Customs House Brokers Association, Mauritius

Mauritius is situated in the south west of the Indian Ocean, half way between Africa, Asia and Australia.

The Island, of volcanic origin, covers a total area of 2,035 square kilometers. It is graced by some 330 kilometres of sandy beaches and is protected by one of the longest uninterrupted coral barriers of the world.

Today, Mauritius has a population of 1.2 million, mostly descendants of the colonial occupiers and their African and Indian field hands. French is the language of culture with English being the language of business and Creole the lingua franca.

Mauritius obtained its independence on March 12, 1968 and the country became a Republic on 12 March 1992. Mauritius has a special arrangement with the European Union under the Lome Convention. Mauritius is also a member of SADC, Indian Ocean Rim and COMESA and the country is very much involved in regional cooperation. Strategically located in the Indian Ocean, at the crossroads of vital trade routes linking Europe and Asia, Africa and Australia, Mauritius has experienced over the last two decades, uninterrupted economic development and growth averaging 5.7 annually.

Mauritius is a parliamentary democracy with elections being held every five years. The island has enjoyed uninterrupted political stability since independence with smooth transfer of political power after general elections.

Mauritius enjoys the status of "upper middle income" nation, with extensive state-of-the-art physical, social and educational infrastructure, a highly educated and productive workforce and a robust and diversified welfare state economy - a successful model for other developing nations to emulate.

With its people as its greatest asset, Mauritius has realized a remarkable transformation in the last three decades from a mono crop economy to a diversified one resting on Agriculture, Manufacturing, Tourism, Financial and Business Services and the emerging Information and Communications Technology sector.

The country has a dynamic private sector, a well-developed communications infrastructure, a welcoming attitude to foreigners and a large pool of well educated professionals bilingual in English and French.
The Government promotes market-friendly policies and restricts its role to that of a facilitator. It encourages the development of local entrepreneurship, supports foreign direct investment and endeavours to maintain good governance, fiscal discipline, sound monetary policies and close partnership with its private sector. The Mauritian economy is completely deregulated. Problems are solved expeditiously and assistance is readily available from governmental agencies.

Port Louis Harbour, the only port, annually handles some 5.6 million tonnes of cargo including about 265,015 TEUs. An average cargo annual growth rate of about 3.7% has been registered over the last recent years and some 2,116 vessels call at the harbour every year.

FREEPORT FACILITIES

A regional logistics & marketing hub

Established in 1992, the Mauritius Freeport is a duty-free logistics, distribution and marketing hub for the region. Logistics and warehousing facilities are readily available for the transshipment, consolidation, storage and minor processing of goods.
The Freeport comprises two well-defined locations, one in close proximity to the seaport of Port Louis, and the other at the international airport.
Mid-way between Asia and Africa, Mauritius is the ideal trading base for companies seeking to service the African market. Major international companies have chosen the Mauritius Freeport as their regional logistics
and marketing hub.

THE MAURITIUS SEA-FOOD HUB

A world class location for seafood processing

The Indian Ocean Region is one of the main fishing zones in the world with estimated annual catches of tuna in excess of 1.25 million tonnes.
The extensive Mauritian EEz of about 1.9 m km2 has an abundant stock of both pelagic and demersal fish species.

Port Louis Harbour offers modern, efficient and competitive services to the fishing industry. State-of-the-art cold supply chain facilities are located within the port and Freeport areas.

In the light of these competitive advantages, the Government is fully committed to transform Mauritius into a World Class Seafood Hub and make this industry one of the major pillars of the economy. A dedicated one-stop shop Government has been set up to ensure the timely and seamless processing of import and export clearances for business operators.

THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR

The agricultural sector, more particularly the sugar production sector, is the bedrock of the Mauritian economy and which has, over the decades, funneled investment funds towards the development of the Export Processing Zone, the tourism industry, the financial and business sector and now the Information and Communication Technology sector.
Sugar production has been the backbone of the agricultural industry. However the agricultural sector has undergone timid diversification over the years into high value added horticulture, in the production and exports of fruits, vegetables and cut flowers, and downstream into food processing.

THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR

Mauritius was one of the earliest developing economies to initiate an ambitious Export Processing Zone (EPZ) Programme in 1970. Since, the manufacturing sector has superheaded the economic development of the island and is today an important component of the economy, being the main foreign exchange earner for Mauritius. The textile and apparel sector, which has received international recognition, is undergoing further integration with the setting up of cotton spinning mills, high value added processing and finishing units, and the emergence of local designing capability. The manufacturing sector has been the main engine of growth of the Mauritian economy since 1970, creating employment, generating export earnings and improving the overall standards of living on the island.
Manufacturing remains one of the main pillars of the Mauritian economy and continues to attract increasing amounts of investment in diversified fields of activities for exports. The EPZ sector today hosts industrialists from overseas, side by side with local entrepreneurs.

THE TOURISM SECTOR

Mauritius is today universally recognized as a prestigious holiday and travel destination for high-end tourism, with a host of luxury beach hotels classified among the Best Hotels of the World.
This industry has registered the highest growth rate in the last decade and is the second largest foreign exchange earner. The tourism sector is poised for further growth with the construction of several new hotels, tourist attractions, as well as the launching of the new Integrated Resort Scheme.

THE FINANCIAL & BUSINESS SERVICES SECTOR

Financial services have been substantially liberalized with a view to providing the required impetus to the development of this sector, comprising of the banking, insurance, capital market, global business and other financial intermediaries components.

THE INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SECTOR

It is the government's declared policy to develop Mauritius as a Cyber Island. Consequently, government is investing massively in appropriate physical infrastructure, human resources development, legal and regulatory framework, state-of-the-art telecommunication facilities for high bandwidth global connectivity at competitive rates, and a generous package of fiscal incentives.
More than 200 companies, big and small, operate in the ICT sector, involved in a wide range of activities such as software development, call centre, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), web-enabled activities, training, hardware assembly and sales, networking and other support services.

With the construction of the Ebene Cybercity, Mauritius endeavours to position itself as the preferred destination for IT Enabled Services, both in the voice and the non-voice space.






