Nouakchott, Mauritania

Nouakchott is the capital and largest city of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, a nation in Northwest Africa, on the Atlantic coast. Nouakchott is one of the youngest cities in Africa, and was founded as the nation's capital around 1957. This unique character has been borne out by the fact that the city is largely the work of municipal engineers, and there are no ancient alleyways or buildings in the city, most of which is comprised of one-story buildings. Nouakchott is located on a historically important trade route for Western Africa, and its name translates into "place of winds" in the ancient Berber language.

Landscape

Nouakchott is located in the western region of Mauritania on the Atlantic coast. Nouakchott is also located in the Sahara desert—the world's largest hot desert—and stands at the crossroads between the northern and southern parts of Mauritania. The north is where most of the country's natural resources are located, while the south is largely agricultural, despite the fact that the surrounding hot, dry desert has not been hospitable to farming in recent decades. The city's water supply comes from the Trerza aquifer about 48 kilometers (30 miles) east of the city.

Nouakchott is spread out over 1,036 square kilometers (400 square miles), with most buildings not rising above one story. Nouakchott consists of nine districts: Arafat, Dar Naim, El Mina, Ksar, Riad, Sebkha, Tevragh-Zeina, Teyarett, and Toujounine. The city is 270 miles northeast of Dakar, Senegal, which is the more dominant city in the region. To the south of Nouakchott is also Saint-Louis in Senegal, which was the capital of French West Africa prior to the mid-twentieth century. Within Mauritania, Nouakchott has limited access to other locations by road and has only three highways to other major Mauritanian cities: Rosso in the south, Akjoujt in the northeast, and Nema in the east.

Mauritania has a desert climate, with a rainy season in the south lasting from July through October. Temperatures in Nouakchott range between 13 and 33 degrees Celsius (56 and 92 degrees Fahrenheit), and the average annual rainfall is 130 millimeters (5 inches). The climate in Nouakchott is also influenced by northeasterly trade and coastal winds.

People

In 2023, the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimated the population of the urban area of Nouakchott to be 1.492 million, though that number is often hard to calculate or substantiate due to the traditional and nomadic ways of living of many of the city's residents. Often, as drought and other factors influence the migration of the rural population, many nomadic tribes will set up tents on the outskirts and center of town and move back and forth from the city as necessary. However, nomadic migration has been on the decline since the latter half of the twentieth century. The increase in population has been a significant drain on the city's water resources, as the city was originally constructed for only 15,000 residents back in 1958.

According to the CIA, Mauritania's predominant ethnicity (70 percent of the population) is a mixed Moor and African race (made up of white and Black Moors of Berber and Arab descent). The remaining 30 percent of the population is made up of native Black Africans and Mauritanians such as Haalpulaar, Soninke, and Wolof. Arabic is the official and national language. French is primarily spoken by the minority foreign population and is the language of government and commerce. Wolof, Peular, and Soninke are also widely spoken. The majority of Nouakchott's residents are Muslim (Islam is the state religion), but the city is home to a small Christian population, as well as a Catholic Cathedral called the Cathedral of St. Joseph.

Economy

Nouakchott's economy is dependent on the shipping trade in the city's deep water port, called the Port of Friendship. The port, built largely through international assistance, became operational in 1986 and is the main export point for Mauritania's copper and iron ore resources, as well as for the local fishing industry. Nouakchott also has a smaller port, called the Wharf Quai, which has been operational since the 1960s. In all, mining, fishing, and international aid serve as the main drivers of Mauritania's economy.

In addition to exports, Nouakchott's ports are an important entry point for goods such as wheat, construction materials, flour, sugar, and other basic food items. Off the coast of Nouakchott are several offshore oil rigs, and international companies are also exploring other possible extraction sites. In 2018, Shell signed contracts with the Mauritanian government to set up an office in the capital and establish exploration operations in two offshore blocks. To the north of Nouakchott are several deposits of gypsum and salt that contribute to the city's commerce. Light industries in the city include the manufacture of soft drinks and chemical products.

Despite its small output, Nouakchott is the linchpin for the entire country's economy and the city was one of the main reasons that the United Nations (UN) named Mauritania as the best performing African economy in 2006. In addition, four institutions are important factors for the city's economy and prestige, including a university, a school for Islamic studies, the National Archives, and the National School of Administration. The city also has an international airport.

Landmarks

Nouakchott is home to several notable religious and cultural landmarks, most notably the Central Mosque, a towering building that is set apart along the city skyline. The mosque was built with funds from a Saudi donor. The Nouakchott Museum hosts a variety of ancient ceramic exhibits and a general history of the area.

In addition, the Université de Nouakchott, founded in 1981, is the only such institution in the country. Nouakchott is also home to an Olympic-sized stadium.

History

Although Nouakchott's history is fairly recent, it is believed that the area was used as the staging ground for the Almoravid tribe to begin its conquests in the region in the eleventh century. A monastery is believed to have been on this site, where the Almoravids from Morocco founded an empire that stretched through Africa and parts of Spain.

After this time, Nouakchott grew up as a small fishing village on Africa's Atlantic coast. The French controlled the region during the nineteenth century and part of the twentieth century. In 1957, Nouakchott was chosen as the regional capital for Mauritania and designated an autonomous republic in the international French Community one year later. In 1960, Mauritania, as with many other African nations, gained complete independence with Nouakchott as its capital. In preparation for Nouakchott's transformation from village to national center, French and Mauritanian engineers created a city to accommodate 15,000 new residents.

Subsequent droughts beginning in the 1970s have forced many of Mauritania's nomadic tribes to seek refuge and shelter in the city. This has caused substantial growing pains, as the population of Nouakchott exploded from tens of thousands to well over an estimated 500,000 people within the city's first twenty years. The city's population fluctuates often due to nomadic settlers seeking refuge for years at a time before resuming their traditional life, although many have become permanent residents of the city. In addition to drought, by 2019 the residents of the capital city had grown increasingly concerned about rising sea levels due to its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean; by that time, likely in large part due to climate change, the city had already experienced greater levels of flooding and rising water tables.

During the mid-1970s the city was attacked by the Polisario, the Western Sahara's armed independence wing. Since the Polisario siege, the city experienced coups in 2005 and 2008. General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz was sworn in as president in August 2009 and reelected in 2014. Mohamed Ould Cheikh el Ghazouani was elected in 2019.

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