Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania
Mauritania: Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access was 0.8% in 2012. ▼ Falling
Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania, 2000–2012
Source: SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of rural population.
Analysis
Mauritania recorded 0.8% for share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in 2012. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 46.7% on the previous year and down 78.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania peaked at 4.9% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 0.8%, in 2012.
That places Mauritania 209th out of 212 countries with data for 2012, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania, year by year
| Year | % of rural population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3.0% | — |
| 2001 | 4.9% | +63.3% |
| 2002 | 3.7% | -24.5% |
| 2003 | 3.8% | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 3.8% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 1.2% | -68.4% |
| 2006 | 3.8% | +216.7% |
| 2007 | 3.8% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 4.0% | +5.3% |
| 2009 | 3.2% | -20.0% |
| 2010 | 2.1% | -34.4% |
| 2011 | 1.5% | -28.6% |
| 2012 | 0.8% | -46.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.5% | 1.2% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 0.8% | 2.1% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Mauritania
- 206 Central African Republic 2.0% compare
- 207 Angola 1.3% compare
- 208 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1.0% compare
- 209 Libya 0.8% compare
- 211 South Sudan 0.7%
- 212 Chad 0.4% compare
More energy & mining data for Mauritania
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 2.79 % change on previous year (2024)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fuel imports 34.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania?
- Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access in Mauritania was 0.8% in 2012, according to SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access recorded in Mauritania?
- The highest recorded value was 4.9% in 2001.
- What is the lowest share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access recorded in Mauritania?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8% in 2012.
- How does Mauritania rank for share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access?
- Mauritania ranks 209th out of 212 countries with data for 2012.
- Is share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access rising or falling in Mauritania?
- Over the last ten years it is down 78.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Mauritania data come from?
- The figures come from SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of rural vs. urban population with electricity access. 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
Having access to electricity is defined in international statistics as having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.