MigrantoMigration trends in Mauritania
Africa
Mauritania takes in more people than it loses: 189.8K immigrants against 91.7K emigrants. Net balance +98.1K — 2% of the country's population
5.2M
Population
189.8K
Immigrants
91.7K
Emigrants
+98.1K
Inflow
1 in 27 residents of Mauritania was born abroad — and 1 in 57 people born in Mauritania lives abroad
#115 in the world by net migration gain
Top corridors
The largest migration flows in Mauritania
Where people come from
Key moments
How migration has changed since 1990
1990
110.2K immigrants · 111.3K emigrants
1995
- Mali overtook Senegal as the largest source of new arrivals
- The outflow deepened — net losses doubled to 39K
2000
- Immigration contracted — the foreign-born population fell 37%
- The exodus eased — the diaspora shrank by 36%
2015
- A surge of arrivals — the foreign-born population jumped 145%
- Mali overtook Senegal as the largest source of new arrivals
- The country became a destination — more people arriving than leaving
- Surge of immigrants from Mali — 99.2K new arrivals
Today
- Since 1990: 79.6K more foreign-born residents and roughly the same number of emigrants
Data source: International Migrant Stock 2024 (UN DESA, Population Division)
Ask Migo
Tap a question — our AI assistant answers it in chat, with real migration data
Where to live?
Score countries, regions and cities by what matters to you
Living in Mauritania
See the full country overview