Mauritania : Counting on Natural Wealth for a Sustainable Future

A data set of key macro-sustainability indicators, constructed after several fact-finding missions, and World Bank methodologies on estimating wealth accounting are used to study Mauritania's wealth, which is estimated to be between USD50 and USD60 billion. The country's produced wealth represents roughly 12 percent of total wealth, much less than in lower-middle-income countries; by contrast, natural wealth represents approximately 45 percent of the total figure. Renewable resources account for slightly less than two-thirds of natural wealth, with fisheries alone equaling about one-fourth of natural wealth. This is good news for Mauritania, as sound management of these resources may ensure a constant flow of resources in the future and therefore -- with adequate policies -- the achievement of the same or higher levels of welfare for future generations. On the negative side, however, the ratio of net adjusted savings over gross national income is estimated to have been negative since 2006, meaning that the wealth of the country is being depleted. Mauritania has recently joined the ranks of lower-middle-income countries, largely thanks to its considerable natural resources endowment. Over time the mining sector's contribution to gross domestic product has grown significantly and important discoveries continue to be made. The overarching objective of this wealth accounting exercise is thus to support Mauritania to measure its assets better and achieve a more complete picture of the prospects for future income, with a view to better orienting public policies toward sustainable growth and shared prosperity. The paper concludes with several indicative policy recommendations.

Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	Mele, Gianluca
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2014-05
Subjects:	ACCOUNTING, ACCOUNTING PERIOD, ACCOUNTING RULES, AFFILIATE, AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS, AGRICULTURE, ARREARS, ASSET VALUES, ASSETS, BALANCE SHEET, BALANCE SHEETS, CAPITAL ASSETS, CAPITAL EXPENDITURES, CAPITAL INVESTMENT, CAPITAL INVESTMENTS, CAPITAL MARKETS, CAPITAL STOCK, CASH TRANSFERS, COMMODITIES, COMMODITY, COMMODITY PRICES, COMPETITIVENESS, CONNECTIVITY, CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE, CONSUMPTION FUNCTION, CONSUMPTION INCREASES, CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, COST OF CAPITAL, CURRENCY, CURRENCY UNITS, CURRENT EXPENDITURES, CURRENT PRICES, DAMAGES, DATA AVAILABILITY, DEBT, DEBT LEVELS, DECISION MAKING, DEMOGRAPHIC, DEPOSITS, DERIVATIVES, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS, DEVELOPMENT POLICY, DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES, DIMINISHING RETURNS, DISCOUNT RATE, DISPOSABLE INCOME, DOMESTIC INVESTMENT, DURABLES, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMIC RESEARCH, ECONOMIC SECTORS, EFFICIENT CAPITAL, EFFICIENT CAPITAL MARKETS, ELASTICITY, EMPLOYMENT, ENERGY EXPORTS, ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION, ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS, EQUIPMENT, EXCHANGE RATE, EXPENDITURE, EXPENDITURES, EXPORTER, EXPORTERS, EXPORTS, EXTERNAL DEBT, FERTILITY RATE, FINANCIAL ASSETS, FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS, FISCAL DEFICIT, FISCAL POLICIES, FISCAL POLICY, FIXED CAPITAL, FIXED COSTS, FOOD PRICES, FOREIGN ASSETS, FOREIGN COMPANIES, FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT, FOREIGN INVESTORS, FUTURE GROWTH, FUTURE PRICES, GDP, GDP DEFLATOR, GDP PER CAPITA, GOVERNMENT SPENDING, GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT, GROSS FIXED CAPITAL FORMATION, GROSS NATIONAL SAVINGS, GROSS SALES, GROWTH POTENTIAL, GROWTH RATE, GROWTH RATES, HUMAN CAPITAL, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, HUMAN RESOURCES, INCOME, INCOMES, INFLATION, INFLATION RATE, INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT, INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, INTANGIBLE, INTERNATIONAL BANK, INTERNATIONAL FIRMS, INTERNATIONAL RESERVES, INTERNATIONAL TRADE, INVESTING, INVESTMENT CAPITAL, INVESTMENT POLICIES, INVESTMENT PROJECTS, ITC, JOB CREATION, JOINT VENTURE, LABOR COSTS, LAND AS COLLATERAL, LAND USE, LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE, LIABILITY, LIQUIDITY, LOCAL CURRENCY, LONG-TERM COST, LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES, MACROECONOMIC ANALYSIS, MACROECONOMIC CONTEXT, MACROECONOMIC MANAGEMENT, MACROECONOMIC POLICIES, MARGINAL UTILITY, MARGINAL UTILITY OF CONSUMPTION, MARKET SHARE, MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES, MISMANAGEMENT, MONETARY FUND, MONOPOLY, NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, NATIONAL INCOME, NATIONAL SAVING, NATURAL CAPITAL, NATURAL RESOURCE, NATURAL RESOURCES, NET FOREIGN ASSETS, NET SAVINGS, NPV, OIL PRICES, OIL RESERVES, OPERATING COSTS, OPPORTUNITY COST, OPPORTUNITY COSTS, OUTPUT, PERMANENT INCOME, PERMANENT INCOME HYPOTHESIS, POLICY CREDIBILITY, POLITICAL ECONOMY, POLLUTION, PRESENT VALUE, PRICE VOLATILITY, PRIVATE CAPITAL, PRIVATE CAPITAL STOCKS, PRIVATE INVESTMENT, PRODUCTION COSTS, PRODUCTIVE CAPITAL, PRODUCTIVITY, PROFIT MARGIN, PROPERTY RIGHTS, PUBLIC AGENCIES, PUBLIC DEBT, PUBLIC EXPENDITURES, PUBLIC INVESTMENT, PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, PUBLIC POLICIES, PUBLIC SPENDING, PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP, RAPID EXPANSION, RATE OF RETURN, RE-INVESTMENT, REAL GDP, REAL PROPERTY, REINVESTMENT, RENTS, RESERVE, RESERVES, RETURN, SAFETY NETS, SAVINGS, SAVINGS RATE, SAVINGS RATES, SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT, SOCIAL SAFETY NETS, STATISTICAL ANALYSIS, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, SUSTAINABLE GROWTH, TAX, TAX ADMINISTRATION, TAX REVENUE, TAX REVENUES, TOTAL COSTS, TOTAL REVENUE, TRADE BALANCE, TRANSPARENCY, TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVE, UTILITY FUNCTION, VALUATION, VARIABLE COST, WAGES, WEALTH, WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS, WORLD MARKET,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/05/19553476/mauritania-counting-natural-wealth-sustainable-future https://hdl.handle.net/10986/18798
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