Nigeria (2005) | Mauritania (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.3% (male 27,466,766/female 27,045,092)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 35,770,593/female 34,559,414) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,874,157/female 2,055,966) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 46% (male 671,080; female 668,408)
15-64 years: 51.8% (male 743,573; female 764,358) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 26,669; female 38,496) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish | dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep |
Airports | 70 (2004 est.) | 26 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 36
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
total: 16
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
Area | total: 923,768 sq km
land: 910,768 sq km water: 13,000 sq km |
total: 1,030,700 sq km
land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of California | slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico |
Background | Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The president faces the daunting task of rebuilding a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. Despite some irregularities, the April 2003 elections marked the first civilian transfer of power in Nigeria's 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. 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. 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. |
Birth rate | 40.65 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 42.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $11.78 billion
expenditures: $11.47 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $421 million
expenditures: $378 million, including capital expenditures of $154 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices have now moved to Abuja | Nouakchott |
Climate | varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north | desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty |
Coastline | 853 km | 754 km |
Constitution | new constitution adopted May 1999 | 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria |
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Mauritania
conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah |
Currency | - | ouguiya (MRO) |
Death rate | 17.18 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $30.55 billion (2004 est.) | $2.5 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John CAMPBELL
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205 FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph E. LEBARON
embassy: Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 25-26-60, 25-26-63, 25-11-41, 25-11-45 FAX: [222] 25-25-92 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Professor George A. OBIOZOR
chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mohamedou Ould MICHEL
chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623 |
Disputes - international | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakassi Peninsula, then agreed, but has yet to withdraw its forces while much of the indigenous population opposes cession; in 2004, some 17,000 Nigerian refugees fleeing ethnic conflicts between pastoralists and farmers in 2002 still reside in Cameroon; the ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, the unresolved Bakasi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River all contribute to the delay in implementation; a joint task force was established in 2004 that resolved disputes over and redrew the maritime and the 870-km land boundary with Benin on the Okpara River; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger | Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara have been dormant in recent years |
Economic aid - recipient | IMF $250 million (1998) | $220 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management, is undertaking some reforms under the new civilian administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. In the last year the government has begun showing the political will to implement the market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. During 2003 the government began deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the country's four oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy, a domestically designed and run program modeled on the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility for fiscal and monetary management. GDP rose strongly in 2004. | 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 2005. |
Electricity - consumption | 18.43 billion kWh (2002) | 146.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 30 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 19.85 billion kWh (2002) | 157.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 85.9%
hydro: 14.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chappal Waddi 2,419 m |
lowest point: Sebkha de Ndrhamcha -3 m
highest point: Kediet Ijill 910 m |
Environment - current issues | soil degradation; rapid deforestation; urban air and water pollution; desertification; oil pollution - water, air, and soil; has suffered serious damage from oil spills; loss of arable land; rapid urbanization | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 |
Ethnic groups | Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% | mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30% |
Exchange rates | nairas per US dollar - 132.89 (2004), 129.22 (2003), 120.58 (2002), 111.23 (2001), 101.7 (2000) | ouguiyas per US dollar - ouguiyas per US dollar - 254.350 (December 2001), 238.923 (2000), 209.514 (1999), 188.476 (1998), 151.853 (1997), 137.222 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms; election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6% |
chief of state: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984)
head of government: Prime Minister Sghair Ould M'BARECK (since 6 July 2003) 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 |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber | iron ore, fish and fish products, gold |
Exports - partners | US 47.5%, Brazil 10.7%, Spain 7.1% (2004) | Italy 14.3%, France 14%, Spain 11.7%, Germany 10.9%, Belgium 9.9%, Japan 7.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green | 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 |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $4.891 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 36.3%
industry: 30.5% services: 33.3% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 25%
industry: 29% services: 46% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.2% (2004 est.) | 3.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 10 00 N, 8 00 E | 20 00 N, 12 00 W |
Geography - note | the Niger enters the country in the northwest and flows southward through tropical rain forests and swamps to its delta in the Gulf of Guinea | most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 194,394 km
paved: 60,068 km (including 1,194 km of expressways) unpaved: 134,326 km (1999 est.) |
total: 7,720 km
paved: 830 km unpaved: 6,890 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97) |
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center; massive corruption and criminal activity; remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime | - |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | China 9.4%, US 8.4%, UK 7.8%, Netherlands 5.9%, France 5.4%, Germany 4.9%, Italy 4% (2004) | France 18.5%, Belgium 7.8%, China 7%, Spain 5.9%, Germany 5.2% (2002) |
Independence | 1 October 1960 (from UK) | 28 November 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.8% (2004 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel, small commercial ship construction and repair | fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum |
Infant mortality rate | total: 98.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 105.69 deaths/1,000 live births female: 91.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 73.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.62 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 16.5% (2004 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 5 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 2,330 sq km (1998 est.) | 490 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts |
Labor force | 55.67 million (2004 est.) | 786,000 (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 70%, industry 10%, services 20% (1999 est.) | agriculture 50%, services 40%, industry 10% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km |
total: 5,074 km
border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km |
Land use | arable land: 31.29%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 65.75% (2001) |
arable land: 0.48%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 99.51% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani | Hassaniya Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, Wolof (official), French |
Legal system | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (in 12 northern states), and traditional law | a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats - 3 from each state plus one from Abuja, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (346 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.7%, ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27, AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 8.8%, other 9.3%; seats by party - PDP 223, ANPP 96, AD 34, other 6; note - one seat is vacant |
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 12 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2004); 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 - PRDS 54, RFD 1, UNDD 1; 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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 46.74 years
male: 46.21 years female: 47.29 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 51.93 years
male: 49.78 years female: 54.13 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68% male: 75.7% female: 60.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 41.7% male: 51.8% female: 31.9% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
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 |
Merchant marine | total: 46 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 327,808 GRT/608,076 DWT
by type: cargo 5, chemical tanker 6, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 31, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Norway 2, Pakistan 1) registered in other countries: 25 (2005) |
none (2002) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $544.6 million (2004) | $37.11 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.8% (2004) | 3.7% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 665,112 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 322,288 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960) | Independence Day, 28 November (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian |
noun: Mauritanian(s)
adjective: Mauritanian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; flooding | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, niobium, lead, zinc, arable land | iron ore, gypsum, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish |
Net migration rate | 0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 105 km; gas 1,896 km; oil 3,638 km; refined products 3,626 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; All Nigeria Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand Alliance or APGA [Chekwas OKORIE]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Dr. Ahmadu ALI]; Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples Party or UNPP [Saleh JAMBO] | 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 [Mohamed El Hafed Ould ISMAEL]; 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; parties legalized by constitution ratified 12 July 1991, however, politics continue to be tribally based |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force or NDPVF [Mujahid Dokubo ASARI]; Nigerian Labor Congress or NLC [Adams OSHIOMOLE] | 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] |
Population | 128,771,988
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
2,912,584 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2000 est.) | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.37% (2005 est.) | 2.91% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt | Bogue, Kaedi, Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Rosso |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001) | AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Railways | total: 3,557 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge (2004) |
717 km
standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% | Muslim 100% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: an inadequate system, further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made
domestic: intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19 earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular facilities and the Internet are available international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 853,100 (2003) | 26,500 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,149,500 (2003) | 35,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north | mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills |
Total fertility rate | 5.53 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 6.08 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 21% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2004) | note: ferry traffic on the Senegal River |