Food imports in Mauritania
Mauritania: Food imports was 23.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Food imports in Mauritania, 1962–2024
Source: Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division. Measured in % of merchandise imports.
Analysis
In 2024, food imports in Mauritania stood at 23.9%.
That represents a change of down 5.6% on the previous year and up 98.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, food imports in Mauritania peaked at 29.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 5.0%, in 1963.
Mauritania ranks 35th of 196 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Food imports in Mauritania, year by year
| Year | % of merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 6.0% | — |
| 1963 | 5.0% | -16.8% |
| 1964 | 8.3% | +66.2% |
| 1965 | 8.7% | +5.2% |
| 1966 | 14.3% | +64.2% |
| 1967 | 17.1% | +20.0% |
| 1968 | 25.7% | +49.9% |
| 1970 | 23.4% | -8.9% |
| 1971 | 24.0% | +2.6% |
| 1972 | 22.6% | -5.8% |
| 2000 | 18.7% | -17.4% |
| 2001 | 18.4% | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 21.8% | +18.9% |
| 2003 | 24.4% | +11.9% |
| 2004 | 10.8% | -55.9% |
| 2005 | 10.2% | -5.1% |
| 2006 | 25.0% | +144.8% |
| 2007 | 25.5% | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 28.2% | +10.8% |
| 2009 | 29.1% | +3.0% |
| 2010 | 19.4% | -33.3% |
| 2011 | 14.5% | -25.4% |
| 2012 | 15.2% | +5.2% |
| 2013 | 11.0% | -27.7% |
| 2014 | 12.0% | +9.4% |
| 2015 | 14.3% | +18.8% |
| 2016 | 18.2% | +26.9% |
| 2017 | 13.8% | -23.9% |
| 2018 | 18.2% | +32.0% |
| 2019 | 18.0% | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 29.7% | +65.1% |
| 2021 | 25.2% | -15.2% |
| 2022 | 23.9% | -5.3% |
| 2023 | 25.3% | +5.9% |
| 2024 | 23.9% | -5.6% |
Mauritania compared with similar countries
- Mauritania's 23.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 18.4%, 1.3× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Mauritania's 23.9% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 20.0%, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.1% | 5.0% | 25.7% | 7 |
| 1970s | 23.4% | 22.6% | 24.0% | 3 |
| 2000s | 21.2% | 10.2% | 29.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.5% | 11.0% | 19.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.6% | 23.9% | 29.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Mauritania
More private sector data for Mauritania
- Merchandise trade 87.3% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 40.8% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 5.68 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 25.5% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 0.5% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 4.51 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 848.53 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.3861 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 8.67 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 1,070 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is food imports in Mauritania?
- Food imports in Mauritania was 23.9% in 2024, according to Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division.
- What is the highest food imports recorded in Mauritania?
- The highest recorded value was 29.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest food imports recorded in Mauritania?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.0% in 1963.
- How does Mauritania rank for food imports?
- Mauritania ranks 35th out of 196 countries with data for 2024.
- Is food imports rising or falling in Mauritania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 98.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Mauritania data come from?
- The figures come from Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division, published as part of Food imports (% of merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Food comprises the commodities in SITC (Rev. 3) sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels). This indicator is expressed as a percentage of merchandise imports which is comprised of goods whose economic ownership is changed between a non-resident and a resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e.