Historical Sketch

After the establishment of the Senegal colony in the mid-19th century, France began extending its influence into the surrounding regions. A protectorate over Mauritania was erected in 1903 but no separate colonial administration was established. In 1920 finally, Mauritania became a French colony of its own, to be transformed into an overseas territory in 1946 like it was the case for all French possessions. In preparation for the French Union, it got constituted as autonomous republic in 1958, and two years later, after the failure of the French Union, Mauritania attained independence.

Monetary History Overview

After independence in 1960, Mauritania remained in the West African Monetary Union and continued to use the West African CFA Franc instead of a national currency. In 1973, it decided to leave the common currency area and the French tutorship. A central bank was established in June, and the 1st Mauritanian Ouguiya at 5 CFA Francs became the national currency. In the following year, the peg to the French Franc was abolished, and the Ouguiya adopted a variable exchange rate regime. Over the years, the Mauritanian currency has stadily depreciated against the CFA Franc, reaching 30% of the original value until the end of the 2010s. At the beginning of 2018, currency was redenominated by cutting one zero, creating the 2nd Mauritanian Ouguiya. The new currency has maintained stable exchange rates since then.

Mauritania joined the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 10.09.1963.

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