Mauritius
Mauritius (; ;
Mauritian Creole:
Moris; Officially the
Republic of Mauritius (
French:
République de Maurice), is an
island nation in the southwest
Indian Ocean, about 900 kilometers (560
mi) east of
Madagascar and about 3,943 kilometers (2,450 mi) southwest of India. In addition to the island of Mauritius, the republic includes the islands of
St. Brandon,
Rodrigues and the
Agalega Islands. Mauritius is part of the
Mascarene Islands, with the
French island of
Réunion 200 kilometers (125 mi) to the southwest.
While
Arab and
Malay sailors knew of Mauritius as early as the 10th century and
Portuguese sailors first visited it in 1505, the island remained uninhabited until 1638 when it was colonized by the
Dutch. They named the island in honour of Prince
Maurice of Nassau. Due to climate changes, cyclones and the deterioration of the settlement, the Dutch abandoned the island some decades later. The
French controlled the island during the 18th century and named it
Ile de France (Isle of France). Despite winning the famous Battle of
Grand-Port, the French were defeated by the British in the north of the island, at Cap Malheureux (Cape of the Unlucky Ones), a month later, and thus lost possession to the
British in 1810 and the latter reverted the island to its former name.
In 1965, the United Kingdom split out the
Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius to create the
British Indian Ocean Territory, in order to utilise the strategic islands for defence purposes in cooperation with the
United States. Although the Government of Mauritius agreed to the move at the time, subsequent administrations have laid claim to the islands stating that the divestment was illegal under international law - claim recognised by the
United Nations.
|
A postcard of Mauritius, Port Louis: Theatre, c.1900-1910 |
Independence was attained in 1968, with the country becoming a
republic within the
Commonwealth in 1992. Mauritius has been a stable
democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, and has attracted considerable foreign investment earning one of
Africa's highest per capita incomes.
Mauritius aims to become the business hub of the Indian Ocean. New business opportunities in banking and the technology sector are being actively sought.
The
head of state of Mauritius is the
President, who is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly, the
unicameral Mauritian
parliament. The National Assembly consists of 62 members elected directly by popular vote, with between 4 and 8 further members appointed from "best losers" election candidates to represent ethnic minorities, depending on the results of the election. The government is headed by the
prime minister and a council of ministers.
The most recent general elections took place on the
3 July 2005 in all the 20 mainland constituencies, as well as the constituency covering the island of
Rodrigues.
Historically, elections have always adhered to a
two-party system in Mauritius and this has also been the case this time, with the outgoing
MSM/MMM/PMSD coalition against the PTr-led
Alliance Sociale which includes PMXD, Les Verts, MR, MSD and MMSM.
The
Alliance Sociale coalition won 38 seats and will form the next government with PTr leader Navinchandra Ramgoolam as Prime Minister. The MSM/MMM/PMSD coalition won 22 seats and will form the opposition. The 2 remaining seats for Rodrigues were won by OPR candidates. According to the Constitution, an additional eight seats were allocated to "best losers" to guarantee equitable representation of all ethnic groups. This brought the total representation to 42
Alliance Sociale, 24 MSM/MMM/PMSD, and 4 OPR.
In international affairs, Mauritius is part of the
Indian Ocean Commission.
The island of Mauritius itself is divided into 9
districts:#
Black River#
Flacq#
Grand Port#
Moka#
Pamplemousses#
Plaines Wilhems#
Port Louis#
Rivière du Rempart#
SavanneDependencies of Mauritius:
*
Rodrigues, a populated island which used to be Mauritius's 10th district is now autonomous
*
Agalega (two small islands about 933 kilometers (580 mi) north of Mauritius)
*
Cargados Carajos Shoals also known as the Saint Brandon islands (about 402 kilometers (250 mi) north of Mauritius)
Note: Mauritius also claims the following islands:
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Satellite map of Mauritius |
In French possession:
*
Bassas da India *
Europa Island*
Glorioso Islands *
Juan de Nova Island *
Tromelin IslandIn British possession:
*
Chagos ArchipelagoOther Mauritian Territories
*
Soudan Banks (including East Soudan Bank)
*
Nazareth Bank*
Saya de Malha BankTogether with
Réunion and Rodrigues, Mauritius is part of the
Mascarene Islands. This
archipelago was formed in a series of undersea
volcanic eruptions, as the
African plate drifted over the
Réunion hotspot. Mauritius and Rodrigues were formed 8-10 million years ago. They are no longer volcanically active, and the hotspot now rests under Réunion. The island of Mauritius itself is formed around a central plateau, with its highest peak in the southwest,
Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire at 828 metres (2,717
ft). Around the plateau, the original crater can still be distinguished from several mountains.
