Mauritania

Mauritania is a sovereign state in northwestern Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to the north and northwest, Algeria to the northeast, Mali to the east and southeast, and Senegal to the southwest. Mauritania is the 11th largest country in Africa, with 90% of its territory in Sahara. Most of the 4.4 million people live in the temperate zones of the southern part of the country, about one-third of which is concentrated in Nouakchott, the capital's largest city on the Atlantic coast.

The name of this country comes from Mauretania, the ancient kingdom of Berber in what is now Morocco and Algeria. The Amazighs occupied what is now Mauritania, which began in the 3rd century C.E. The Arabs conquered the region in the 8th century, bringing Islam, Arab culture and Arabic. At the beginning of the 20th century, Mauritania was colonized by France as part of French West Africa. It achieved independence in 1960, but has repeatedly experienced periods of coup and military dictatorship since then. The latest coup d'etat in 2008 was led by General Mohammed Urd Abdel Aziz, who won the subsequent presidential elections in 2009 and 2014. ..

Mauritania is culturally and politically part of the Arab world. A member of the Arab League, Arabic is the only official language. Reflecting its colonial heritage, French is widely spoken and serves as a common language. The state religion is Islam, and almost all inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. Despite their Arab identity, Mauritanian society is multi-ethnic. Bidane, the so-called "white bog", accounts for 30% of the population, and haratin, the so-called "black bog", accounts for 40%. Both groups reflect the fusion of Arab and Amazigh ethnicity, language and culture. The remaining 30% of the population is made up of various sub-Saharan ethnic groups.

Despite the abundant natural resources such as iron ore and oil, Mauritania is still poor. Its economy is primarily based on agriculture, livestock, and fishing. Mauritania is known for its poor human rights records, especially the continued practice of slavery as a result of the historic caste system between Bidan and Haratin. It was the last country in the world to abolish slavery in 1981, and only in 2007 criminalized slavery.