34 leaders. Each meeting represented an open invitation to continue dialogue on our activities, as well as a commitment to keep stakeholders informed of our progress and plans. POSITIVE IMPACTS Mauritania’s Biodiversity Oil and Gas Program (BGP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative supported by the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Energy. Kosmos is pleased to have a multi-year partnership with the BGP team and to provide support for marine research and policy development. The BGP aims to bring researchers and policymakers together to improve marine biodiversity protection, regulatory capacity, and engagement among the various groups that use the ocean. In 2017, we again sponsored BGP researchers on a multi-week marine survey to increase knowledge and data about biodiversity in the waters offshore Mauritania. This is the third such survey that we have sponsored. In the coming year, BGP, along with its partner IMROP, intends to use this data to author a Marine Biodiversity Atlas of Mauritania. While we pursue development of the Mauritania’s natural gas resource, we aim to also enhance national capacity in the oil and gas industry and related fields. One such initiative is our multi-year partnership with the Gérer les Impacts des Activités Extractives (GAED) international master’s program, a joint master’s degree program on managing impacts from the extractive sector, held at the University of Nouakchott and the University Gaston Berger of Saint Louis, Senegal. The master’s degree program was developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the German Development Institute (GIZ), MAVA Foundation, Global Environment Facility (GEF), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and the two universities for students from Mauritania, Senegal, and other African countries. Kosmos is supporting the GAED master’s program by providing our employees as guest lecturers, hosting field trips and internships, and contributing financial support. GAED students have also joined our teams in the field for seismic and drilling ESIAs in both Mauritania and Senegal. For four consecutive years, Kosmos has funded English language training for students at Centre de Formation et de Perfectionement Professionels (CFPP), the largest vocational training center in Nouakchott. We had learned from a needs assessment that the students were often being excluded from job applicant pools for which they were qualified because they did not have sufficient English language skills. In response to student and staff suggestions, Kosmos has also provided lessons in basic management and entrepreneurship skills. We partner with the International Labor Organization (ILO) office in Mauritania on an employability skills training program for students enrolled in the English classes. Each year that Kosmos has been present in Mauritania, our office has participated in annual volunteering and charity during the month of Ramadan. The Ramadan holiday often leads to increases in food prices that can put basic items out of reach for many families. Kosmos’ involvement in 2017 provided 3,000 meals for families in need during Ramadan. Our local employees in Nouakchott volunteered to assist in food distribution. While many of our social programs are based in Nouakchott and support national development, we believe it is also important to benefit coastal communities in the Ndiago region, which is directly onshore from our license areas near the border with Senegal. Because there was little demographic and economic information available on the Ndiago region when we entered Mauritania, we began our work in the area by conducting a community needs assessment. The assessment identified energy access as a local need in Ndiago. During stakeholder meetings, community and local authorities had suggested that the local economy could benefit from electrification projects. Kosmos responded by developing a rural electrification project in Ndiago in partnership with the local community and the Ministry of Energy. Kosmos built solar installations in three remote areas of Ndiago that were not previously connected to the power grid. The project now provides electricity to more than 2,100 people in Ndiago. It is our hope that the new electricity will result in increases to quality of life in the local villages. Electrification has been shown to improve health and indoor air quality, increase connectivity Researchers with the Biodiversity Oil and Gas Program (BGP) analyze marine mammal and sea bird activity while on a marine survey offshore Mauritania sponsored by Kosmos.