Republic of Mauritius

President: Anerood Jugnauth (2003)

Prime Minister: Navin Ramgoolam (2005)

Land area: 714 sq mi (1,849 sq km);
total area: 788 sq mi (2,040 sq km)

Population (2007 est.): 1,250,882 (growth rate: 0.8%); birth rate: 15.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 14.1/1000; life expectancy: 72.9; density per sq mi: 1,752

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Port Louis, 577,200 (metro. area), 143,800 (city proper)

Monetary unit: Mauritian rupee

Languages: English less than 1% (official), Creole 81%, Bojpoori 12%, French 3% (2000)

Ethnicity/race: Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%

Religions: Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 24%, other Christian 8%, Islam 17% (2000)

Literacy rate: 86% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007 est.): $14.9 billion; per capita $ $11,900 . Real growth rate: 5.6%. Inflation: 8.8%. Unemployment: 8.8%. Arable land: 49%. Agriculture: sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish. Labor force: 552,700; construction and industry 30%, services 25%, agriculture and fishing 9%, trade, restaurants, hotels 22%, transportation and communication 7%, finance 6% (2007). Industries: food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing, chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery, tourism. Natural resources: arable land, fish. Exports: $2.475 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses. Imports: $3.627 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals. Major trading partners: UK, UAE, France, U.S., Madagascar, South Africa, China, India (2006).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 357,300 (2006); mobile cellular: 772,400 (2006). Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002). Radios: 420,000 (1997). Television broadcast stations: 2 (plus several repeaters) (1997). Televisions: 258,000 (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 9,792 (2007). Internet users: 182,000 (2006).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 2,020 km; paved: 2,020 km (including 75 km of expressways) (2005). Ports and harbors: Port Louis. Airports: 5 (2007).

International disputes: Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation in 2001; claims French-administered Tromelin Island.

text taken from infoplease

Posted in: Country, Indian Ocean, Islands, Mauritius, Tropical Paradise