El Mina is a suburb of Nouakchott

Nouakchott

-Government:The town was first divided into districts in 1973. First it was divided into four. From 1986, the city has been split into nine districts.* Arafat* Dar Naim* El Mina* Ksar* Riad* Sebkha* Tevragh-Zeina* Teyarett* Toujounine...

 and urban commune

Communes of Mauritania

There are 216 administrative Communes in Mauritania recognised by the Government of Mauritania.-Agricultural:Adel Bagrou, Aere Mbar, Aghchorguitt, Ain Ehel Taya, Aioun, Ajar, Aleg, Amourj, Aoueinat Zbel, Aoujeft, Arr, Atar, Azgueilem Tiyab, Bababe, Bagrou, Barkeol, Bassiknou, Bethet Meit, Boghé,...

 in western Mauritania

Mauritania

Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...

. It has a population of 95,011.

El Mina has a bad reputation in Mauritania. It is considered one of the poorest parts of the city and is known for its prostitution

Prostitution

Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...

. It is mainly inhabited by the descendants of slaves. The UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance visited El Mina in 2008.