Although known to Arab and Malay sailors as early as the 10th century, Mauritius was first explored by the Portuguese in the 16th century and subsequently settled by the Dutch - who named it in honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU - in the 17th century. The French assumed control in 1715, developing the island into an important naval base overseeing Indian Ocean trade, and establishing a plantation economy of sugar cane. The British captured the island in 1810, during the Napoleonic Wars. Mauritius remained a strategically important British naval base, and later an air station, playing an important role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy operations, as well as the collection of signals intelligence. Independence from the UK was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has one of Africa's highest per capita incomes.

Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, about 800 km (500 mi) east of Madagascar

20 17 S, 57 33 E

Africa

almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC

0 km

177 km

measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines

tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)

small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau

highest point: Mont Piton 828 m

arable land, fish

arable land 38.4%; permanent crops 2%; permanent pasture 3.4%

190 sq km (2012)

cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards

water pollution, degradation of coral reefs

the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs; former home of the dodo, a large flightless bird related to pigeons, driven to extinction by the end of the 17th century through a combination of hunting and the introduction of predatory species

1,348,242 (July 2016 est.)

Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%

Creole 86.5%, Bhojpuri 5.3%, French 4.1%, two languages 1.4%, other 2.6% (includes English, the official language, which is spoken by less than 1% of the population), unspecified 0.1% (2011 est.)

Hindu 48.5%, Roman Catholic 26.3%, Muslim 17.3%, other Christian 6.4%, other 0.6%, none 0.7%, unspecified 0.1% (2011 est.)

Mauritius has transitioned from a country of high fertility and high mortality rates in the 1950s and mid-1960s to one with among the lowest population growth rates in the developing world today. After World War II, Mauritius’ population began to expand quickly due to increased fertility and a dramatic drop in mortality rates as a result of improved health care and the eradication of malaria. This period of heightened population growth – reaching about 3% a year – was followed by one of the world’s most rapid birth rate declines.

The total fertility rate fell from 6.2 children per women in 1963 to 3.2 in 1972 – largely the result of improved educational attainment, especially among young women, accompanied by later marriage and the adoption of family planning methods. The family planning programs’ success was due to support from the government and eventually the traditionally pronatalist religious communities, which both recognized that controlling population growth was necessary because of Mauritius’ small size and limited resources. Mauritius’ fertility rate has consistently been below replacement level since the late 1990s, a rate that is substantially lower than nearby countries in southern Africa.

With no indigenous population, Mauritius’ ethnic mix is a product of more than two centuries of European colonialism and continued international labor migration. Sugar production relied on slave labor mainly from Madagascar, Mozambique, and East Africa from the early 18th century until its abolition in 1835, when slaves were replaced with indentured Indians. Most of the influx of indentured labor – peaking between the late 1830s and early 1860 – settled permanently creating massive population growth of more than 7% a year and reshaping the island’s social and cultural composition. While Indians represented about 12% of Mauritius’ population in 1837, they and their descendants accounted for roughly two-thirds by the end of the 19th century. Most were Hindus, but the majority of the free Indian traders were Muslims.

Mauritius again turned to overseas labor when its success in clothing and textile exports led to a labor shortage in the mid-1980s. Clothing manufacturers brought in contract workers (increasingly women) from China, India, and, to a lesser extent Bangladesh and Madagascar, who worked longer hours for lower wages under poor conditions and were viewed as more productive than locals. Downturns in the sugar and textile industries in the mid-2000s and a lack of highly qualified domestic workers for Mauritius’ growing services sector led to the emigration of low-skilled workers and a reliance on skilled foreign labor. Since 2007, Mauritius has pursued a circular migration program to enable citizens to acquire new skills and savings abroad and then return home to start businesses and to invest in the country’s development.

0.61% (2016 est.)

13.1 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)

7 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)

PORT LOUIS (capital) 135,000 (2014)

53 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

1.75 children born/woman (2016 est.)

4.8% of GDP (2014)

1.62 physicians/1,000 population (2013)

3.4 beds/1,000 population (2011)

urban: 99.9% of population

rural: 99.8% of population

total: 99.9% of population

urban: 0.1% of population

rural: 0.2% of population

total: 0.1% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 93.9% of population

rural: 92.6% of population

total: 93.1% of population

urban: 6.1% of population

rural: 7.4% of population

total: 6.9% of population (2015 est.)

0.88% (2015 est.)

8,200 (2015 est.)

400 (2015 est.)

