Mauritania
Mauritania is a western African country of roughly 5.3M people, covering 1,030,700 km² with its capital at Nouakchott. Its economy is worth about $10B in nominal terms, anchored by iron ore, fisheries, gas.
- Population
- 5.3M
- Projected population, 2026
Source: UN World Population Prospects - Capital
- Nouakchott
- GDP
- $10B
- Area
- 1,030,700 km²
- Currency
- Ouguiya
Map
Overview
Mauritania is a western African country of roughly 5.3M people, covering 1,030,700 km² with its capital at Nouakchott. Its economy is worth about $10B in nominal terms, anchored by iron ore, fisheries, gas.
Government
Mauritania operates as a presidential republic. Independence: 1960. Executive, legislative and judicial functions are exercised from Nouakchott.
Economy
Nominal GDP is approximately $10B, or around $1,875 per capita. The currency in circulation is the Ouguiya. Leading sectors are iron ore, fisheries, gas.
Population
Mauritania has a projected population, 2026 of 5,334,633 people (United Nations Population Division, World Population Prospects 2024 Revision, Online Edition — medium variant), a density of roughly 5 people per km². Values from 2024 onwards are medium-variant projections rather than live counts.
Cities
The largest urban centres are Nouakchott, Nouadhibou, Kiffa. Nouakchott serves as the seat of government.
History
Modern Mauritania took shape through pre-colonial states, the colonial partition of the late nineteenth century, and independence in 1960. Our History section covers each period in depth.
Languages
Widely used languages include Arabic, Pulaar, Soninke. Official-language policy shapes schooling, courts and broadcasting.
Culture
Music, cuisine, film, textiles and sport in Mauritania form part of a fast-growing creative economy with an expanding export footprint.
Education
Primary enrolment is near-universal in most of the region; the constraints sit at secondary completion, technical training and higher-education funding.
Healthcare
Health spending across Africa averages about 5.7% of GDP. Mauritania's system combines public facilities, private providers and donor-funded programmes.
Business
Company registration, tax administration and access to finance are the practical determinants of doing business in Mauritania. See our Business section for sector reporting.
Investment
Investors typically look at iron ore, infrastructure and consumer services. Regulatory clarity and FX access are the recurring diligence questions.
Tourism
Visitors come for landscape, heritage and city life. Entry requirements, seasonality and internal transport are covered in our Travel guides.
Transportation
Road remains dominant; rail, ports and aviation capacity vary sharply and are the focus of most current infrastructure investment.
Infrastructure
Electricity access, broadband coverage and logistics quality are the three infrastructure metrics most closely tied to Mauritania's growth outlook.
Statistics
Full time series for population, GDP, trade, inflation, internet usage, education, health, tourism, agriculture and climate are published in The360Africa Data Center.
Frequently asked questions
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