Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania

Mauritania: Share of marine territorial waters that are protected was 3.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
3.7%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
74th
of 174 countries
All-time high
4.2%
in 2014
All-time low
3.7%
in 2024
Years of data
13
2013–2025

Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania, 2013–2025

012342013201920252013: 4.1 % of territorial waters2014: 4.2 % of territorial waters2015: 4.2 % of territorial waters2016: 4.2 % of territorial waters2017: 4.2 % of territorial waters2018: 4.2 % of territorial waters2019: 4.2 % of territorial waters2020: 4.2 % of territorial waters2021: 4.2 % of territorial waters2022: 4.2 % of territorial waters2023: 4.2 % of territorial waters2024: 3.7 % of territorial waters2025: 3.7 % of territorial waters

Source: Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of territorial waters.

Analysis

In 2025, share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania stood at 3.7%. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.

The figure is down 11.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania peaked at 4.2% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 3.7%, in 2024.

Mauritania ranks 74th of 174 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 4.2% 4.1% 4.2% 7
2020s 4.0% 3.7% 4.2% 6

Countries ranked near Mauritania

  1. 71 Cuba 4.2% compare
  2. 71 Greenland 4.2% compare
  3. 71 Turkmenistan 4.2% compare
  4. 75 Nicaragua 3.6% compare
  5. 76 Saudi Arabia 3.5% compare
  6. 77 Albania 3.4% compare

See the full ranking of 174 places →

More reference data data for Mauritania

All data for Mauritania →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania?
Share of marine territorial waters that are protected in Mauritania was 3.7% in 2025, according to Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of marine territorial waters that are protected recorded in Mauritania?
The highest recorded value was 4.2% in 2014.
What is the lowest share of marine territorial waters that are protected recorded in Mauritania?
The lowest recorded value was 3.7% in 2024.
How does Mauritania rank for share of marine territorial waters that are protected?
Mauritania ranks 74th out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of marine territorial waters that are protected rising or falling in Mauritania?
Over the last ten years it is down 11.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Mauritania data come from?
The figures come from Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of marine territorial waters that are protected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of marine territorial waters that are protected
Unit
% of territorial waters
Source
Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
174 places, 2,223 data points, 2013–2025
Last refreshed

Marine protected areas are regions of intertidal or sub-tidal land and associated water, flora and fauna, and cultural and historical features that have been legally or effectively reserved for protection.