Mauritania

Is Mauritania safe to visit?

Only with care, and not everywhere. The US advisoryUS travel advisoryThe US State Department's rating of each country from Level 1 (exercise normal precautions) to Level 4 (do not travel).More in the glossary is Level 3, "reconsider travel", because of terrorism, crime and weak health care, and both the US and UK rule out large parts of the country next to Mali and in the far north-east. Nouakchott, Nouadhibou, the road between them and the old caravan towns of the Adrar can be visited, but they call for a driver, a guide and a plan. We score Mauritania 53, well above Mali (29) but below Senegal (58) and Algeria (64).

The Mali border and the north-east

Mauritania's main security problem comes from across its long eastern border. Mali's war between the army, its Russian partners and armed groups such as Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) has pushed people west for years. UNHCR estimates that Mauritania now hosts about 305,000 refugees and asylum seekers, and 177,542 of the registered refugees live in Hodh Chargui, the region around the Mbera camp near the border.

The government has turned much of the east into military zones. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary advises against all travel east of a line through Kankossa, Akhreijit, Ghallaouia, Zouérat and Fdérik to the Western Sahara border; those towns are just outside it. It says the Ministry of Defence has warned that anyone entering the zones will be treated as a military target, that their boundaries change often, and that organised crime groups also operate there. It also advises against all travel within 25 km of the Mali border in the south, including Khabou, and against all but essential travel to most of Hodh el Gharbi, Assaba, Gorgol, Guidimaka and Tiris Zemmour.

The US line is wider: do not travel anywhere north of the Tropic of Cancer or within 60 miles (about 100 km) of the Mali and Algeria borders. US government staff need special permission to leave Nouakchott and may not travel outside it at night.

The UK eased part of its advice in December 2024 and no longer warns against parts of Tagant, Adrar, Gorgol and Dakhlet Nouadhibou. The Tidjikja to Tichit road, the town of Ouadane and the area west of a line from Choum to Ouadane are now outside the warnings. Check both maps shortly before you travel. The British Embassy in Nouakchott offers no in-person consular help; British nationals are directed to the embassy in Dakar.

Terrorism and the law

The US says terrorists may attack without warning at places foreigners go, including hotels, restaurants, schools and places of worship. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says attacks could be indiscriminate. The FCDO also reports periodic protests linked to events in the Middle East, which can start with little warning; avoid them.

The law is strict. Islam is the state religion, proselytising can lead to arrest or deportation, and blasphemy carries a maximum penalty of death. Alcohol and pork are banned for everyone, and baggage is scanned at Nouakchott airport. Sex between men also carries a maximum penalty of death. Do not photograph soldiers or government buildings.

Crime in Nouakchott

The official crime numbers are the weakest data on this page. Police figures sent to the UN give just 1.0 homicide per 100,000 people in 2020, but the WHO, which models deaths from all sources, gives 10.6 (WHO modelled estimate, 2021), with a range of 5.5 to 18.8. We give more weight to the WHO figure and to the advisories. The US says muggings, armed robbery and assault happen frequently outside the Tevragh Zeina area, often at night. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says crime is rising and lists knifepoint robberies on the unlit beaches and in the Le Cinquième, Dar Naim and Cité Plage districts. Stay in Tevragh Zeina, keep off the beaches after dark and carry cash discreetly, because Mauritania runs mostly on cash.

Roads: two very different numbers

Road safety shows how far estimates can diverge. WHO's 2021 estimate, which we use for every country on the site, is 9.5 deaths per 100,000 people. Its older series, used by the World Bank, gives 25.6 for 2019, a very high rate. A real fall of that size in two years is implausible; the gap reflects different estimation methods, so treat the roads as more dangerous than our road score suggests. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary's description supports caution: traffic rules are rarely respected, paved roads are poor and public transport vehicles are badly maintained. Use a 4x4 and an experienced driver, never drive at night and travel in convoy outside towns.

Health and Rift Valley fever

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary calls medical care extremely limited outside Nouakchott and Nouadhibou, warns that many medicines may be fake and says the ambulance number, 101, may not be answered. Bring all your medicines and insurance that covers evacuation. Between late September and October 2025, a Rift Valley fever outbreak caused 46 confirmed cases and 14 deaths, mostly linked to contact with livestock (WHO). Avoid raw milk and contact with animal blood. The CDC recommends malaria tablets for some areas and yellow fever vaccine for travel south of the Sahara.

How we scored it

Health (35) and conflict (42) are the weakest factors. Road safety (70) scores highest, but only because WHO's 2021 estimate of 9.5 per 100,000 is far below its older figure of 25.6. Natural hazards (62) are moderate, because the country has little earthquake or storm exposure. Violent crime (55) sits in the 8–20 band of the WHO estimateWHO road-death estimateThe World Health Organization's estimate of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people in a country, adjusted for deaths that police statistics miss.More in the glossary, well above what the very low police figure alone would give. Confidence is low because the crime and road data disagree so much.