placestats

Last European coloniser: France · Largest religious group: Muslims. These are labels that describe the country, not numbers, so they are never compared with other measures. The numbers behind them, such as population shares, are.

Mauritania

Against lower middle income countries, Mauritania ranks 13th of 44 on equality and 46th of 46 on education. Each ranking counts only the countries that report that score, so the totals differ and the two ranks can’t be compared directly. Both compare Mauritania with countries of similar wealth. That is the only kind of ranking that tells you something a ranking by income does not already show.

How it has changed

Every measure Mauritania reports, over all the years it has been published. Pick one. Hover or use the arrow keys to read a year. Gaps in a line are years with no data. They are left open, not filled in.

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Scores by area

Each score averages the measures in one area, such as health. Each measure is first put on a common scale and turned so that higher is always better. Zero is the average country in an average year. One point is a typical gap between countries (a standard deviation), so +1 means about one typical gap above average. These are summaries, not measurements. See how the country scores are built and how the topic scores compare with each other.

ScoreValueRank, all countriesRank, similar incomeMostly income?
Governance score 2025-0.42119 of 17926 of 45moderate +0.53
Health score 2024-0.26141 of 19334 of 47moderate +0.32
Education score 2020-0.91190 of 19946 of 46proxy +0.81
Equality score 2019+0.3475 of 16513 of 44high +0.64
Infrastructure score 2024+0.00178 of 21038 of 47proxy +0.90
Gender score 2024+0.10126 of 18628 of 46moderate +0.37
Environment score 2024-0.57172 of 21344 of 47moderate -0.33
Labour score 2025-0.48160 of 19532 of 47high +0.79

The last column shows how closely each score just tracks national income. The number is its link with GDP per person (the value of everything a country produces, divided by its people), from −1 to +1. A score marked proxy is mostly a measure of how rich the country is. Its rank among all countries says little that GDP per person does not. That is why the rank among similar-income countries sits beside it.

The measures behind them

Every measure reported for Mauritania, grouped by area. Some measures have no agreed better direction, such as population growth, inflation and military spending. They are listed here but left out of every score, since there is no fair way to say which way is better. Some names use technical terms: PPP means adjusted for what money buys in each country, HDI is a United Nations score combining life expectancy, schooling and income, and a Gini indexmeasures how unequally income is shared. Each measure’s own page explains it.

crime

Conflict deaths0per 100,000 people2025higher is worse
Armed conflict present01 if any conflict, else 02025higher is worse
Homicide rate1per 100,000 population2020higher is worse

culture

Religiously unaffiliated0.107%% of population2020no agreed direction
Christian share0.234%% of population2020no agreed direction
Muslim share99.2%% of population2020no agreed direction
Single-parent households15.3%% of households2015no agreed direction
One-person households3.97%% of households2015no agreed direction
Women in a union66.1%% of women aged 15-492020no agreed direction

demography

Median age17.1years2023no agreed direction
Age at childbearing30.2years2023no agreed direction
Population5,315,065people2025no agreed direction
Population growth2.78%% per year2025no agreed direction
Urbanization61.5%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 65+3.25%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 0-1442.4%% of population2025no agreed direction
Fertility rate4.63births per woman2024no agreed direction
Birth rate34per 1,000 people2024no agreed direction
Net migration-5,044people2025no agreed direction
Migrant share of population3.8%% of population2024no agreed direction

economy

HDI0.563index, 0 to 12023higher is better
Inequality-adjusted HDI0.374index, 0 to 12023higher is better
GDP per capita (PPP)$6,559international $2025higher is better
GNI per capita (PPP)$6,185international $2025higher is better
GDP per capita (market)$1,713US$2025higher is better
GDP growth4.03%% per year2025no agreed direction
Inflation1.55%% per year2025no agreed direction
Trade openness94%% of GDP2025no agreed direction
FDI inflows13.2%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Government consumption16%% of GDP2025no agreed direction
Military spending2.16%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Employment in agriculture32.1%% of employment2025no agreed direction

education

Primary completion51.8%% of children2025higher is better
Expected schooling7.95years2023higher is better
Mean years of schooling4.85years2023higher is better
Education spending7.61%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Primary enrollment105%% gross2024higher is better
Secondary enrollment36%% gross2020higher is better
Tertiary enrollment5.97%% gross2020higher is better
Adult literacy59.5%% of adults2020higher is better
Compulsory schooling9years2025no agreed direction
Out of school, primary11.3%% of primary-age children2024higher is worse
Pupil-teacher ratio34.3pupils per teacher2018higher is worse