	The Republic of Mauritius Mauritius is situated in the south west of the Indian Ocean, half way between Africa, Asia and Australia. The Island, of volcanic origin, covers a total area of 2,035 square kilometers. It is graced by some 330 kilometres of sandy beaches and is protected by one of the longest uninterrupted coral barriers of the world. Today, Mauritius has a population of 1.2 million, mostly descendants of the colonial occupiers and their African and Indian field hands. French is the language of culture with English being the language of business and Creole the lingua franca. Mauritius obtained its independence on March 12, 1968 and the country became a Republic on 12 March 1992. Mauritius has a special arrangement with the European Union under the Lome Convention. Mauritius is also a member of SADC, Indian Ocean Rim and COMESA and the country is very much involved in regional cooperation. Strategically located in the Indian Ocean, at the crossroads of vital trade routes linking Europe and Asia, Africa and Australia, Mauritius has experienced over the last two decades, uninterrupted economic development and growth averaging 5.7 annually. Mauritius is a parliamentary democracy with elections being held every five years. The island has enjoyed uninterrupted political stability since independence with smooth transfer of political power after general elections. Mauritius enjoys the status of "upper middle income" nation, with extensive state-of-the-art physical, social and educational infrastructure, a highly educated and productive workforce and a robust and diversified welfare state economy - a successful model for other developing nations to emulate. With its people as its greatest asset, Mauritius has realized a remarkable transformation in the last three decades from a mono crop economy to a diversified one resting on Agriculture, Manufacturing, Tourism, Financial and Business Services and the emerging Information and Communications Technology sector. The country has a dynamic private sector, a well-developed communications infrastructure, a welcoming attitude to foreigners and a large pool of well educated professionals bilingual in English and French. The Government promotes market-friendly policies and restricts its role to that of a facilitator. It encourages the development of local entrepreneurship, supports foreign direct investment and endeavours to maintain good governance, fiscal discipline, sound monetary policies and close partnership with its private sector. The Mauritian economy is completely deregulated. Problems are solved expeditiously and assistance is readily available from governmental agencies. CARGO TRAFFIC Port Louis Harbour, the only port, annually handles some 5.6 million tonnes of cargo including about 265,015 TEUs. An average cargo annual growth rate of about 3.7% has been registered over the last recent years and some 2,116 vessels call at the harbour every year. FREEPORT FACILITIES A regional logistics & marketing hub Established in 1992, the Mauritius Freeport is a duty-free logistics, distribution and marketing hub for the region. Logistics and warehousing facilities are readily available for the transshipment, consolidation, storage and minor processing of goods. The Freeport comprises two well-defined locations, one in close proximity to the seaport of Port Louis, and the other at the international airport. Mid-way between Asia and Africa, Mauritius is the ideal trading base for companies seeking to service the African market. Major international companies have chosen the Mauritius Freeport as their regional logistics and marketing hub. THE MAURITIUS SEA-FOOD HUB A world class location for seafood processing The Indian Ocean Region is one of the main fishing zones in the world with estimated annual catches of tuna in excess of 1.25 million tonnes. The extensive Mauritian EEz of about 1.9 m km2 has an abundant stock of both pelagic and demersal fish species. Port Louis Harbour offers modern, efficient and competitive services to the fishing industry. State-of-the-art cold supply chain facilities are located within the port and Freeport areas. In the light of these competitive advantages, the Government is fully committed to transform Mauritius into a World Class Seafood Hub and make this industry one of the major pillars of the economy. A dedicated one-stop shop Government has been set up to ensure the timely and seamless processing of import and export clearances for business operators. THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR The agricultural sector, more particularly the sugar production sector, is the bedrock of the Mauritian economy and which has, over the decades, funneled investment funds towards the development of the Export Processing Zone, the tourism industry, the financial and business sector and now the Information and Communication Technology sector. Sugar production has been the backbone of the agricultural industry. However the agricultural sector has undergone timid diversification over the years into high value added horticulture, in the production and exports of fruits, vegetables and cut flowers, and downstream into food processing. THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR Mauritius was one of the earliest developing economies to initiate an ambitious Export Processing Zone (EPZ) Programme in 1970. Since, the manufacturing sector has superheaded the economic development of the island and is today an important component of the economy, being the main foreign exchange earner for Mauritius. The textile and apparel sector, which has received international recognition, is undergoing further integration with the setting up of cotton spinning mills, high value added processing and finishing units, and the emergence of local designing capability. The manufacturing sector has been the main engine of growth of the Mauritian economy since 1970, creating employment, generating export earnings and improving the overall standards of living on the island. Manufacturing remains one of the main pillars of the Mauritian economy and continues to attract increasing amounts of investment in diversified fields of activities for exports. The EPZ sector today hosts industrialists from overseas, side by side with local entrepreneurs. THE TOURISM SECTOR Mauritius is today universally recognized as a prestigious holiday and travel destination for high-end tourism, with a host of luxury beach hotels classified among the Best Hotels of the World. This industry has registered the highest growth rate in the last decade and is the second largest foreign exchange earner. The tourism sector is poised for further growth with the construction of several new hotels, tourist attractions, as well as the launching of the new Integrated Resort Scheme. THE FINANCIAL & BUSINESS SERVICES SECTOR Financial services have been substantially liberalized with a view to providing the required impetus to the development of this sector, comprising of the banking, insurance, capital market, global business and other financial intermediaries components. THE INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SECTOR It is the government's declared policy to develop Mauritius as a Cyber Island. Consequently, government is investing massively in appropriate physical infrastructure, human resources development, legal and regulatory framework, state-of-the-art telecommunication facilities for high bandwidth global connectivity at competitive rates, and a generous package of fiscal incentives. More than 200 companies, big and small, operate in the ICT sector, involved in a wide range of activities such as software development, call centre, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), web-enabled activities, training, hardware assembly and sales, networking and other support services. With the construction of the Ebene Cybercity, Mauritius endeavours to position itself as the preferred destination for IT Enabled Services, both in the voice and the non-voice space. More information available here.