Mauritania's public healthcare system is facing a severe crisis marked by critical shortages of essential medicines and medical personnel. Reports from 2025 and early 2026 detail widespread stockouts in public pharmacies, forcing patients to seek expensive alternatives from private vendors.
The situation has been highlighted by healthcare professionals, including Dr. Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Sneiba, the Secretary-General of the Mauritanian Order of Physicians. He has publicly criticized the government's management, citing a lack of political will to address the systemic failures crippling hospitals and clinics.
The crisis is compounded by strikes and protests from medical staff over poor working conditions and low wages. These actions have further strained a system already struggling to provide basic care, particularly in regions outside the capital, Nouakchott.
International observers, including the World Health Organization, have previously noted challenges in Mauritania's health sector, such as high maternal mortality rates and uneven access to care. The current medicine shortages represent an acute escalation of these chronic issues.
