Mauritania (2001) | Nauru (2001) | |
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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 | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
46.14% (male 634,940; female 632,654) 15-64 years: 51.59% (male 698,433; female 718,883) 65 years and over: 2.27% (male 25,840; female 36,562) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
40.33% (male 2,510; female 2,365) 15-64 years: 57.97% (male 3,475; female 3,533) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 103; female 102) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep | coconuts |
Airports | 26 (2000 est.) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
1,030,700 sq km land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km |
total:
21 sq km land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | 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. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as being flawed; Mauritania remains, in reality, a one-party state. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions between its black minority population and the dominant Maur (Arab-Berber) populace. | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Upon achieving independence in 1968, Nauru became the smallest independent republic in the world; it joined the UN in 1999. |
Birth rate | 42.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 27.22 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$329 million expenditures: $265 million, including capital expenditures of $75 million (1996 est.) |
revenues:
$23.4 million expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
Capital | Nouakchott | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 754 km | 30 km |
Constitution | 12 July 1991 | 29 January 1968 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah |
conventional long form:
Republic of Nauru conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | ouguiya (MRO) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 13.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.1 billion (1999) | $33.3 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador John W. LIMBERT embassy: Rue Abdallaye, Nouakchott mailing address: B. P. 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 25-26-60, 25-26-63 FAX: [222] 25-15-92 |
the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ahmed Ben Khalifa BEN JIDOU chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623 |
Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $300 million (1998) | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
Economy - 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 half 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 the past, drought and economic mismanagement have resulted in a buildup of foreign debt. In March 1999, the government signed an agreement with a joint World Bank-IMF mission on a $54 million enhanced structural adjustment facility (ESAF). Mauritania withdrew its membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2000. Privatization and debt relief are in full swing, and the rate of economic growth appears to be accelerating, especially in the construction, telecommunication, and information sectors. Diamonds and petroleum are beginning to be explored and exploited. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within five to ten years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freezing of wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 140.4 million kWh (1999) | 27.9 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 151 million kWh (1999) | 30 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
82.78% hydro: 17.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Sebkha de Ndrhamcha -3 m highest point: Kediet Ijill 910 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal which is the only perennial river | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30% | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | ouguiyas per US dollar - 250.870 (December 2000), 238.923 (2000), 209.514 (1999), 188.476 (1998), 151.853 (1997), 137.222 (1996) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984) head of government: Prime Minister Cheik El Avia Ould Mohamed KHOUNA (since 17 November 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held NA December 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected with 90.9% of the vote |
chief of state:
President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: Bernard DOWIYOGO elected president by a vote in Parliament of nine to eight note: former President Rene HARRIS was deposed in a no-confidence vote; this is the eighth change of government in Nauru since the fall of the Lagumont HARRIS government in a no-confidence motion in early November 1996; six of the last eight governments have resulted because of parliamentary no-confidence motions |
Exports | $333 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $25.3 million (f.o.b., 1991) |
Exports - commodities | iron ore, fish and fish products, gold | phosphates |
Exports - partners | Japan 18%, France 17%, Italy 16%, Spain 11% (1998) | Australia, NZ |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $59 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
25% industry: 31% services: 44% (1997) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 N, 12 00 W | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
Highways | total:
7,660 km paved: 866 km unpaved: 6,794 km (1996) |
total:
30 km paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 29.9% (1995) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $305 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $21.1 million (c.i.f., 1991) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | France 27%, Benelux 9%, Germany 7%, Spain 7% (1998) | Australia, UK, NZ, Japan |
Independence | 28 November 1960 (from France) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.2% (1999) | NA% |
Industries | fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum | phosphate mining, financial services, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | 76.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2000 est.) | -3.6% (1993) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, ICAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 490 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 750,000 (1999) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 47%, services 39%, industry 14% | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
Land boundaries | total:
5,074 km border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 4% other: 58% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Hasaniya Arabic (official), Pular, Soninke, Wolof (official), French | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
Legislative branch | bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; 17 up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (79 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 17 April 1998 (next to be held NA 2001); National Assembly - last held 11 and 18 October 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRDS 71, AC 1, independents and other 7 |
unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
51.14 years male: 49.06 years female: 53.29 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
61.2 years male: 57.7 years female: 64.88 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 46.7% male: 53.4% female: 40% (1998 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard | no regular armed forces; Directorate of the Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $41 million (FY97/98) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (FY97/98) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
624,375 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
3,018 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
302,699 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
1,661 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 28 November (1960) | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Mauritanian(s) adjective: Mauritanian |
noun:
Nauruan(s) adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | iron ore, gypsum, fish, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold | phosphates |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Action for Change or AC [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Assembly for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS (ruling party) [President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA]; Mauritanian Party for Renewal and Concorde or PMRC [Molaye El Hassen Ould JIYID]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality and Justice or PLEJ [Daouda M'BAGNIGA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progress Alliance or APP [Mohamed El Hafed Ould ISMAEL]; Popular Social and Democratic Union or UPSD [Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH]; Progress Force Union or UFP [Mohamed Ould MOLOUD]; Union for Progress and Democracy or UNDD [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]
note: parties legalized by constitution ratified 12 July 1991; however, politics continue to be tribally based |
loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Arab nationalists; Ba'athists; 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] | NA |
Population | 2,747,312 (July 2001 est.) | 12,088 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (1996 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.93% (2001 est.) | 2% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bogue, Kaedi, Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Rosso | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 360,000 (1997) | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
750 km (single track); note - owned and operated by government mining company standard gauge: 750 km 1.435-m gauge (1995) |
total:
5 km; note - used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast |
Religions | Muslim 100% | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | 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: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat |
general assessment:
adequate local and international radiotelephone communications provided via Australian facilities domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26,000 (2000) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 6.22 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.61 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 23% (1995 est.) | 0% |
Waterways | note:
ferry traffic on the Senegal River |
none |