Mauritius is an island nation located in the Indian Ocean. It has an area of 2,040 square kilometers and a population of approximately 1.3 million people. The ethnic composition of Mauritius is mainly Indo-Mauritian, with other minority groups including Creole, Chinese and Franco-Mauritian. The majority of the population are Hindu, with around 48% following Hinduism and the rest being either Muslim or Christian. Education is compulsory for children up to the age of 16 and the literacy rate is estimated to be around 90%. The official language is English but French and Creole are also widely spoken throughout the country. The capital city Port Louis has an estimated population of over 150,000 people making it the largest city in Mauritius. Check hyperrestaurant to learn more about Mauritius in 2009.
Social conditions
The people of Mauritius have a standard of living that is among the highest in Africa. For example, the entire population has access to clean water. However, malnutrition among children is not uncommon. Visit AbbreviationFinder to see the definitions of MUS and acronym for Mauritius. Most deaths are caused by cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The prevalence of HIV/ AIDS has increased during the 1990s; approximately 1 percent of the population aged 15-49 is estimated to be infected (2009). About one child in 100 dies during their first year of life.
Economy
| Inflation rate | 3.70% |
| Unemployment rate | 7.1% |
| Gross domestic product (GDP) | $ 28,270,000,000 |
| GDP growth rate | 3.80% |
| GDP per capita | $ 22,300 |
| GDP by sector | |
| Agriculture | 4.00% |
| Industry | 21.80% |
| Service | 74.10% |
| State budget | |
| Revenue | 1.236 billion |
| Expenditure | 1.562 billion |
| Proportion of the population below the national poverty line | 8th% |
| Distribution of household income | |
| Top 10% | k. A. |
| Lower 10% | k. A. |
| Industrial production growth rate | 2.80% |
| Investment volume | 25.4% of GDP |
| National debt | 64.00% of GDP |
| Foreign exchange reserves | $ 5,068,000,000 |
| Tourism | 2014 |
| Visitors | 1,039,000 |
| Revenue | $ 1,719,000,000 |
Mauritius has a relatively well-developed social insurance and health care system. Social insurance covers, inter alia, unemployment benefit, a need-tested contribution to families with more than three children under the age of 15 and, since 1978, a national pension insurance system. Healthcare is free and access is among the best in Africa; there are 33 hospital beds (2008) and eleven doctors (2004) per 10,000 residents. Qualified personnel are available for all deliveries. Of the total government expenditure in 2009, 8 percent went to the health sector. Check to see Mauritius population.
Discrimination against women is prohibited by law, as is violence against women in the home. Despite the latter, almost half of all women are estimated to have been subjected to abuse.
The proportion of girls is as high as the proportion of boys in both primary and secondary schools. However, women are underrepresented in both business and politics; only about half of women are professionals and 20 percent of the country’s MPs are women.
History. – Internationally recognized as a model of political stability and economic freedom on the African continent, in the first fifteen years of the 21st century. the Republic of Mauritius confirmed the solidity of its democracy with electoral rounds judged to be free and transparent, while a strong fragmentation linked to ethnic, religious and linguistic differences in the population remained. The elections of May 2010 saw the affirmation of the Alliance de l’Avenir, a coalition made up of Mauritius labor party (MLP), Mouvement socialiste mauricien (MSM) and Parti mauricien social démocrate (PMSD): the political force won 45 of the 70 seats in Parliament and its leader Navinchandra Ramgoolam, former prime minister since July 2005, was confirmed in his role. In 2011, the MSM left the ruling coalition after the arrest (July) of its health minister, followed by that of party leader Pravind Jugnauth (September). The political crisis was further exacerbated by the conflicts between the premier and the president of the Republic Anerood Jugnauth (father of Pravind), who in March 2012 resigned to return to active politics in the ranks of the MSMauritius A new opposition coalition was formed in the country, formed by the MSM and the Mouvement militant mauricien (MMM). However, the political framework changed again in 2014, when MLP and MMM signed an alliance on the basis of a program that envisaged amending the Constitution to increase the prerogatives of the President of the Republic, a largely ceremonial role. In the December early elections, the new coalition was however defeated by the Alliance Lepep – formed by MSM, PMSD and Muvman Liberater (ML) – and Anerood Jugnauth became prime minister. In February 2015, Ramgoolam was arrested on conspiracy and money laundering charges.
In foreign policy, Mauritius strengthened his trade relations with China and signed an agreement with the EU (July 2011) to prosecute suspected acts of piracy. Furthermore, the question of the Chagos Islands remained open, under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom but claimed by Mauritius the creation of a marine protected area (2010) the United Kingdom had violated its international obligations, insofar as neither the fishing rights of Mauritius in the waters surrounding the archipelago nor the prospect of a return were accorded adequate protection of the indigenous people on the islands, after the deportation between the 1960s and 1970s.