service age and obligation:

18 years of age (est.); conscript service obligation - 2 years;
majority of servicemen believed to be volunteers; service in Air
Force and Navy is voluntary (2006)

Manpower available for military service:

males age 16-49: 740,675
females age 16-49: 744,709 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:

males age 16-49: 463,305
females age 16-49: 484,777 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:

male: 38,191
female: 38,638 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures:

5.5% of GDP (2006)

Transnational Issues
Mauritania

Disputes - international:

Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara remain dormant

This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008

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@Mauritius

Introduction
Mauritius

Background:

Although known to Arab and Malay sailors as early as the 10th
century, Mauritius was first explored by the Portuguese in the 16th
century and subsequently settled by the Dutch - who named it in
honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU - in the 17th century. The French
assumed control in 1715, developing the island into an important
naval base overseeing Indian Ocean trade, and establishing a
plantation economy of sugar cane. The British captured the island in
1810, during the Napoleonic Wars. Mauritius remained a strategically
important British naval base, and later an air station, playing an
important role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy
operations, as well as the collection of signals intelligence.
Independence from the UK was attained in 1968. A stable democracy
with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the
country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned
one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather,
declining sugar prices, and declining textile and apparel
production, have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests
over standards of living in the Creole community.

Geography
Mauritius

Location:

Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar

Geographic coordinates:

20 17 S, 57 33 E

Map references:

Political Map of the World

Area:

total: 2,040 sq km
land: 2,030 sq km
water: 10 sq km
note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint
Brandon), and Rodrigues

Area - comparative:

almost 11 times t