Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Northwest African State. The borders, almost entirely artificial and remained practically unchanged since the French domination, divide it to the NW and North from Western Sahara (annexed by Morocco), to the NE from Algeria, to the East and S from Mali, to the SW from Senegal ; it overlooks the Atlantic from the mouth of Senegal, to the South, to the Cape Blanco peninsula (Ras el-Beida), to North.
Yearbook 2007
Mauritania. According to CountryAAH, Nouakchott is the capital city of Mauritania. Presidential elections were held in March as a final step in the transition from military to civilian rule after the bloody coup in 2005, when a military junta took power. Juntan overthrew the then President Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya, who had ruled the country with iron hand for 21 years. In the first round of the unusual election on March 11, when the military junta voluntarily left power, 20 presidential candidates participated. The military junta had forbidden its own members to stand. Most votes were given to Sidi Ould Sheikh Abdellahi, an independent candidate who had the support of the army. His main opponent was the old opposition leader from the Party of Democratic Forces (RFD), Ahmed Ould Daddah. Both were imprisoned under part of Taya’s rule, but Abdellahi was also part of two of Taya’s governments. The election was described as the first completely free and fair in the country’s history. As none of the candidates received more than 50 percent of the vote, a second round of voting was held on March 25. Abdellahi was then backed by a coalition of 18 parties and won with 53 percent of the vote, while Daddah reached up to 47 percent.
- According to abbreviationfinder: MR is the 2-letter acronym for the country of Mauritania.
In April, Abdellahi took office and appointed his government with, among other things, two ministers who were part of the Tayas government. At about the same time, M. regained his membership in the African Union, which the country was excluded from after the 2005 coup.
In August, Parliament passed a law that criminalizes slavery, which was one of Abdellahi’s election promises. Slavery was abolished in M. 1981 but continued in practice anyway, and it was not a criminal offense to violate the provisions. With the new law, anyone who keeps people addicted can be sentenced to up to ten years in prison.
About 30,000 Mauretanians suffered severe floods in August. At least three people died and tens of thousands became homeless when their homes were destroyed. The government appealed for help from the outside world.
Mauritania – Nouakchott
Nouakchott
Nouakchott, capital of Mauritania; 899,900 residents (2014). Nouakchott is the administrative center with several industries, including sugar refinery. The city has road links with the agricultural areas in the south and the mining districts in the north of the country. Nouakchott also has an international airport and an export port for crude oil and copper. The move to the city was great during the 1970s as a result of the severe dry years in the Sahel.
From 1960, when Mauritania became independent, Nouakchott developed from coastal village to the capital of the new state.