History of Mauritania in Timeline

Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a country in Northwest Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, Western Sahara, Algeria, Mali, and Senegal. It is the 11th-largest country in Africa, with 90% of its territory within the Sahara Desert. The majority of its 4.3 million population resides in the southern part of the country, with about a third living in the capital, Nouakchott, located on the Atlantic coast.

1901: Xavier Coppolani took charge

In 1901, Xavier Coppolani took charge of the French imperial mission in Mauritania.

1902: Capital of French West Africa

Until 1902, the capital of French West Africa was in modern-day Senegal.

1903: French armies occupied Trarza

Beginning in 1903, the French armies succeeded in occupying Trarza, Brakna, and Tagant.

1904: France organized Mauritania

In 1904, France organized the territory of Mauritania and it became part of French West Africa.

1905: Abolishment of slavery

In 1905, slavery in Mauritania was officially abolished.

1905: End of slavery declared

In 1905, the French colonial administration declared an end of slavery in Mauritania, with very little success.

1912: French armies defeated Adrar

In 1912, the French armies defeated Adrar and incorporated it into the territory of Mauritania.

1959: Constitution enshrined abolition of slavery

In 1959, Mauritania enshrined abolition of slavery, albeit implicitly, in its constitution.

1960: Independence achieved

In 1960, Mauritania achieved independence after being colonized by France as part of French West Africa.

1961: Ratification of Forced Labour Convention

In 1961, Mauritania ratified the Forced Labour Convention.

1964: One-party state

In 1964, President Moktar Ould Daddah formalized Mauritania as a one-party state with a new constitution.

1965: Diocese of Nouakchott founded

In 1965, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nouakchott was founded.

1976: Daddah re-elected

In 1976, Daddah was re-elected in uncontested elections.

1976: Annexation of Western Sahara

In 1976, Mauritania, along with Morocco, annexed the territory of Western Sahara.

July 1978: Coup d'état

On July 10, 1978, Daddah was ousted in a bloodless coup.

1978: Daddah re-elected

In 1978, Daddah was re-elected in uncontested elections.

1979: Withdrawal from Western Sahara

In 1979, Mauritania withdrew from Western Sahara after military losses to the Polisario.

1981: Slavery nominally abolished

Although nominally abolished in 1981 by presidential decree, a criminal law against the ownership of slaves was enacted only in 2007.

1981: CIA planned covert operation

In 1981, United States newspapers mistakenly reported that the Central Intelligence Agency planned a covert operation to overthrow the government of Mauritania as part of U.S. Cold War strategy.

1981: Abolishment of slavery

In 1981, slavery in Mauritania was officially abolished.

December 1984: Haidallah deposed

In December 1984, Haidallah was deposed by Colonel Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya.

1984: Filming of Fort Saganne

In 1984, filming for Fort Saganne took place in Mauritania.

1986: Deepwater port opened

In 1986, the country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott.

April 1989: Intercommunal violence

In April 1989, intercommunal violence broke out during the "Mauritania–Senegal Border War".

April 1989: Incident in Diawara

On April 9, 1989, Mauritanian guards killed two Senegalese in Diawara, starting the Mauritania-Senegal Border War.

1990: Low scale conflict with Senegal continued

As low scale conflict with Senegal continued into 1990/91, the Mauritanian government engaged in and encouraged acts of violence and seizures of property directed against the Halpularen ethnic group.

June 1991: UNHCR estimated Mauritanian refugees

As of June 1991, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that 52,995 Mauritanian refugees were living in Senegal and at least 13,000 in Mali.

1991: New Constitution approved

In 1991, a new Constitution was approved, putting an end to formal military rule in Mauritania.

1991: Gulf War

Mauritania took a pro-Iraqi position during the 1991 Gulf War, leading to increased tensions with Western countries.

1992: Referendum scheduled

A referendum, originally scheduled for 1992, is still supposed to be held to determine the status of Western Sahara.

1992: Decentralization

Since 1992, a series of national and municipal elections have produced limited decentralization in Mauritania.

1997: Filming of The Fifth Element

In 1997, filming for The Fifth Element took place in Mauritania.

March 1999: Agreement with World Bank and IMF

In March 1999, the government signed an agreement with a joint World Bank-International Monetary Fund mission on a $54 million enhanced structural adjustment facility (ESAF).

October 1999: Recognition of Israel

On 28 October 1999, Mauritania joined Egypt, Palestine, and Jordan as the only members of the Arab League to officially recognize Israel.

1999: Language in primary school

Since 1999, all teaching in the first year of primary school is in Modern Standard Arabic; French is introduced in the second year.

2000: DNA study

In 2000, a DNA study of the Yemeni people suggested some ancient connection might exist between the Yemeni and Berber peoples.

2000: Public expenditure on education

Public expenditure on education was at 10.1% of 2000–2007 government expenditure.

2001: Oil discovered

During the regime of President Ould Taya, oil was discovered in 2001 by the Woodside Company.

2001: Filming of Winged Migration

In 2001, filming for Winged Migration took place in Mauritania.

2004: Health expenditure

In 2004, per capita expenditure on health was US$43 (PPP).

August 2005: Military coup

On 3 August 2005, a military coup led by Colonel Ely Ould Mohamed Vall ended President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya's 21 years of rule.

2005: Military coup

The 2007 elections effected the final transfer from military to civilian rule following the military coup in 2005.

June 2006: New constitution approved

In a referendum on 26 June 2006, 97% of Mauritanians approved a new constitution that limited the duration of a president's stay in office.

