Mauritania
Islamic Republic of Mauritania
Capital: Nouakchott
History
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 and ruled Mauritania with a heavy hand for more than two decades. A series of presidential elections that he held were widely seen as flawed. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council that oversaw a transition to democratic rule. Independent candidate Sidi Ould Cheikh ABDALLAHI was inaugurated in April 2007 as Mauritania's first freely and fairly elected president. His term ended prematurely in August 2008 when a military junta led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel AZIZ deposed him and installed a military council government. AZIZ was subsequently elected president in July 2009 and sworn in the following month. AZIZ sustained injuries from an accidental shooting by his own troops in October 2012, but has continued to maintain his authority. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population (Afro-Mauritanians) and white and black Moor (Arab-Berber) communities, and is having to confront a growing terrorism threat by al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
Geography
Metric Units
|
Total Area
|
1,030,700
sq km
|
| Land Boundaries |
5,074
km
|
| Border Countries |
Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km |
| Coastline |
754
km
|
| Terrain |
mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills |
| Minimum Elevation |
-5
m
|
| Maximum Elevation |
915
m
|
| Climate |
desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty |
| Natural Resources |
iron ore, gypsum, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish |
| Arable Land |
0.44% |
| Permanent Crops |
0.01% |
Economy
Budget & Debt
Trade
| Exports |
$2.88 billion |
| Export Items |
iron ore, fish and fish products, gold, copper, petroleum |
| Export Partners |
China 46.6%, Italy 8.8%, France 8.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 5.1%, Spain 4.6%, Japan 4.5%, Belgium 4.3%, Netherlands 4% (2011) |
| Imports |
$3.15 billion |
| Import Items |
machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
| Import Partners |
China 12.5%, Netherlands 9%, France 8.7%, US 7.8%, Spain 6.5%, Germany 5.4%, Brazil 5.2%, Belgium 4.3%, Malaysia 4.1% (2011) |
People
Energy
