Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA seized power in a coup in 1984. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as flawed, but October 2001 legislative and municipal elections were generally free and open. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council, which declared it would remain in power for up to two years while it created conditions for genuine democratic institutions and organized elections. Accordingly, parliamentary elections were held in late 2006-early 2007 and presidential elections in March 2007. The newly-elected legislature is expected to assume power following the inauguration of the new president in April 2007. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population and different Moor (Arab-Berber) communities.
total: 17.1 years male: 16.8 years female: 17.4 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.867% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
40.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
11.89 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.005 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.975 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.666 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 68.07 deaths/1,000 live births male: 71.07 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 53.51 years male: 51.24 years female: 55.85 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
5.78 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.6% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
9,500 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 500 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria and Rift Valley fever are high risks in some locations respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2007)
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Nouakchott geographic coordinates: 18 06 N, 15 57 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district*; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott*, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza
Independence:
28 November 1960 (from France)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 28 November (1960)
Constitution:
12 July 1991
Legal system:
a combination of Islamic law and French civil law
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL whose Military Council for Justice and Democracy deposed longtime President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA in a coup on 3 August 2005 head of government: Prime Minister Sidi Mohamed Ould BOUBAKAR (since 8 August 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second consecutive term); election last held 11 March 2007 with a runoff between the two leading candidates held on 25 March 2007 (next to be held 2012); prime minister appointed by the president election results: percent of vote - (second round) Sidi Ould Cheikh ABDELLAHI 52.8%, Ahmed Ould DADDAH 47.2%; power to be transferred to the new president on 19 April 2007
Legislative branch:
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; a portion of seats up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (95 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 21 January and 4 February 2007 (next to be held 2009); National Assembly - last held 19 November and 3 December 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Al-Mithaq (coalition of independents and parties associated with the former regime) 37, CFCD (coalition of political parties) 15, representatives of the diaspora (yet to be chosen) 3, undecided 1; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Al Mithaq 51 (independents 37, PRDR 7, UDP 3, RDU 3, Alternative (El-Badil) 1), CFCD 41 (RFD 16, UFP 9, APP 6, Centrist Reformists 4, HATEM-PMUC 3, RD 2, PUDS 1), RNDLE 1, UCD 1, FP 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts
Political parties and leaders:
Al-Mithaq (coalition of independents and parties associated with the former regime including Alternative or El-Badil, PRDR, UDP, RDU); Alternative or El-Badil; Centrist Reformists (independent moderate Islamists); Coalition for Forces for Democratic Change or CFCD (coalition of political parties including APP, Centrist Reformists (independent moderate Islamists), HATEM-PMUC, PUDS, RD, RFD, UFP); Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS; Democratic Renewal or RD; Mauritanian Party for Unity and Change or HATEM-PMUC; National Rally for Freedom, Democracy and Equality or RNDLE; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progressive Alliance or APP [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Rally of Democratic Forces or RFD [Ahmed Ould DADDAH]; Rally for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal or PRDR [Boullah Ould MOGUEYA] (formerly ruling Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS); Socialist and Democratic Unity Party or PUDS; Union for Democracy and Progress or UDP [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]; Union of Democratic Centre or UCD; Union of the Forces for Progress or UFP
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Arab nationalists; Ba'thists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general]
chief of mission: Ambassador Tijani Ould Mohamed EL KERIM chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700, 5701 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Charles H. TWINING embassy: 288 Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 525-2660/525-2663 FAX: [222] 525-1592
Flag description:
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
general assessment: limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made) domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: country code - 222; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 2 Arabsat
Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Navy (Marine Mauritanienne; includes naval infantry), Air Force (Force Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, FAIM) (2005)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age (est.); conscript service obligation - 2 years; majority of servicemen believed to be volunteers; service in Air Force and Navy is voluntary (2005)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 606,463 females age 18-49: 607,955 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 370,513 females age 18-49: 384,269 (2005 est.)
Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara remain dormant
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Mauritania is a source and destination country for children trafficked for the purpose of forced labor, begging, and domestic servitude; adults and children are subjected to slavery-related practices rooted in ancestral master-slave relationships in isolated parts of the country where a barter economy exists tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Mauritania is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to show evidence of increased efforts to combat trafficking, particularly in the area of law enforcement
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