Mauritania

Black Mauritanians attempting to return to Mauritania find themselves unable to register their children or to have children born abroad recognized as Mauritanian upon their return. In 1989 approximately 60,000 Black Mauritanians were denationalized and expelled into Senegal and Mali. Their identity documents were confiscated or destroyed to prevent their return. Most Black Mauritanians belong to pastoralist communities who moved back and forth across the Mauritania-Mali border. The Mauritanian government and UNHCR began repatriating groups of stateless persons and their children born abroad in 2008. Mauritanian ID cards are supposed to be re-issued to all returnees. The Human Rights Committee (2013) expressed concern that not all repatriated Mauritanian refugees had obtained identity and citizenship documents yet. CERD (2020) recommended that Mauritania intensify its efforts for the resettlement of all Mauritanian returnees, including issuing civil status documents. A joint submission for the 2021 UPR noted reports of returnees being denied ID cards and still not being recognised as nationals in Mauritania. A 2024 report by the UN Working Group on Discrimination Against Women and Girls found that children and families of expelled Black Mauritanians continued living in precarious situations.