Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It includes the eponymous main island of Mauritius and Rodrigues, Agaléga and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues form part of the Mascarene Islands, along with nearby Réunion, a French overseas department. The capital and largest city, Port Louis, is located on Mauritius, where most of the population is concentrated. The country spans 2,040 square kilometres (790 sq mi) and has an Exclusive Economic Zone covering 2.3 million square kilometres.
The economy of Mauritius is a mixed developing economy based on agriculture, exports, financial services, and tourism. Since the 1980s, the government of Mauritius has sought to diversify the country's economy beyond its dependence on just agriculture, particularly sugar production. In terms of energy, Mauritius' endowment with alternative energy resources and good governance makes it one of the potential winners in the global transition to renewable energy and the country is ranked no. 8 among 156 nations in the index of geopolitical gains and losses after energy transition.
Telecommunications had an early beginning in Mauritius, with the first telephone line installed in 1883, seven years after the invention of the telephone. Over the years, the network and telephony improved. By the late 20th century, the rapid development and convergence of information and telecommunications technologies gave rise to an ICT industry on the island along with many incentives provided by the government. The government thus aims to make the ICT sector the 5th pillar of the Mauritian economy and Mauritius a Cyber Island. Historically, the country is known for tourism, rather than its call centers and business process outsourcing.
Port Louis is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's economic, cultural and political centre, and most populous city. It is administered by the Municipal City Council of Port Louis. According to the 2012 census conducted by Statistics Mauritius, the population was 147,066.
The president of Mauritius is the head of state of the Republic of Mauritius. Mauritius is a parliamentary republic, and the president functions as a ceremonial figurehead, elected by the National Assembly as set out by the Constitution of Mauritius. The current office-holder is Prithvirajsing Roopun. He took the office on 2 December 2019. The president's official residence is the State House.
.mu is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Mauritius. It is administered by the Mauritius Network Information Centre and registrations are processed via accredited registrars. Some registrars market it as the .music and .museum TLD.
Jaya Krishna Cuttaree, GCSK was a Mauritian politician.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Mauritius face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Sodomy is criminalized by Section 250 of the Criminal Code. Although same-sex relationships are not recognized in Mauritius, LGBT people are broadly protected from discrimination in areas such as employment, the provision of goods and services, etc., making it one of the few African countries to have such protections for LGBT people. The Constitution of Mauritius guarantees the right of individuals to a private life.
Arvin Boolell GOSK, MP is a Mauritian politician who is serving as the Leader of the Opposition.
Corruption in Mauritius is a widespread and growing problem. In cables leaked from the US embassy the problem with corruption was referred to as "pervasive and ingrained". The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) investigates offences and can confiscate the proceeds of corruption and money laundering. However in February 2016 the outgoing United States ambassador to Mauritius stated that there is so much turmoil at the Independent Commission Against Corruption that it has lost its credibility.
Ranini Cundasawmy from Mauritius is a Mauritian Muay Thai, Savate and Kun Khmer fighter. Winner of several national and world championships.
Miss Earth Mauritius is a national Beauty pageant in Mauritius. The winner of Miss Earth Mauritius represents the country in the Miss Earth pageant, the third largest beauty festival in the world, where the goal is to promote environmental protection.
Roshi Sudarshan Bhadain (GCSK) born on April 25, 1971 is a Mauritian politician.
Colette Tshomba Ntundu, from Lomami, is a journalist, academician and politician in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Congolese Abroad in the Gizenga government from February 6, 2007 and maintained this position after the reshuffle and in the later Muzito government.
Joe Tshupula is a Belgian–Congolese football director who is the head of the Academie de Football Nord in Mauritius.
The Metro Express is a light rail public transport system in Mauritius.
Planet FM was a private radio station in Mauritius. It began operation on May 2, 2019 with a Private Commercial Free to Air FM Radio Broadcasting Licence issued by the Independent Broadcasting Authority-Mauritius. On a letter dated 3 August 2020, the Independent Broadcasting Authority (Mauritius) revoked the licence of the radio for non-compliance with the Information and Communication Technologies Act 2001.
The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached Mauritius in March 2020. Since the first three cases of COVID-19 were confirmed, the Mauritian authorities have been conducting 'Contact tracing': people who have been in contact with infected patients have been placed under quarantine, including doctors, nurses and police officers. No cases have been reported in Rodrigues, Agaléga and St. Brandon. Mauritius scored 100 in the Oxford University COVID-19 government response tracker. No new cases through local transmission has been detected in Mauritius since 26 April 2020, since then, all the new cases which were reported on the island were imported cases from passengers who were repatriated to Mauritius and were admitted to quarantine centers upon their arrival. On 29 May 2020, the Mauritian government announced the end of lockdown as from 30 May 2020 at 00.00. However, some restrictions was still imposed on certain activities, in public spaces and public gatherings. On 12 June 2020, the Prime Minister announced that the decision was taken to lift all business and activity lockdowns ordered earlier to cope with the COVID-19, as from Monday 15 June 2020. Consequently, beaches, markets, gyms, parks, Village Halls, Community Centres, cinema and other public places became accessible to the public but the wearing of masks and social distancing will still be compulsory. Schools resumed as from 1 July 2020. As at 12 June 2020, 10% of the population were already tested with a total of 142,889 tests: 32,257 PCR tests and 110,632 Rapid Tests.
Basdeo Bissoondoyal was a Mauritian social worker, educator and writer who played an important role in the pre-Independence politics and independence movement on the island of Mauritius. He is also sometimes referred to as "Pandit Basdeo Bissoondoyal" or "Professor Basdeo Bissoondoyal".
Sir Satcam Boolell GCSK, MP, QC, Kt was a Mauritian politician who served as member of the Legislative Assembly in Mauritius. He died on March 23, 2006 in Curepipe. He was also known as "Somduth" by his peers and family members.
