Mighty Saharan sand dunes, a wild and remote coastline, deep canyons, empty plateaus, spring fed oases and ancient cities scoured by scorching desert winds dominate the country of Mauritania. The country is three-fourths desert or semi desert and has a climate that is hot and dry with frequent sandstorms.

The name Mauritaniais derived from the Latin Mauretania, meaning "west", and the country lies on the western edge of the continent of Africa. Mauritania borders Senegal to the south, Mali to the southeast, Algeria to the northeast, and the Western Sahara to the north, with the capital, Nouakchott on the long Atlantic coast.

Mauritania is approximately twice the size of France, but with a population of about 3 million is one of the least densely populated countries in the world. The inhabitants are divided between White Moors of Arab/Berber origin, the Arabic-speaking Black Moors, descendents of slaves, and black Africans principally from the Fulani, Wolof and Soninke tribes. The African peoples in the south are either semi-nomadic cattle herders or settled farmers engaging in agriculture, while the Moors in the north historically had a nomadic desert lifestyle, travelling great distances with their camels and goats. The ancient Saharan caravan towns, with their date palm groves and extensive libraries, all testify to vibrant civilisations and trading routes all over theWestern Sahara.

Mauritania’s traditional lifestyle and culture have undergone tremendous upheaval in the past 30-40 years, largely as a consequence of the great Sahel droughts of the 1970s and 80s which destroyed the crops of subsistence farmers and the livestock of the nomadic herders.  Mauritania was previously 85% nomadic.  Now, however, the majority of Mauritanians live in urban areas as the recurrent droughts sparked a massive exodus from rural areas to Mauritania’s capital, Nouakchott and several smaller regional capitals.  Nouakchott was one of the fastest growing cities in the world during the 1970s and 80s, growing at 10-15% per year and increasing from a modest town of approximately 40,000 in 1970 to a city of approximately 1 million inhabitants today, approximately one- third of Mauritania’s entire population. 

Mauritania has begun to tap into recently discovered offshore oil reserves and has pinned hopes for future economic growth and prosperity on the export of petroleum products and minerals. Its main exports are currently fish, fish products and iron ore.  Although the mining sector is growing, most of Mauritania’s people still eke out a living by subsistence farming.  During the short rainy season in the summer, Mauritania’s cities empty dramatically as the urban migrants return to their rural roots to cultivate fields of millet, corn, beans, sorghum and even rice in some areas where irrigation is available.  Also during the summer, even those that are not tending fields try to get out of the city and enjoy sitting under tents, drinking milk and feasting on freshly-roasted meat and celebrating the “Geitna,” the annual date harvest.

In spite of all the changes Mauritanian society has undergone, one thing has remained constant: the desert tradition of hospitality.  Whatever their ethnic background, economic level or whether they live in the city or the desert, Mauritanians pride themselves on their welcome towards strangers. This welcome is symbolized in the offer of a bowl of a sweet fermented milk drink and they will spend hours chatting with friends and visitors alike whilst preparing and drinking the traditional three glasses of sweet mint tea.

Operation Mercy's local partner is the Doulos Community.

'Talibe' is a Wolof word meaning 'follower' or 'disciple'. In Mauritania under the Talibe system, village boys, sometimes as young as 4 years old, are sent by their families to study the Qur'an with a marabout, a folk Islamic teacher. In return for a basic education of the Qur'an and minimal board and lodging, the boys are required to make a daily contribution to the marabout. The boys must earn this money themselves by begging on the streets or from house to house, selling small items in the market or theft. Thus the boys spend much of their lives on the streets. There are estimated to be as many as 1,000 Talibe boys roaming the streets of the capital Nouakchott.