December 2006: Parliamentary and municipal elections

Parliamentary and municipal elections in Mauritania took place in December 2006.

March 2007: First fully democratic presidential elections

On 11 March 2007, Mauritania's first fully democratic presidential elections took place.

August 2007: Abolishment of slavery

In August 2007, slavery in Mauritania was officially abolished for the third time.

2007: Repatriation from Senegal and Mali

After 2007, many Mauritanians expelled during the conflict with Senegal were repatriated from Senegal and Mali.

2007: Criminal law against slave ownership enacted

Although nominally abolished in 1981 by presidential decree, a criminal law against the ownership of slaves was enacted only in 2007.

2007: Public expenditure on education

Public expenditure on education was at 10.1% of 2000–2007 government expenditure.

August 2008: Presidential guard took over palace

On 6 August 2008, the head of the presidential guards took over the president's palace in Nouakchott.

2008: Accusations of torture

Following the 2008 coup, Amnesty International accused the military government of Mauritania of practicing coordinated torture against criminal and political detainees.

2008: Torture accusations

In 2008, Amnesty International alleged that torture was common in Mauritania, stating that its usage is "deeply anchored in the culture of the security forces".

2008: Mauritanian coup d'état

In 2008, the Mauritanian coup d'état was led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

2009: Negotiations for elections

During the spring of 2009, the junta negotiated an understanding with some opposition figures and international parties regarding presidential elections.

2009: Presidential election

In 2009, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz won the presidential election.

2010: US State Department Human Rights Report

According to the US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report, abuses in Mauritania include:

2010: Government efforts insufficient

The US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report states, "Government efforts were not sufficient to enforce the antislavery law. No cases have been successfully prosecuted under the antislavery law despite the fact that de facto slavery exists in Mauritania."

February 2011: Arab Spring protests

In February 2011, the waves of the Arab Spring spread to Mauritania, with protests in the capital.

2011: Life expectancy and infant mortality

As of 2011, life expectancy at birth was 61.14 years and Infant mortality is 60.42 deaths/1,000 live births.

2012: Ranked fourth-worst team in the world

Despite being ranked as the fourth-worst team in the world in 2012, Mauritania qualified for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

2012: Government minister states slavery no longer exists

In 2012, a government minister stated that slavery "no longer exists" in Mauritania.

2012: CNN documentary estimates slave population

In 2012, it was estimated by a CNN documentary that 10% to 20% of the population of Mauritania live in slavery.

November 2014: Invited to G20 summit

In November 2014, Mauritania was invited as a non-member guest nation to the G20 summit in Brisbane.

2014: Presidential election

In 2014, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz won another presidential election.

2014: Filming of Timbuktu

In 2014, filming for Timbuktu took place in Mauritania.

2014: US State Department identifies torture

In 2014, the United States Department of State identified torture by Mauritanian law enforcement as one of the "central human rights problems" in the country.

2015: Gold production

In 2015, the country's gold production reached 9 metric tons.

2016: UN expert reports

In 2016, Juan E. Méndez, an independent expert on human rights from the United Nations, reported that legal protections against torture were present but not applied in Mauritania.

August 2017: Senate abolished

In August 2017, the Senate was abolished after a referendum, following President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz's call after the Senate rejected his proposals to change the constitution.

August 2017: National flag changed

On 5 August 2017, the national flag of Mauritania was changed. Two red stripes were added.

April 2018: Death penalty law

On 27 April 2018, the National Assembly passed a law that makes the death penalty mandatory for anyone convicted of "blasphemous speech" and acts deemed "sacrilegious".

2018: Estimated enslaved population

According to the Walk Free Foundation's Global Slavery Index, there were an estimated 90,000 enslaved people in Mauritania in 2018.

2018: Armed forces budget

As of 2018, the Mauritanian armed forces budget constituted 3.9% of the country's GDP.

2018: Global Slavery Index

In 2018, the Global Slavery Index estimated about 90,000 slaves in Mauritania, which is about 2.1% of the population.

2018: Qatar corruption scandal

In late 2018, Mauritania bribed members of the EU parliament to "not speak ill of Mauritania" in what became known as the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament.

August 2019: Ghazouani sworn in as president

In August 2019, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani was sworn in as president after the 2019 elections.

2019: Presidential election

In 2019, General Mohamed Ould Ghazouani succeeded Abdel Aziz following presidential elections.

2019: Qualified for Africa Cup of Nations

In 2019, Mauritania qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations.

2020: Atlas of Cursed Places episode

In 2020, The TV show Atlas of Cursed Places had an episode that mentions Mauritania as a possible location for the lost city of Atlantis.

2020: Christian population

In 2020, the number of Christians in Mauritania was estimated at 10,000.

June 2021: Former president arrested

In June 2021, former president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz was arrested amidst a corruption probe into allegations of embezzlement.

2021: Population

As of 2021, Mauritania had a population of about 4.3 million, roughly a third concentrated in the capital and largest city, Nouakchott, on the Atlantic coast.

December 2023: Aziz sentenced to prison

In December 2023, former president Aziz was sentenced to 5 years in prison for corruption.

2023: Defeated Sudan in AFCON qualifiers

In 2023, Mauritania made headlines by defeating Sudan in the AFCON 2023 qualifiers.

February 2024: Refugee increase

In February 2024, there was a sudden increase of refugees from 2000 to 12,000 arriving on the Canary Islands by boat.

March 2024: EU deal with Mauritania

In March 2024, Ursula von der Leyen and Pedro Sánchez visited and the EU made a €210mn deal with Mauritania to reduce passage of African migrants through its territory towards Europe.