1000 Ouguiya

Mauritania's ouguiya, introduced in 1973 when the country broke from the West African CFA franc zone, was from the outset managed by a central bank with limited reserves and persistent inflationary pressure. By 1989 the 1000-ouguiya denomination was the highest in circulation, a position it had held through a decade of drought, debt restructuring, and a difficult post-independence economy heavily dependent on iron ore exports from Zouerate.

Giesecke & Devrient had handled Mauritanian note production from early in the series. The P#7A watermark security was modest for the denomination — a vulnerability that would eventually necessitate the redesigned issues of the 1990s.