People (Mauritania)
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     Population:
         2,059,187 (July 1992), growth rate 3.1% (1992)
     Birth rate:
         48 births/1,000 population (1992)
     Death rate:
         17 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
     Net migration rate:
         0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
     Infant mortality rate:
         89 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
     Life expectancy at birth:
         44 years male, 50 years female (1992)
     Total fertility rate:
         7.1 children born/woman (1992)
     Nationality:
         noun - Mauritanian(s); adjective - Mauritanian
     Ethnic divisions:
         mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30%
     Religions:
         Muslim, nearly 100%
     Languages:
         Hasaniya Arabic (official); Hasaniya Arabic, Pular, Soninke, Wolof
         (official)
     Literacy:
         34% (male 47%, female 21%) age 10 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
     Labor force:
         465,000 (1981 est.); 45,000 wage earners (1980); agriculture 47%, services
         29%, industry and commerce 14%, government 10%; 53% of population of working
         age (1985)
     Organized labor:
         30,000 members claimed by single union, Mauritanian Workers' Union