environment

CO2 per capita0.969t CO2e per capita2024higher is worse
Forest area0.288%% of land area2023higher is better
Agricultural land38.5%% of land area2023no agreed direction
Protected land0.6%% of land area2025higher is better

gender

Gender Inequality Index0.603index, 0 to 12023higher is worse
Gender Development Index0.886ratio of women's HDI to men's2023no agreed direction
Women's political empowerment0.541index (0-1)2025higher is better
Women ministers19.2%% of ministers2024higher is better
Women in parliament23.3%% of seats2025higher is better
Married by 1836.6%% of women aged 20-242021higher is worse

governance

Corruption Perceptions Index30index (0-100, higher = cleaner)2024higher is better
Political rights (FH)5rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Civil liberties (FH)5rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Pre-trial detainee share50%% of prisoners2022higher is worse
Refugees originating737per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Electoral democracy0.328index (0-1)2025higher is better
Liberal democracy0.127index (0-1)2025higher is better
Participatory democracy0.221index (0-1)2025higher is better
Free and fair elections0.288index (0-1)2025higher is better
Regime type1regime category (0-3)2025higher is better
Political corruption0.825index (0-1)2025higher is worse
Freedom of expression0.628index (0-1)2025higher is better
Freedom of association0.416index (0-1)2025higher is better
Political civil liberties0.526index (0-1)2025higher is better
Civil society participation0.63index (0-1)2025higher is better
Birth registration44.8%% of children under 52021higher is better
Control of corruption-0.934index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Rule of law-0.864index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Government effectiveness-0.741index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Regulatory quality-0.778index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Voice and accountability-0.925index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Political stability-0.56index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better

health

Life expectancy68.7years2024higher is better
Infant mortality30.2per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Under-5 mortality36.9per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Health spending4.34%% of GDP2023no agreed direction
Suicide rate2.71per 100,0002021higher is worse
Basic water access77.3%% of population2024higher is better
Basic sanitation58.7%% of population2024higher is better
Child stunting21.5%% of children under 52024higher is worse
Adolescent fertility87.6births per 1,000 women aged 15-192024higher is worse
Maternal mortality381per 100,000 live births2023higher is worse
Skilled birth attendance70.4%% of births2021higher is better
Alcohol consumption0litres per adult per year2020no agreed direction
Tobacco use9.9%% of adults2024higher is worse
Road traffic deaths25.6per 100,000 population2019higher is worse
Physicians0.261per 1,000 people2022higher is better
DTP3 immunisation86%% of children aged 12-23 months2024higher is better
HIV prevalence0.1%% of adults aged 15-492024higher is worse
Tuberculosis incidence65per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Premature NCD mortality18.7%% probability, ages 30-702021higher is worse
Anaemia in women54.5%% of women aged 15-492023higher is worse
Out-of-pocket health spending43.8%% of health spending2023higher is worse
Undernourishment8.7%% of population2023higher is worse
Food insecurity66.3%% of population2023higher is worse
Adult obesity24.1%% of adults2024higher is worse
Health coverage index40index, 0 to 1002023higher is better

inequality

Gini index32index (0-100)2019higher is worse
Extreme poverty rate10.2%% of population2019higher is worse

infrastructure

Internet users45.8%% of population2024higher is better
Mobile subscriptions92.1per 100 people2024higher is better
Electricity access52.2%% of population2024higher is better
Slum share of urban population58.6%% of urban population2022higher is worse
Fixed broadband0.947per 100 people2024higher is better

labor

Informal employment89.3%% of employment2019higher is worse
Unemployment10.3%% of labor force2025higher is worse
Female labor participation26.2%% of women 15+2025no agreed direction
Male labor participation56.6%% of men 15+2025no agreed direction
Youth not in work or study44.1%% of 15 to 24 year olds2019higher is worse
Vulnerable employment53.3%% of employment2025higher is worse

wellbeing

Life satisfaction4.47score (0-10)2025higher is better

Values are the most recent in 2010–2025, and different measures can come from different years. The year is shown beside each. Nothing here ranks countries by merit. An area score averages whatever measures its publishers happen to collect, and the choice of what to collect is itself a judgement made by someone else. All countries · How the country data works

Countries to compare with Mauritania

Also in Sub-Saharan Africa: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Dem. Rep., Congo, Rep., Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, The, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Fed. Rep., South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Also lower middle income, in other regions: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Bolivia, Cambodia, Djibouti, Egypt, Arab Rep., Haiti, Honduras, India, Kiribati, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, RB, West Bank and Gaza.