The 'Talibe Boys' Project is currently operating 2 centres in the city and more than 100 boys are involved in the programs. Here the boys are shown love in action. They are given nutritious meals, a place to shower and some clothes. Twenty five of the boys are sponsored to go to local schools. There are also opportunities given in the centres for literacy classes teaching Pulaar, one of the local languages. Most of the boys cannot read or write and these literacy classes have helped many of them become literate. The older boys are also taught vocational skills in carpentry, hairdressing and tailoring to provide life skills. Several boys have gone on to apprenticeships with local craftsmen. Fun activities that all boys enjoy are also found in the centres. Football and art and craft classes are attended enthusiastically!

Our project demonstrates to the Talibe boys that they are loved and their lives have value. With opportunities of education and vocational skills these boys can have hope in the future. The project also gives the centre staff opportunity to have regular contact with the Marabouts, and to visit the boys' home villages and have contact with their parents, helping us to understand the conditions and beliefs that undergird the Talibe system. Through such visits, we are able to help people envision transformation, and to fight the poverty that allows such a system to persist.

Nouakchott in Mauritania is a young and very poor city with a population of around 1 million. The majority of its inhabitants are first or second generation migrants who have left rural areas because of economic pressures and who now live in urban ghettos surrounding the city.

The key question arises, how to help the poor in Mauritania?

What we have learned through many years living amongst the people we serve, learning the local language and sharing our lives with shanty town dwellers, is that the BEST way to tackle the root causes of their poverty is to empower and equip the local people to build effective community structures.

By focusing on the identification and promotion of key strengths inherent within the communities, rather than on the elimination of weaknesses and problems, we build with an asset based community development and self help approach.

This year we will be promoting our self help groups and establishing these in new areas of the city, training community health volunteers, developing the current kindergarten programs, continuing with literacy programs, micro-business training and training in worldview. Our aim is to build on the strong foundations which have been laid, help families identify new opportunities and encourage a deeper and broader ownership of the program by the communities themselves.

Previous and ongoing surveys undertaken at the centres clearly show a marked improvement in the welfare of the participants themselves and their families over time. Beneficiaries show increases in income-generating activity, increased ownership of poultry, sheep and goats, better school attendance among children and greatly increased functional literacy, whilst a decrease in severe malnutrition among preschool children. We were greatly encouraged!

We are confident and optimistic that our eight community development centres and self help groups will have a positive impact amongst the poor we serve in Nouakchott.

Do you like riddles? How can you turn $2.20 (US dollars) into $7,000 within 2 ½ years? Does it sound impossible? It is very possible if one looks beyond the limitations of personal earning potential to see the wealth-creating power made possible by a network of self-help groups.

In the Arafat neighborhood of Nouakchott, Mauritania, is a poor squatter-settlement where Doulos Community, an Operation Mercy partner, has been working to promote community development for the past six years. Here we have seen a multiplication of resources occur. Recently we conducted financial reviews with the leaders of the first fifteen women's self-help groups we helped to establish in the Arafat district in 2007 – 2008. We were astounded at the results! The women from fifteen self help groups each contributed an initial sum of about 600 ouguiyas, the local Mauritanian currency (approx $2.20) into their group's fund, for a starting total among all the groups of about $667. Through various personal income-generating projects (financed by loans from the groups) and various group activities, those individual small contributions of $2.20 were multiplied to reach a combined total of $7027 as of early 2010.

Here's the story of how one group multiplied their funds. Group 10 is a typical example of the women's self-help groups in Arafat. To build up their group funds, the women of Group 10 worked together in the Arafat Community garden. After 6 months of sowing, weeding, watering, harvesting and selling their produce from the garden, the women had generated an additional 48,000 UM ($178) in revenues for their group fund. With this fund, the group began a revolving loan program. With these loans women often purchased 'malafas', the colourful wraps worn by women, or beauty products to sell to their family, friends and neighbours.

Our role has been to help provide a starting point, mobilizing and organizing women into groups, who then participate together in various shared activities including literacy classes, financial management training and community garden work. The trust and confidence gained through these shared activities has proved an invaluable foundation for the success of the group in managing the group fund and developing their small business skills, allowing them to pool their profits and strengthen community resilience.