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Mauritania flag
Islamic Republic of Mauritania
Al-Jumhuriyah al-Islamiyah al-Muritaniyah
   Mauritania is located in north-western Africa and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, it is one of the countries with the lowest population density in the world; the territory is almost completely arid and characterized by the Sahara desert in the north-central part, only the narrow coastal strip and the one along the Senegal river offer less extreme environmental conditions.
Government type Semi-presidential republic
Area 1,030,700 kmē (397,955 sq mi)
Population 4,928,000 inh. (2023 census)
Population 5,344,000 inh. (2026 est.)
Population density 5.2 inh/kmē (13.5 inh/miē)
Capital Nouakchott (1,447,000 pop., 1,584,000 urban aggl.)
Currency Mauritanian ouguiya
Human development index 0.563 (163rd place)
Languages Arabic (official), French, regional languages
Life expectancy M 63 years, F 66 years
Location in Africa

Boundaries:

Morocco (Western Sahara) NORTH
Algeria NORTH-EAST
Mali EAST and SOUTH
Senegal SOUTH-WEST
Atlantic Ocean WEST

GEOGRAPHY DATA OF MAURITANIA


Largest cities
Nouakchott 1,447,000 pop., 1,584,000 urban aggl.
Nouadhibou 174,000 pop.
Highest mountains
Kediet ej Jill 915 m (3,002 ft)
Longest rivers
Senegal 1,700 km (1,056 mi) total, including sections in Mali and Senegal
Largest lakes
Lac de Mal 9 to 52 kmē (3.5 to 20 sq mi), depending on the season
Largest islands
Tidra 156 kmē (60 sq mi)

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS OF MAURITANIA

   Administratively Mauritania is divided into 15 regions, with the capital Nouakchott being divided between north, east and south and constituting 3 regions in all; Tiris Zemmour and Adrar, which occupy the central-northern area of the country, are by far the two largest regions, since they share 45% of the territory, while Nouakchott, considering it all together as a district of the capital, is the only region over one million inhabitants.

   Only two inhabited centers exceed one hundred thousand inhabitants, the capital Nouakchott and Nouadhibou, located further north; almost all the other towns are located in the southern part of the country, where the environmental conditions are slightly more favorable than in the Sahara desert.



Nouakchott



Useful links

Agence Nationale de la Statistique