18.8% (2014)

5% of GDP (2014)

parliamentary republic

9 districts and 3 dependencies*; Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals*, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues*, Savanne

12 March 1968 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 12 March (1968); note - also became Republic Day (1992)

several previous; latest adopted 12 March 1968; amended many times, last in 2015 (2016)

civil legal system based on French civil law with some elements of English common law

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

Alliance Lepep (Alliance of the People) [Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH] (coalition including MSM, PMSD, and ML)

Labor Party (Parti Travailliste) or PTR or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]

Mauritian Militant Movement (Mouvement Militant Mauricien) or MMM [Paul BERENGER]

Mauritian Social Democratic Party (Parti Mauricien Social Democrate) or PMSD [Xavier Luc DUVAL]

Mauritian Solidarity Front (Front Solidarite Mauricienne) or FSM [Cehl FAKEERMEEAH, known as Cehl MEEAH]

Militant Socialist Movement (Mouvement Socialist Mauricien) or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH]

Muvman Liberater or ML [Ivan COLLENDAVELLOO]

Rodrigues Peoples Organization (Organisation du Peuple Rodriguais) or OPR [Serge CLAIR]

Lalit Political Party

Rezistans ek Alternativ (Resistance and Alternative)

Say No to Coal!

ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, C, CD, COMESA, CPLP (associate), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, SAARC (observer), SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green; red represents self-determination and independence, blue the Indian Ocean surrounding the island, yellow has been interpreted as the new light of independence, golden sunshine, or the bright future, and green can symbolize either agriculture or the lush vegetation of the island

dodo bird, Trochetia Boutoniana flower; national colors: red, blue, yellow, green

Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has undergone a remarkable economic transformation from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a diversified, upper middle-income economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. Mauritius has achieved steady growth over the last several decades, resulting in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure.

The economy currently rests on sugar, tourism, textiles and apparel, and financial services, but is expanding into fish processing, information and communications technology, and hospitality and property development. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 15% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on creating vertical and horizontal clusters of development in these sectors. Mauritius has attracted more than 32,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India, South Africa, and China. Investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius’ textile sector has taken advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, a preferential trade program that allows duty free access to the US market, with Mauritian exports to the US growing by 40% from 2000 to 2014.

Mauritius' sound economic policies and prudent banking practices helped to mitigate negative effects of the global financial crisis in 2008-09. GDP grew in the 3-4% per year range in 2010-14, and the country continues to expand its trade and investment outreach around the globe. Growth in the US and Europe fostered goods and services exports, including tourism, while lower oil prices kept inflation low in 2015.

$24.57 billion (2015 est.)

$23.76 billion (2014 est.)

$22.93 billion (2013 est.)

$11.61 billion (2015 est.)

3.4% (2015 est.)

3.6% (2014 est.)

3.2% (2013 est.)

$19,500 (2015 est.)

$18,900 (2014 est.)

$18,200 (2013 est.)

14.8% of GDP (2015 est.)

15.1% of GDP (2014 est.)

15.3% of GDP (2013 est.)

sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish

food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing, mining, chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery, tourism

2% (2015 est.)

614,300 (2015 est.)

8% (2015 est.)

7.8% (2014 est.)

8% (2006 est.)

35.9 (2012 est.)

39 (2006 est.)

20.2% of GDP (2015 est.)

-3.6% of GDP (2015 est.)

63.7% of GDP (2015 est.)

61.5% of GDP (2014 est.)

1 July - 30 June

1.3% (2015 est.)

3.2% (2014 est.)

9% (31 December 2010)

8.5% (31 December 2015 est.)

8.5% (31 December 2014 est.)

$2.547 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$2.634 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$12.6 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$12.15 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

$13.28 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$14.08 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$7.093 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$7.667 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$7.442 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

-$590 million (2015 est.)

-$713 million (2014 est.)

$2.685 billion (2015 est.)

$3.094 billion (2014 est.)

clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses, fish, primates (for research)

UK 13.2%, UAE 12.4%, France 11.9%, US 10.7%, South Africa 8.6%, Madagascar 6.5%, Italy 5.4%, Spain 4.4% (2015)

$4.526 billion (2015 est.)

$5.354 billion (2014 est.)

manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals

India 18.7%, China 17.8%, France 7.1%, South Africa 6.5%, Vietnam 4.4% (2015)

$4.26 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$3.919 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$10.62 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$11.29 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

NA

$NA

Mauritian rupees (MUR) per US dollar -

35.057 (2015 est.)

30.622 (2014 est.)

30.622 (2013 est.)

30.05 (2012 est.)

28.706 (2011 est.)

2.8 billion kWh (2014 est.)

2.6 billion kWh (2014 est.)

0 kWh (2013 est.)

0 kWh (2013 est.)

1.1 million kW (2014 est.)

96.5% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)

3.3% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)

0.2% of total installed capacity (2013 est.)

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2016 es)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

25,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

25,960 bbl/day (2013 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2014 es)

5.4 million Mt (2013 est.)

the government maintains control over TV broadcasting through the Mauritius Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), which operates 3 analog and 10 digital TV stations; MBC is a shareholder in a local company that operates 2 pay-TV stations; the state retains the largest radio broadcast network with multiple stations; several private radio broadcasters have entered the market since 2001; transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are available (2007)

.mu

3B (2016)

5 (2013)

no regular military forces; Mauritius Police Force, Special Mobile Force, National Coast Guard

0.19% of GDP (2012)

0.16% of GDP (2011)

0.19% of GDP (2010)

Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Islands; claims French-administered Tromelin Island

consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry