Mauirtiania, like much of the rest of Sahelian Africa, has become desertified over the last three decades. This area between Kaedi and the capital Nouakchott was mostly dry forest land 3 decades ago. Now it is desert. As the forests were cut for charcoal and fuelwood, the climate changed and the soils were eroded away by the winds. All that remains are the advancing dunes of the desert and a few hardy shrubs.
