If you lived in Mauritania instead of Eritrea, you would:

Health

see 3.5 times more spent on your healthcare

Eritrea spends $87 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mauritania spends $302 as of 2023.

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have 3.0 times more doctors per person

Eritrea has 0.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Mauritania has 2.6 as of 2022.

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be 79.5% less likely to die by suicide

Eritrea has a suicide rate of 13.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 5.6 times more likely to be obese

In Eritrea, 4.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.

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have 11.1% less access to essential health services

Eritrea scores 45 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Mauritania scores 40 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 72.6% more likely to be unemployed

In Eritrea, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mauritania, that number is 10.3% as of 2025.

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Life

have 18.5% more children

In Eritrea, there are approximately 28.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mauritania, there are 34.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 30.9% more likely to die during childbirth

In Eritrea, approximately 291.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Mauritania, 381.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 12.5% less likely to be literate

In Eritrea, the literacy rate is 76.6% as of 2018. In Mauritania, it is 67.0% as of 2021.

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be 22.3% more likely to die during infancy

In Eritrea, approximately 24.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Mauritania, on the other hand, 30.2 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 72.2% more likely to have internet access

In Eritrea, approximately 26.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Mauritania, about 45.8% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 17.9% more on healthcare

Eritrea spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mauritania, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 66.2% less coastline

Eritrea has a total of 2,234 km of coastline. In Mauritania, that number is 754 km.

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Safety

be 46.3% less likely to die in a road accident

In Eritrea, road accidents kill 17.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mauritania, they kill 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 5.6 times more home broadband

Eritrea has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Mauritania has 0.9 as of 2024.

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live with 18.5% more strain on fresh water

Eritrea withdraws 11% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mauritania withdraws 13% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 20.5% less likely to die from air pollution

In Eritrea, air pollution causes 78.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mauritania, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.

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emit 4.4 times more CO2

Eritrea emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook (2018–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Mauritania: At a glance

Mauritania is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,030,700 sq km. Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976 but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA seized power in a coup in 1984 and ruled Mauritania with a heavy hand for more than two decades. A series of presidential elections that he held were widely seen as flawed. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council that oversaw a transition to democratic rule. Independent candidate Sidi Ould Cheikh ABDALLAHI was inaugurated in April 2007 as Mauritania's first freely and fairly elected president. His term ended prematurely in August 2008 when a military junta led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel AZIZ deposed him and installed a military council government. AZIZ was subsequently elected president in July 2009 and sworn in the following month. AZIZ sustained injuries from an accidental shooting by his own troops in October 2012 but has continued to maintain his authority. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population (Afro-Mauritanians) and white and black Moor (Arab-Berber) communities, and confronts a terrorism threat by al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
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How big is Mauritania compared to Eritrea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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