The Island of Mauritius, volcanic in origin, lies in the southwest Indian Ocean just within the Tropic of Capricorn, 1,250 miles from the African coast and 500 miles east of Madagascar. The capital of Mauritius is Port Louis, located on the northwest coast. The country’s official currency is the Mauritian rupee. In 2017, Mauritius was named one of only four countries in the world which had no involvement in ongoing international or domestic conflict and no tensions with neighbouring countries. The others were Botswana, Chile and Uruguay.
Although English is the official language, it is spoken by a very small percentage of the population. Creole, a French-based patois, is spoken by about four-fifths of the population and is the lingua franca of the country. Bhojpuri, an Indo-Aryan language, is spoken by one-tenth of the population, and French is spoken by a small percentage. Other languages spoken on the island include Hindi, Chinese, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu. Mauritians commonly speak two, three, or even more languages, and the educational system supports a wide range of language instruction.
Mauritius has a mixed developing economy based on manufactured exports, agriculture, tourism, and financial services. The gross domestic product, among the highest of African countries, grew more rapidly than the population in the 1990s and 2000s. Mauritius has achieved steady growth over the last several decades, resulting in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure.
Mauritius is famous for many things: its vibrant culture, chequered history, sugar and textile industries and of course, it’s pristine beaches and stunning lagoons. Mauritius’s beautiful beaches are a key draw – and with over 160km-worth, including a calm lagoon almost entirely encircled by coral reef, you won’t have to go far to find one.
Universal adult suffrage was instituted in March 1959. The country became an independent state in March 1968 and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations in 1992. Mauritius offers a rich mixture of the many cultures and traditions of its different peoples. Religious affiliation varies about half of the population is Hindu, about one-third is Christian (the majority of whom are Roman Catholic), and—with the exception of a small group of Buddhists—the majority of the remainder are Muslims.
The Muslims in Mauritius are mostly of Indian descent. The presence of the first Muslims in Mauritius dates back to the early days of the French colonisation. As at today there is a large number of Muslims living in the region of Port Louis. The population of Muslims was 33% of the total population during 1835, 64% during 1861, but reduced to less than 25% by 1909. Today Muslims constitute over 17.3 per cent of Mauritius population.