The local
climate is tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; there is a warm, dry winter from May to November and a hot, wet, and humid summer from November to May.
Cyclones affect the country during November-April.
The island's capital and largest city is
Port Louis, in the northwest. Other important towns are
Curepipe,
Vacoas,
Phoenix,
Quatre Bornes,
Rose-Hill and
Beau-Bassin.
The island is well known for its exceptional natural beauty; "You gather the idea that Mauritius was made first and then heaven, and that heaven was copied after Mauritius", as
Mark Twain noted in
Following the Equator.
|
Mauritius is the only known habitat of the extinct Dodo bird |
Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income,
agriculturally based economy to a middle income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and
tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been of the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality and a much improved
infrastructure.
Estimated at $16.28 billion for 2005, Mauritius has the 2nd highest GDP per capita in the whole of Africa. It is only exceeded by
Equatorial Guinea, which derives most of its revenue from oil exports. Mauritius on the other hand is a very mature economy with a great deal of wealth distribution among its citizens. The economy is mainly dependent on sugarcane plantations, tourism, textiles, and services, but other sectors are rapidly developing as well.
Sugar cane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. However, a record-setting drought severely damaged the sugar crop in 1999. The government's development strategy centres on foreign investment. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities; many aimed at commerce in
India and
South Africa while investment in the
banking sector alone has reached over USD 1 billion. Economic performance during the period from 2000 through 2004 combined strong economic growth with unemployment at 7.6% in December 2004.
Financial Services, Mauritius provides an ideal environment for banks, insurance and reinsurance companies, captive insurance managers, trading companies, ship owners or managers, fund managers and professionals to conduct their international business. The vibrant economic success achieved in the 1980's engendered the rapid growth of the financial services sector in Mauritius. The following types of offshore activities can be conducted in Mauritius:
* Offshore Banking
* Offshore Insurance
* Offshore Funds Management
* International Financial Services
* Operational Headquarters
* International Consultancy Services
* Shipping and Ship Management
* Aircraft Financing and Leasing
* International Licensing and Franchising
* International Data Processing and Information Technology Services
* Offshore Pension Funds
* International Trading
* International Assets Management
* International Assets Management
* International Employment Services
On the 4th of April 2005 during his
budget speech, Hon. Pravind Jugnauth, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economic Development announced that Mauritius will become a
duty-free island and that will take about 4 years. Duty has been decreased (and for many products completely eliminated) for more than 1850 products including clothing, food, jewelry, photographic equipment, audio visual equipment and lighting equipment.
The main motivations are (1) Attract more tourists going to
Singapore and
Dubai, and, (2) Give all Mauritians easier access to quality products at affordable prices.
A plan by ADB Networks calls for Mauritius to become the first nation to have coast-to-coast access. The wireless hot spot currently covers about 60% of the island and is accessible by about 70% of its population. By the end of 2006, antennas should provide access to 90% of the island.
Its biggest trading partners are France and UK.
Mauritius ranks first in respect of FDI inflows to India amongst all the countries with cumulative inflows amounting to US $ 10.98 billion. Top sectors attracting FDI inflows from Mauritius (from January 2000 to December, 2005) are electrical equipment, telecommunications, fuels, cement & gypsum products and services sector (financial & non-financial). (http://www.indlawnews.com/EC1844380C5E7E269C1E2116696BA40E)
Mauritian society is highly multicultural. Island residents are the descendants of people from the
Indian subcontinent, continental
Africa,
Madagascar,
France,
England,
China plus a few other places.The official language of Mauritius is
English. French dominates the media and business, radio and television, despite France having lost its colonial dominion over the island nearly 200 years ago. The French-derived
Mauritian Creole, with major influences from the other dialects, is widely spoken (80%) on the island and is considered the
lingua franca of the country. Several other languages, including
Arabic, Indian languages such as
Urdu,
Hindi,
Punjabi,
Tamil,
Telugu,
Marathi,
Bhojpuri,
Gujarati or dialects of
Chinese like
Cantonese,
Hakka and
Mandarin are also spoken.
