Mauritius is a subtropical island in the Indian Ocean, strategically located at the crossroads of Africa and Asia, at 855 km east of Madagascar. The main city and capital of the country is Port Louis. Mauritius is independent since 1968 and has become a Republic in 1992. An island with an area of 1,864 km2, it is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs.

Over the past 15 years, Mauritius has emerged as a unique investment destination and as a great place to do business. The country enjoys a vibrant economy, stable democracy and high living standards. Since independence in 1968, it has ambitiously moved from a small agricultural economy to a dynamic secondary sector (textile and tourism), to the services sector through global business activities and lately Business Process Outsourcing. In its latest 'Ease of Doing Business' publication of the World Bank, Mauritius is ranked 27th out of 178 economies.

African Business Awards selects Mauritius for the “Most Improved Investment Climate”

The African Business Awards is an event organised by African Business magazine and the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC). At a function held in London during July, 2009, Mauritius won the Award for Most Improved Investment Climate. This was one of the 12 categories for which awards were made at the event.

Mauritius is Africa’s Easiest Place to do Business

Doing Business 2009 is the sixth in a series of annual reports investigating regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it. Doing Business presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights across 181 economies. Mauritius reached the 24th position out of 181 countries represented in the Doing Business 2009 rankings. Singapore was the top ranked economy in the survey. By comparison the top 10 countries in the world were Singapore, New Zeeland, USA, Hong Kong China, Denmark, UK, Ireland, Canada and Australia.

Mauritius ranked 1st in Africa followed by South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Kenya in the top 5. Mauritius has constantly improved its ranking, moving from 32nd out of 175 countries in 2007 to 27th out of 178 countries in 2008 and finally 24th out of 181 countries in the 2009 report.

Mauritius voted as one of Africa’s Most Competitive Travel and Tourist Destinations – World Economic Forum

Switzerland, Austria and Germany have the most attractive environments for developing the travel and tourism industry, according to the third annual Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report, published by the World Economic Forum. Among the top ten, France (4), Canada (5), Sweden (8) and Singapore (10) posted improvements.

The rankings are based on the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) covering 133 countries around the world. Mauritius is the fourth highest ranked country in the Middle East and Africa region and 40th overall. The top 10 rankings in the Middle East and Africa with the overall rankings shown in brackets are: UAE – 1 (33), Israel – 2 (36), Qatar – 3 (37), Mauritius – 4 (40), Bahrain – 5 (41), Tunisia – 6 (44), Jordan – 7 (54), South Africa – 8 (61), Egypt – 9 (64) and Oman – 10 (68).

Mauritius is ranked first out of all countries for the overall prioritization of the sector, with high government spending on the tourism industry (ranked third), ensuring excellent destination-marketing campaigns to attract tourists (ranked second), and ensuring the country’s presence at many international tourism fairs.

Along similar lines, Mauritius was ranked third for the country’s overall affinity for Travel & Tourism, with the sector representing an important part of the economy and the general attitude of the population to foreign travellers being extremely welcoming. The country’s tourism infrastructure is well developed by regional standards, and the policy environment is supportive of the development of the sector (ranked 13th). Mauritius also benefits from price competitiveness (ranked 26th), with relatively low prices overall and taxation that is not overly burdensome, although this would be improved through lower ticket taxes and airport charges, and more competitive hotel prices.

Safety and security levels are also good by regional standards (ranked 40th), and are on a par with countries such as Germany and Hungary. In terms of challenges, the government is seen to be making an effort to develop the industry in a sustainable way (ranked 13th), but this effort could be backed up by more stringent environmental regulations (ranked 61st).