MRO

NA

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$NA

Currency (code):

ouguiya (MRO)

Currency code:

Exchange rates:

ouguiyas (MRO) per US dollar - NA (2007), 271.3 (2006), 267.04 (2005), 265.8 (2004), 263.03 (2003)

Communications
Mauritania

Telephones - main lines in use:

34,900 (2006)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

1.3 million (2007)

Telephone system:

general assessment: limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations; mobile-cellular services expanding rapidly domestic: Mauritel, the national telecommunications company, was privatized in 2001 but remains the monopoly provider of fixed-line services; fixed-line teledensity 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular network coverage extends mainly to urban areas with a teledensity approaching 40 per 100 persons; mostly cable and open-wire lines; a domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: country code - 222; satellite earth stations - 3 (1 Intelsat - Atlantic Ocean, 2 Arabsat)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001)

Radios:

410,000 (2001)

Television broadcast stations:

1 (2002)

Televisions:

98,000 (2001)

Internet country code:

.mr

Internet hosts:

34 (2008)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

5 (2001)

Internet users:

30,000 (2006)

Transportation
Mauritania

Airports:

25 (2007)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2007)

Airports - with unpaved runways:

total: 17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2007)

Railways:

717 km standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)

Roadways:

total: 11,066 km paved: 2,966 km unpaved: 8,100 km (2006)

Ports and terminals:

Nouadhibou, Nouakchott

Military
Mauritania

Military branches:

Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Mauritanian Navy (Marine
Mauritanienne; includes naval infantry), Islamic Air Force of
Mauritania (Force Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, FAIM) (2008)

Military service age and obligation:

18 years of age (est.); conscript service obligation - 2 years; majority of servicemen believed to be volunteers; service in Air Force and Navy is voluntary (2006)

Manpower available for military service:

males age 16-49: 740,675 females age 16-49: 744,709 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:

males age 16-49: 463,305 females age 16-49: 484,777 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:

male: 38,191 female: 38,638 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures:

5.5% of GDP (2006)

Transnational Issues
Mauritania

Disputes - international:

Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara remain dormant

This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008

@Mauritius

Introduction
Mauritius

Background:

Although known to Arab and Malay sailors as early as the 10th century, Mauritius was first explored by the Portuguese in the 16th century and subsequently settled by the Dutch - who named it in honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU - in the 17th century. The French assumed control in 1715, developing the island into an important naval base overseeing Indian Ocean trade, and establishing a plantation economy of sugar cane. The British captured the island in 1810, during the Napoleonic Wars. Mauritius remained a strategically important British naval base, and later an air station, playing an important role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy operations, as well as the collection of signals intelligence. Independence from the UK was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather, declining sugar prices, and declining textile and apparel production, have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.

Geography
Mauritius

Location:

Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar

Geographic coordinates: