Mauritania is a sovereign nation in northwest Africa bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The Western Sahara encloses it from the north and northwest. It is the 11th biggest nation in Africa, and ninety per cent of its territory lies in the Sahara.
Although rich in natural resources, such as petroleum and iron ore, Mauritania is poor since its economy is based on fishing, agriculture and livestock. The country has a low GDP, and many people, such as subsistence farmers, had to come to cities due to droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Corruption and lack of government assistance have made things worse.
Coming to ports, Mauritania has extensive iron ore deposits; it accounts for 50% of its exports. Gold and copper are also found in some regions, and companies have opened mines in the interior areas, like the Firawa Mine.
Mauritania’s first deepwater facility became operational close to Nouakchott in 1986. Recently, drought and economic mismanagement have led to a piling up of foreign debt.
Mauritania has three significant ports and a few small ports, too. Most of these ports do not have the latest infrastructure and technologies due to a lack of funds. Let’s have a look at the ports in Mauritania.
1. Port of Nouakchott
Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania, lies on its central west coast and includes two quays. One is reserved for small vessels having a draft of less than 5 m, and the other is for large vessels with a maximum draft of 10.3 m.
There is also an offshore tanker CBM berth at this facility. Exports handled here include plaster, animal skin, and fish, while imports include clinker, flour, cement, wheat, sugar, milk, semolina, containers and other equipment. Around 300 ships visit the port every year.
2. Friendship Port of Nouakchott/ Port de l’Amité
This is an artificial port in Nouakchott, Mauritania. It was constructed in the 1980s by a Chinese company to cut transportation costs.
After it was built, the city was supplied with cargo cheaply compared to the cost of overland transportation of goods from Dakar in Senegal.
As it was not a naturally deep harbour, concrete block breakwaters were used to make it sa…
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