The ouguiya (Arabic: أوقية موريتانية (IPA: [u.ɡij.jə]); sign: UM; code: MRU), at one time spelled "ougiya",[4] is the currency of Mauritania.
 Current coins | |
| ISO 4217 | |
| Code | MRU (numeric: 929) before 2017: MRO[1] |
| Subunit | 0.01 |
| Unit | |
| Plural | ouguiya |
| Symbol | UM |
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1⁄5 | khoums |
| Banknotes | 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1.000 ouguiya |
| Coins | |
| Freq. used | 2, 5, 10, 20 ouguiya[2] |
| Rarely used | 1 khoums, 1 ouguiya |
| Demographics | |
| User(s) |  Mauritania Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Banque Centrale de Mauritanie |
| Website | www |
| Printer | Canadian Bank Note Company[3] |
| Website | cbnco |
| Valuation | |
| Inflation | 2.2% |
| Source | The World Factbook, 2019 est. |
Each ouguiya constitutes five khoums (meaning "one fifth"). As such it is one of two circulating currencies, along with the Malagasy ariary, whose division units are not based on a power of ten. As of May 2026, the unit is effectively obsolete since the khoums has practically no purchasing power, and the coins have fallen into disuse.
The current ouguiya was introduced in 2018, replacing the old ouguiya at a rate of 1 new ouguiya = 10 old ouguiya, which in turn replaced the CFA franc at a rate of 1 old ouguiya = 5 francs. The name ouguiya (أوقية) is the Hassaniya Arabic pronunciation of uqiyyah أُوقِية), meaning "(Roman) ounce".[5]
First Ouguiya (MRO)
editCoins
editIn 1973, coins of 1⁄5 (1 khoums), 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 ouguiya were introduced into circulation. This was the only year that the khoums was minted, as the ouguiya was worth five CFA Francs a khoums was the equivalent of the franc (which had no subdivision). The most recent issues were in 2003 (1 ouguiya) and 2004 (other denominations). Coins are minted at the Kremnica mint in Slovakia. The coinage slightly changed in 2009, with a reduced 1 ouguiya in plated composition and a bi-metallic 20 ouguiya issued. A bi-metallic 50 ouguiya was issued December 2010.
Obverse of 1 ouguiya coin, made of Aluminium bronze.
Reverse of 1 ouguiya coin, made of Aluminium bronze.
Banknotes
editIn 1973, notes were issued by the Central Bank of Mauritania (Banque Centrale de Mauritanie) in denominations of 100, 200 and 1,000 ouguiya. In 1974, a second series of notes was issued in the same denominations, with 500-ouguiya notes added in 1979. Banknotes have been printed by Giesecke & Devrient in Munich, starting with the second issue.
New banknotes were introduced in 2004. These notes have completely new fronts and the vignettes on the backs have been redesigned to accommodate the reduction in size. The 2,000-ouguiya denomination is entirely new.
A new 5,000-ouguiya denomination dated 28 November 2009 was introduced on 8 August 2010, followed by a redesigned 2,000-ouguiya note dated 28 November 2011 issued on 1 February 2012.
Second ouguiya (MRU)
editOn 5 December 2017, the Central Bank of Mauritania announced a redenomination of its currency at a rate of 1:10. Reducing inflation and the risk of forgery were named as the main reasons behind this move. New coins and banknotes entered circulation on 1 January 2018.[6] As a consequence of this change, the ISO Currency Codes for the ouguiya were amended to MRU / 929.[7]
Coins
editAs part of the redenomination, a new series of coins were issued in denominations of 1 khoums (1⁄5 ouguiya), 1, 5, 10 and 20 ouguiya, with the latter being struck as a tri-metallic coin. A 2 ouguiya coin was added on 1 February 2019, serving as an intermediate denomination for the 1 and 5 ouguiya coins already in circulation.[8]
| Coins of the Mauritanian ouguiya (2017-2018 issue) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Value | Technical parameters | Description | Date of first minting | |||||
| Diameter | Thickness | Mass | Composition | Edge | Obverse | Reverse | |||
| 1⁄5 ouguiya | 16.0 mm (0.63 in) | 2.0 mm (0.079 in) | 2.10 g (0.074 oz) | Copper-plated steel | Plain/Smooth | National seal of Mauritania; denomination | Fish; denomination | 2017 | |
| 1 ouguiya | 19.9 mm (0.78 in) | 2.0 mm (0.079 in) | 4.00 g (0.141 oz) | Nickel-plated steel | Reeded/grained | National seal of Mauritania; denomination | Teapot; denomination | 2017 | |
| 2 ouguiya | 24.0 mm (0.94 in) | 5.65 g (0.199 oz) | Stainless steel | Reeded/grained | National seal of Mauritania; denomination | National instruments; denomination | 2018 | ||
| 5 ouguiya | 22.5 mm (0.89 in) | 2.0 mm (0.079 in) | 4.71 g (0.166 oz) | Nickel-plated steel | Plain/smooth | National seal of Mauritania; denomination | Instruments; denomination | 2017 | |
| 10 ouguiya | 24.0 mm (0.94 in) | 1.8 mm (0.071 in) | 5.38 g (0.190 oz) | Bi-metallic coin (Nickel-plated steel center with a Brass-plated steel ring) | Segmented (alternating between 10 plain and reeded sections) | National seal of Mauritania; denomination | Cow; denomination | 2017 | |
| 20 ouguiya | 26.0 mm (1.02 in) | 2.0 mm (0.079 in) | 7.63 g (0.269 oz) | Tri-metallic coin (Bronze-plated steel center plug with a Nickel-plated steel inner ring and a Brass-plated steel outer ring) | Plain/smooth | Camels; denomination | |||
Banknotes
editAs part of the redenomination, a new series of banknotes in denominations of 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,000 ouguiya were introduced. These notes are printed entirely in polymer.
