School in Mauritania

Mauritania has a nationally regulated formal school system. Preschool, called enseignement préscolaire, may be provided by public or private kindergartens, community facilities and some Quranic schools when they perform a recognized preschool function. It normally covers three years from age 3 to 5 and is not compulsory. A preparatory year for five-year-olds is planned for wider implementation. Primary education lasts six years and normally begins after the child turns six, although the Ministry may allow age exceptions. Lower-secondary education lasts three years in a collège d'enseignement de base. Together, primary and lower-secondary education form nine years of basic education. Upper-secondary education lasts three years in a lycée: one year of common study followed by two years in a general, technical or professional pathway. Students may later prepare for the Baccalauréat de l'Enseignement Secondaire, including the technical TMGM baccalaureate. These pathways are not direct equivalents of German Gymnasium, Realschule or Hauptschule; the local progression is primary, collège and lycée. The public system, approved private schools and établissements d'excellence operate within the national framework. The first year of primary education is part of a reform model delivered exclusively through public schools, with a common curriculum and uniform; implementation of the wider role of private primary schools continues, so this does not establish a general ban on private schools. Mauritania has no separately evidenced special-school system. Children with special educational needs are therefore addressed through inclusion and adaptations within the formal system. Schools use binding programmes, teaching methods, schedules and learning materials set by the Ministry of Education and Education System Reform, with the Commission Nationale des Curricula contributing to curriculum work. The curriculum includes literacy, mathematics, citizenship, physical education, technology and computer studies. Collège provides a common foundation with optional subjects, while lycée offers more differentiated pathways. Arabic is the teaching language throughout the school system. Pulaar, Soninké and Wolof may also serve as communication or teaching languages according to pupils' mother tongues, local demographics and demand; primary science teaching may use the mother tongue. Arabic-speaking pupils generally study at least one national language, while pupils who do not speak Arabic study Arabic for communication and instruction. French begins in the second year of basic education and is intended to support communication and, later, science teaching after primary school. English begins in the first year after primary education. Schools normally provide at least 36 weeks of pupil work each year, with holidays set by ministerial decision. Socio-educational activities may supplement lessons. Cantines, school meals, boarding facilities and kefala can support access, but no general nationwide entitlement to school transport or meals is established. Attendance is compulsory from ages 6 to 15, with detailed implementation governed by decree. Primary enrollment and transfers commonly require a transcript, birth certificate and pupil file, or a declaration from the school director. The relevant regional education service normally processes the file in about one week, without an administrative fee. Admission to secondary education follows ministerial rules. After collège, placement in a general or technical and professional pathway considers the pupil's choice and aptitude, socioeconomic circumstances and available school planning. The school map, called carte scolaire, considers population distribution, distance, overcrowding and resources, but a uniform nationwide individual catchment assignment has not been established. A proposed new school generally requires a mayor's letter, an inspection report and at least 20 pupils; the request goes through the wali or governor and is handled by the basic-education directorate, with a stated processing period of 15 days. Public education and the relevant administrative procedures are legally free. Official textbooks are supplied and reforms distributed learning materials without charge in 2022 and 2023. Support measures for vulnerable and poor pupils are provided for in law and planning, including uniforms, desks, canteens, boarding facilities, repairs and social assistance. Actual provision differs by school and area. Private tuition is not supported by evidence as a nationally standardized service. Assessment combines continuous formative and diagnostic checks with national sample assessments. End-of-cycle assessments and certificate names are changing alongside the reform: primary completion may be called the certificat d'études primaires or, operationally, the certificat d'études fondamentales; the collège qualification is the Brevet de l'enseignement de base, also seen in practice as the Brevet d'étude du 1er cycle or BEPC; upper-secondary completion leads to the Baccalauréat. Current calendars use labels such as 6e, entrée 1AS, 4e, 7e, terminale, BEPC and BAC, so reform terminology and operating practice may appear together. The Ministry of Education and Education System Reform sets national policy, curricula and school approvals. Its central and regional directorates manage implementation, while the DREN, the regional education directorates, work with the Wilaya administration and schools. A COGES is a local school management committee. The national education quality authority evaluates learning, staff and school quality, and the HCE has a consultative role. Communes and other local authorities may participate in school provision. Traditional or original education, including mahadras, is legally treated as non-formal education rather than a separate formal school stage; it can nevertheless provide an access pathway, bridge or re-entry pathway for children who were not enrolled or who return to school. Access remains uneven. UIS-modelled figures estimate completion at 52.1% for primary, 42.0% for lower-secondary and 23.3% for upper-secondary in 2024; the last modelled out-of-school figures, for 2023, were 33% in primary, 31% in lower-secondary and 52% in upper-secondary. The greatest bottleneck is continuation into upper-secondary education. The PNDSE III plan for 2023 to 2030 targets preschool participation of 50% for five-year-olds and 25% for children aged three to four, access for all children to primary education or enseignement originel, and an 80% transition rate from primary to collège by 2030.