Mauritania (2005) | Nauru (2002) | |
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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: 45.8% (male 707,728/female 704,616)
15-64 years: 52% (male 792,589/female 813,763) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 27,560/female 40,603) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.6% (male 2,515; female 2,366)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 3,578; female 3,656) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 108; female 106) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep | coconuts |
Airports | 24 (2004 est.) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 16
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2004 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. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA siezed 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 headed by Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL, which declared it would remain in power for up to two years while it created conditions for genuine democratic institutions. For now, however, Mauritania remains, a one-party state. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions between its black population and the 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. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic. |
Birth rate | 41.43 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 26.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $421 million
expenditures: $378 million, including capital expenditures of $154 million (2002 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 | - | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 12.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 7.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000) | $33.3 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph E. LEBARON
embassy: 288 Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 525-2660/525-2663 FAX: [222] 25-25-92 |
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 Tijani Ould KERIM
chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700, 5701 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 | Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara have been dormant in recent years | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $220 million (2000) | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
Economy - overview | Half the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though many of the nomads and 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 nearly 40% 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 resulted in a buildup of foreign debt. In February 2000, Mauritania qualified for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in December 2001 received strong support from donor and lending countries at a triennial Consultative Group review. In 2001, exploratory oil wells in tracts 80 km offshore indicated potential extraction at current world oil prices. A new investment code approved in December 2001 improved the opportunities for direct foreign investment. Ongoing negotiations with the IMF involve problems of economic reforms and fiscal discipline. Substantial oil production and exports probably will not begin until 2006. Meantime the government emphasizes reduction of poverty, improvement of health and education, and promoting privatization of the economy. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few 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 freeze on 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 | 176.9 million kWh (2002) | 27.9 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 190.2 million kWh (2002) | 30 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebkhet Te-n-Dghamcha -5 m
highest point: Kediet Ijill 915 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; locust infestation | 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, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mixed Maur/black 40%, Moor 30%, black 30% | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | ouguiyas per US dollar - NA(2004), 263.03 (2003), 271.74 (2002), 255.63 (2001), 238.92 (2000) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (January 2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984); note - President TAYA deposed in a coup by the Military Council for Justice and Democracy led by Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL 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 six-year term; election last held 7 November 2003 (next to be held NA 2009); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected for a third term with 60.8% of the vote |
chief of state: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO 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 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2004); following Rene HARRIS' resignation, Bernard DOWIYOGO was elected president election results: Rene HARRIS elected president; percent of Parliamentary vote - NA%; replaced by Bernard DOWIYOGO 9 January 2003 following a no-confidence vote; HARRIS reinstated 17 January 2003, then gives up presidency 18 January and DOWIYOGO is elected president; DOWIYOGO dies 10 March 2003; with 9 votes over 8 for Kinza CLODUMAR, Derog GIOURA was named acting president |
Exports | NA | $25.3 million f.o.b. (1991) |
Exports - commodities | iron ore, fish and fish products, gold | phosphates |
Exports - partners | Japan 13.1%, France 11%, Spain 9.7%, Germany 9.7%, Italy 9.6%, Belgium 7.5%, China 6.1%, Russia 4.6%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.1% (2004) | NZ, Australia, South Korea, US (2000) |
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 - $60 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 25%
industry: 29% services: 46% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2004 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 (1999 est.) |
total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | broad-based money-laundering center |
Imports | NA | $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 14.1%, US 7.6%, China 6.4%, Spain 5.8%, UK 4.6%, Germany 4.3%, Belgium 4.2% (2004) | Australia, US, UK, Indonesia, India (2000) |
Independence | 28 November 1960 (from France) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 70.89 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 73.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
10.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (2003 est.) | -3.6% (1993) (1993) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, ICAO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 490 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 786,000 (2001) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 50%, industry 10%, services 40% (2001 est.) | 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: 0.48%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 99.51% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, French, Hassaniya, Wolof | 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, a part of the 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 (81 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 9 and 16 April 2004 (next to be held April 2006); National Assembly - last held 19 and 26 October 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - PRDS 79%, RDU 3.5%, UDP 3.5%, AC 5%, UFP 3.5%, FP 1.5%; seats by party - PRDS 64, UDP 3, RDU 3, AC 4, RFD 3, UFP 3, and FP 1 |
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: 52.73 years
male: 50.52 years female: 55 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 61.57 years
male: 58.05 years female: 65.26 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 41.7% male: 51.8% female: 31.9% (2003 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 | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Navy (Marine Mauritanienne; includes Naval Infantry), Air Force (Force Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, FAIM) (2005) | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20.8 million (2004) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2004) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 3,103 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,710 (2002 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, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish | phosphates, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Action for Change or AC [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Alliance for Justice and Democracy or AJD [Kebe ABDOULAYE]; Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS (ruling party) [President 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 [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Popular Social and Democratic Union or UPSD [Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH]; Progress Force Union or UFP [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD]; Rally of Democratic Forces or RFD [Ahmed Ould DADDAH]; Rally for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Union for Democracy and Progress or UDP [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]
note: the Action for Change party was banned in January 2002 although its members were permitted to keep their seats in the National Assembly; 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'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] | NA |
Population | 3,086,859 (July 2005 est.) | 12,329 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.9% (2005 est.) | 1.96% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Nouadhibou, Nouakchott | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | 717 km
standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2004) |
total: 5 km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast (2001) |
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: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 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: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 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: country code - 222; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat |
general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 31,500 (2002) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 300,000 (2003) | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 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 | 5.94 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2004 est.) | 0% |
Waterways | some ferry traffic on Senegal River (2004) | none |