mauritanian rice. The group also imports and markets well-known brands, including DANO milk, alongside non-food brands. The group says it owns private brands made in factories abroad, which it distributes exclusively, including SALMA, THÉ D'OR, DANA, BANA, NEMA and MAARIM. It sums up its commitments as quality and regular supply, support for its partners and contributing to the country's development. It adds that its local industrial output either replaces or complements imported products.