Simple directory > Regional > Mauritius

Country : Mauritius Official name: Republic of Mauritius Head of State: President Karl Offman (elected by the National Assembly Feb 2002) Head of government: Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam (from 5 Jul 2005) Ruling party: Alliance Sociale (AS) (Social Alliance) (elected 3 Jul 2005) Area: 1,865 square km Population: 1.26 million (2004) Capital: Port Louis Official language: English and French Currency: Mauritian rupee (MR) = 100 cents Exchange rate: MR28.46 per US$ (Nov 2004) GDP per capita: US$4,447 (2003) GDP real growth: 4.80% (2003) Labour force: 514,000 (2003) Unemployment: 9.80% (2003) Inflation: 5.60% (2003) Balance of trade: -US$200.00 million (2003) Foreign debt: US$2.40 billion (2003) Visitor numbers: 702,018 (2003)

Historical profile

1598 A Dutch squadron landed at Grand Port and named the island Mauritius.

1638 Mauritius was settled by the Dutch. The island became an important port of call for Dutch, English and French trading ships. The Dutch introduced sugar cane and imported slaves to harvest it.

1710 The Dutch abandoned their settlement.

1721 France claimed the island; it also imported large numbers of slaves to harvest sugar cane, cotton and other crops.

1810 Britain defeated a French naval squadron and the island was ceded to Britain at the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

1835 Slavery was abolished. Most freed slaves left the plantations and settled in coastal towns; workers had to be imported from the Indian sub-continent to take their place, most of whom opted to remain on the island at the end of their contracts.

1936 The Labour Party (LP) was formed and organised strikes and protests between 1937–45.

1953 A group of Mauritians under Seewoosagur Ramgoolam rose to the leadership of the LP, which won the elections to the Legislative Council. Most Creoles joined the Parti Mauricien Social-Démocrate (PMSD) (Social Democratic Party of Mauritius).

1959 New political parties emerged including the Muslim Committee of Action (CAM). CAM formed an alliance with the LP.

1968 Mauritius gained independence from Britain.

1969 Ramgoolam's LP-CAM (Muslim) ruling alliance was strengthened when a coalition with the PMSD was formed. In response, the Mouvement Militante Mauricien (MMM) (Mauritian Militant Movement) was established.

1982 The LP lost power as the MMM, in alliance with the Parti Socialiste Mauricien (PSM), gained power under the premiership of Anerood Jugnauth.

1983 The MMM split and Jugnauth formed the Mouvement Socialiste Mauricien (MSM) (Mauritian Socialist Movement) which formed a government with the LP.

1990 The MMM and the MSM formed a political alliance and aimed to transform Mauritius into a republic.

1995 An alliance of the LP and the MMM, led by Navinchandra Ramgoolam and Paul Berenger, won the parliamentary elections. Ramgoolam became prime minister.

1997 The LP-MMM coalition broke up when the MMM left government and became the official opposition. Even so, the LP continued to hold an outright majority in the legislature and for the first time since independence, Mauritius was governed by a single party.

2000 The opposition, MSM/MMM, won the parliamentary election. Anerood Jugnauth, leader of the MMM, became prime minister for the second time. Mauritius revived a claim to sovereignty over Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory.

2001 The WTO trade policy review encouraged Mauritius to further liberalise and diversify its economy. A constitutional amendment was introduced, allowing Rodrigues Island to have two representatives in the National Assembly and its own regional assembly.

2002 President Cassam Uteem resigned and Vice President Angidi Chettiar became interim president, but he also resigned. Both resigned having refused to sign into law controversial anti-terrorism legislation. The National Assembly elected Karl Offman as president.

On Rodrigues Island, the Rodrigues People's Organisation (RPO) won 10 seats out of 18 and the Mouvement Rodriguais (MR) (Rodrigues Movement) won eight seats in the first Rodrigues Regional Assembly election. The Rodrigues Regional Assembly opened with Jean Daniel Spéville as chief commissioner.

2003 On 4 February, Serge Clair became chief commissioner of Rodrigues Island. Prime Minister Sir Anerood Jugnauth stepped down on 30 September, handing over the post to his deputy, Finance Minister Paul Bérenger.

2004 In May, the IMF praised the economic performance of Mauritius, suggesting that its success was due to the quality of the country's institutions. The 2004/05 budget was presented in June.

2005 The opposition Alliance Sociale (AS) (Social Alliance) won the 3 July parliamentary elections.

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