On 13 December 2021, the Central Bank of Mauritania issued a 20 ouguiya banknote, co-circulating with the coin of the same denomination in circulation.[9][10]
In June 2023, the Central Bank of Mauritania issued a new 50 ouguiya banknote in celebration of 50 years of the circulation of the ouguiya in Mauritania, co-circulating with the previous banknote of the same denomination.[11] This banknote was issued in three different varieties, each with a slightly different material composition. The different varieties are distinguishable by the first letter of their serial number (A, B or C). The Central Bank of Mauritania stated that this was intended as an experiment to assess which composition would be best suited to Mauritanias climate and the public.[12] On 22 July 2025 a new 50 ouguiya banknote (serial number starting with "D" and slight design updates) was issued with the composition that turned out to be most suitable.[13]
| Image | Value | Dimensions | Description | Date of | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | lapse | ||
| 20 ouguiya | 133 × 60 mm | Grand Mosque of Gataga in Kaédi | Guelb er Richât | (none) | 28 November 2020 | 13 December 2021 | Current | |||
| 50 ouguiya | 130 × 66 mm | Ibn Abass Mosque in Nouakchott | Musical instruments and teapot | 28 November 2017 | 1 January 2018 | |||||
| 50 ouguiya | Building of the Central Bank of Mauritania and Ibn Abass Mosque | 18 June 2023 | ||||||||
| 100 ouguiya | 135 × 66 mm | Oualata Mosque | Cattle | 28 November 2017, 28 November 2020 |
1 January 2018 | |||||
| 200 ouguiya | 140 × 66 mm | Ouadane Mosque | Camels | 28 November 2017 | ||||||
| 500 ouguiya | 145 × 66 mm | Tichit Mosque | Trawler; fish | 28 November 2017, 28 November 2020 | ||||||
| 1.000 ouguiya | 150 × 66 mm | Chinguetti Mosque | Locomotive of an ore train | 28 November 2017 | ||||||
| These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre (18 pixel per inch). For table standards, see the banknote specification table. | ||||||||||
Exchange rates
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "ISO 4217 Amendment Number 165". .currency-iso.org. 14 December 2017.
- ↑ "Pièces". Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
- ↑ "Introduction de billets de banque en polymère" [Introduction of polymer banknotes] (PDF) (in French and Arabic). Banque Centrale de Mauritanie. 20 December 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
Ces billets seront imprimés à la Canadian Bank Note Company, à Ottawa (Canada)./ستتم طباعتها في شركة البنكنوت الكندية في أوتاوا، كندا.
[These notes will be printed at the Canadian Bank Note Company, in Ottawa, Canada.] - ↑ "Home: Oxford English Dictionary".
- ↑ König, Daniel G. (2019). Latin and Arabic: entangled histories. Heidelberg: Heidelberg University Publishing. p. 38. ISBN 978-3-947732-25-8.
- ↑ "New year, new currency: Mauritania's ouguiya gets a makeover". France24. 2 January 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2026.
- ↑ "Data Standards".
- ↑ "COMMUNIQUE : EMISSION D'UNE NOUVELLE PIÈCE DE 2 OUGUIYA". Atlasinfo. 4 February 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2026.
- ↑ "La banque centrale de Mauritanie émet un nouveau billet de 20 um MRU". Agence Mauritanienne d’information (AMI). 14 December 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Banque Centrale de Mauritanie: Launch of 20 Ouguiya Guardian™ Polymer Banknote". International Association of Currency Affairs (IACA). Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "البنك المركزي يعلن إصدار ورقة جديدة من فئة 50 أوقية" [The Central Bank announces the issuance of a new 50 ouguiya banknote]. AlAkhbar.info (in Arabic). 18 June 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
- ↑ "BCM : circulation de trois substrats de billet de banque de 50 sur fond de test du substrat le plus résistant et adapté au climat du pays". Atlasinfo. 7 June 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "La Banque Centrale dévoile un nouveau billet de 50 MRU". MagazineTrust. 22 July 2025. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
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