Mauritania's government is advancing toward restricting minors' social media access, but as of 6 October 2026 the measure remains an inter-ministerial study rather than a drafted law, according to the outlet NotreAfrik. The Council of Ministers, chaired by President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, adopted a joint communication on 16 September establishing a 16-year general access threshold, with 15-year-olds requiring parental consent, and tasked a ministerial commission with drafting an eventual framework law.
Planned obligations reported by multiple outlets, including Le360 Afrique and the official Agence Mauritanienne d'Information, include disabling recommendation algorithms for minors, banning targeted advertising to children, blocking messages from unknown senders, restricting livestreaming and imposing nighttime digital quiet hours. The ministerial commission groups the youth, digital transformation and social action ministries alongside the national population registry and secure documents agency and the Data Protection Authority.
Civil society reaction is mixed: some commentators, cited by Cridem and allAfrica, welcome the move as a positive step for child protection, while others warn it could be used to curtail broader freedoms under the guise of safeguarding minors. NotreAfrik's reporting cautions that despite headlines framing the plan as 'toward a law,' no binding legislation exists yet and even which institution will carry the bill forward remains unspecified.