1992 Edition

Climate

desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty

Coastline

754 km

Comparative area

slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico

Continental shelf

edge of continental margin or 200 nm

Disputes

boundary with Senegal

Environment

hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; desertification; only perennial river is the Senegal

Exclusive economic zone

200 nm

Land area

1,030,400 km2

Land boundaries

5,074 km; Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km

Land use

arable land 1%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 38%; forest and woodland 5%; other 56%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Natural resources

iron ore, gypsum, fish, copper, phosphate

Terrain

mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills

Territorial sea

12 nm

Total area

1,030,700 km2

Birth rate

48 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate

17 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic divisions

mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30%

Infant mortality rate

89 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force

465,000 (1981 est.); 45,000 wage earners (1980); agriculture 47%, services 29%, industry and commerce 14%, government 10%; 53% of population of working age (1985)

Languages

Hasaniya Arabic (official); Hasaniya Arabic, Pular, Soninke, Wolof (official)

Life expectancy at birth

44 years male, 50 years female (1992)

Literacy

34% (male 47%, female 21%) age 10 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality

noun - Mauritanian(s); adjective - Mauritanian

Net migration rate

0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor

30,000 members claimed by single union, Mauritanian Workers' Union

Population

2,059,187 (July 1992), growth rate 3.1% (1992)

Religions

Muslim, nearly 100%

Total fertility rate

7.1 children born/woman (1992)

Administrative divisions

12 regions(regions, singular - region); Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh ech Chargui, Hodh el Gharbi, Inchiri, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza; note - there may be a new capital district of Nouakchott

Capital

Nouakchott

Chief of State and Head of Government

President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid`Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984)

Constitution

currently 12 July 1991; 20 May 1961 Constitution abrogated after coup of 10 July 1978; provisional constitution published 17 December 1980 but abandoned in 1981; constitutional charter published 27 February 1985 after Taya came to power; latest constitution approved after general referendum 12 July 1991

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Mohamed Fall OULD AININA; Chancery at 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 232-5700 US: Ambassador Gordon S. BROWN; Embassy at address NA, Nouakchott (mailing address is B. P. 222, Nouakchott); telephone [222] (2) 526-60 or 526-63; FAX [222] (2) 515-92

Executive branch

president

Flag

green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam

Independence

28 November 1960 (from France)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)

Legal system

based on Islamic law

Legislative branch

National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale) and Senate

Long-form name

Islamic Republic of Mauritania

Member of

ABEDA, ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, CEAO, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National Assembly

last held 6 and 13 March 1992 (next to be held NA 1997)

National holiday

Independence Day, 28 November (1960)

Political parties and leaders

legalized by constitution passed 12 July 1991; emerging parties include Democratic and Social Republican Party (PRDS), led by President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid`Ahmed TAYA; Union of Democratic Forces (UDF), coalition of seven

AMADOU, and Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR; Assembly for Democracy (RDU), Mohamed Ould SIDI BABA; Rally for Democracy and Unity (RDUN), Mohamed Ould Sidi BABA; Popular Social and Democratic Union (UPSD), Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH; Progressive Popular Alliance (APP), Taleb Ould Jiddou Ould Mohamed LAGHDAF; Mauritanian Party for Renewal (PMR), Moulaye El Hassan Ould JEYID; National Avant-Garde Party (PAN or PAGN), Khattry Ould Taleb JIDDOU; Mauritanian Party of the Democratic Center (PCDM), Bamba Ould SIDI BADI; Union for Planning and Construction (UPC), Mohamed Ould EYAHA; Democratic Justice Party (PJD), Mohamed Abdallahi Ould EL BANE; Party for Liberty, Equality, and Justice (PLEJ), Ba Mamadou ALASSANE; Labor and National Unity Party (PTUN), Ali Bouna Ould OUENINA

opposition factions, three leaders

Mohameden Ould BABAH, Diop Mamadou

President

last held January 1992 (next to be held NA) results: President Col. Maabuya Ould Sid`Ahmed TAYA elected

Senate

last held 3 and 10 April 1992 (next to be held April 1998)

Suffrage

universal at age 18

Type

republic; military first seized power in bloodless coup 10 July 1978; a palace coup that took place on 12 December 1984 brought President Taya to power; he was elected in 1992

Agriculture

accounts for 29% of GDP (including fishing); largely subsistence farming and nomadic cattle and sheep herding except in Senegal river valley; crops - dates, millet, sorghum, root crops; fish products number-one export; large food deficit in years of drought

Budget

revenues $280 million; expenditures $346 million, including capital expenditures of $61 million (1989 est.)

Currency

ouguiya (plural - ouguiya); 1 ouguiya (UM) = 5 khoums

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $168 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $1.3 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $490 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $277 million; Arab Development Bank (1991), $20 million

Electricity

190,000 kW capacity; 135 million kWh produced, 70 kWh per capita (1991)

Exchange rates

ouguiya (UM) per US$1 - 79.300 (January 1992), 81.946 (1991), 80.609 (1990), 83.051 (1989), 75.261 (1988), 73.878 (1987)

Exports

$436 million (f.o.b., 1990) commodities: iron ore, processed fish, small amounts of gum arabic and gypsum; unrecorded but numerically significant cattle exports to Senegal partners: EC 43%, Japan 27%, USSR 11%, Ivory Coast 3%

External debt

$1.9 billion (1990)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

exchange rate conversion - $1.1 billion, per capita $535; real growth rate 3% (1991 est.)

Imports

$389 million (c.i.f., 1990) commodities: foodstuffs, consumer goods, petroleum products, capital goods partners: EC 60%, Algeria 15%, China 6%, US 3%

Industrial production

growth rate 4.4% (1988 est.); accounts for almost 20% of GDP

Industries

fishing, fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

6.5% (1990 est.)

Overview

A majority of the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though most of the nomads and many subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for almost 50% of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In recent years, the droughts, the endemic conflict with Senegal, rising energy costs, and economic mismanagement have resulted in a substantial buildup of foreign debt. The government has begun the second stage of an economic reform program in consultation with the World Bank, the IMF, and major donor countries. But the reform process suffered a major setback following the Gulf war of early 1991. Because of Mauritania's support of Saddam Husayn, bilateral aid from its two top donors, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, was suspended, and multilateral aid was reduced.

Unemployment rate

20% (1991 est.)

Airports

28 total, 28 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 5 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 16 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

3 major transport aircraft

Highways

7,525 km total; 1,685 km paved; 1,040 km gravel, crushed stone, or otherwise improved; 4,800 km unimproved roads, trails, tracks

Inland waterways

mostly ferry traffic on the Senegal River

Merchant marine

1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,290 GRT/1,840 DWT

Ports

Nouadhibou, Nouakchott

Railroads

690 km 1.435-meter (standard) gauge, single track, owned and operated by government mining company

Telecommunications

poor system of cable and open-wire lines, minor radio relay links, and radio communications stations (improvements being made); broadcast stations - 2 AM, no FM, 1 TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 2 ARABSAT, with six planned

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $40 million, 4.2% of GDP (1989)

Manpower availability

males 15-49, 436,897; 213,307 fit for military service; conscription law not implemented