The latter
South Asian languages are spoken by descendants of the labourers brought from
British India during the British rule. The
Indo-Mauritians (when the ethnic groups are combined) form approximately 70% of the total population, while the rest of the population is of either
African,
French,
Chinese, or mixed descent. There are approximately 30,000 Mauritians of Chinese descent, from Hakka, Mandarin and Cantonese language groups. More than 90% of the Sino-Mauritian community adhere to the Roman Catholic faith.
Of all religiously affiliated Mauritians,
Hindus constitute 52%, while the remainder is composed mostly of
Christians (28%) and
Muslims (16.6%). Buddhists (2.5%), Sikhs (0.3%) and other religions are also followed.[
1]
The mixed colonial past of Mauritius is reflected in its culture. For example, the
cuisine of Mauritius is a blend of
Indian Cuisine,
Creole,
Chinese and
European. It is not uncommon for a combination of cuisines to form part of the same meal. The "cari poule" or chicken curry, for example, is a very popular dish and eaten by all sections of the community. Mauritian Cuisine is a great leveller and brings together all sections of the community. Famous chefs on Mauritian Cuisine come from varied cultural backgrounds. Among the most well known for traditional Mauritian Cuisine are Guy Felix, Lalita Sookhee, Philippe Lenoir, Raymond de Ravel, Madeleine Philippe and Zubeida Randera. Madeleine Philippe is well known for her promotion of Mauritian Cuisine on the internet. Most restaurants are owned by the
Sino-Mauritian community, thus it is not surprising that well-known 'chinese' dishes have become Mauritian favourites. The "mine-frit" (Mauritian fried noodles) and "niouk nien" (dumplings) are loved by all and readily bought by the Mauritian community either in restaurants or on the sidewalks of main streets. Moreover, since the food stalls by the streets are mainly owned by the Muslim and
Indo-Mauritian communities, the 'Alouda' (a milky drink with basil seeds) has become a typical mauritian drink and the 'dholl puri' is the favourite of all communities.
In 1847, Mauritius became the fifth country in the world to issue
postage stamps. The two types of stamps issued then, known as the
Red Penny and the
Blue Penny are probably the most famous stamps in the world, being very rare and therefore also very expensive.
When discovered, the island of Mauritius was home to a previously unknown species of bird, which the Portuguese named the
dodo (simpleton), as they appeared not too bright. However, by 1681, all dodos had been killed by settlers or their
domesticated animals. Nevertheless, the dodo is prominently featured as a
supporter of the national
coat-of-arms (see above).
Mauritius has from time to time also been chosen as setting for films, most of which are
Bollywood productions from
India. The latest Hindi film to feature Mauritius has been
Garam Masala (2005).
Economy related
*
Communications in Mauritius*
Foreign relations of Mauritius*
Transport in Mauritius**
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport**
Air Mauritius - National Airline
*
Financial Services in MauritiusEducation
*
Education in Mauritius*
Tertiary education in Mauritius*
University of Technology, MauritiusPeople and Culture
*
Indo-Mauritian*
Creole*
Sino-Mauritian*
Franco-Mauritian*
List of notable Mauritians*
Hinduism in Mauritius*
Islam in Mauritius*
Music of MauritiusMiscellaneous topics
*
Military of Mauritius*
The Mauritius Scout Association* Dodd, Jan and Madeleine Philippe.
Lonely Planet Mauritius Reunion & Seychelles. Lonely Planet Publications, 2004. ISBN 1740593014
*Lee, Jacques: "Mauritius: Its Creole Language - The Ultimate Creole Phrase Book and Dictionary" Paperback 160 pages (August 15, 2005)Publisher: NautilusISBN 0951129643
*Lee, Jacques: "Sega: The Mauritian Folk Dance" Paperback 104 pages (December 1990) Publisher: NautilusISBN 0951129619
*
Government of Mauritius official government site
*
Official Tourist Board site Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority site
* Entry on [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mp.html Mauritius] in the CIA World Factbook
