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Mauritius Government Profile

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Country nameconventional long form: Republic of Mauritius

conventional short form: Mauritius

local long form: Republic of Mauritius

local short form: Mauritius

etymology: island named after Prince Maurice VAN NASSAU, stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, in 1598

note: pronounced mah-rish-us
Government typeparliamentary republic
Capitalname: Port Louis

geographic coordinates: 20 09 S, 57 29 E

time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: named after Louis XV, who was king of France in 1736 when the port became the administrative center of Mauritius and a major reprovisioning stop for French ships traveling between Europe and Asia
Administrative divisions9 districts and 3 dependencies*; Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals*, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues*, Savanne
Independence12 March 1968 (from the UK)
National holidayIndependence and Republic Day, 12 March (1968 & 1992); note - became independent and a republic on the same date in 1968 and 1992 respectively
Constitutionhistory: several previous; latest adopted 12 March 1968

amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage of amendments affecting constitutional articles, including the sovereignty of the state, fundamental rights and freedoms, citizenship, or the branches of government, requires approval in a referendum by at least three-fourths majority of voters followed by a unanimous vote by the Assembly; passage of other amendments requires only two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly; amended many times, last in 2016
Legal systemcivil legal system based on French civil law with some elements of English common law
International law organization participationaccepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Citizenshipcitizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: yes

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 out of the previous 7 years including the last 12 months
Suffrage18 years of age; universal
Executive branchchief of state: President Pritivirajsing ROOPUN (since December 2019); Vice President Marie Cyril Eddy Boissézon (2 December 2019) note - President Ameenah GURIB-FAKIM (since 5 June 2015) resigned on 23 March 2018 amid a credit card scandal

head of government: Prime Minister Pravind JUGNAUTH (since 23 January 2017, remains PM after parliamentary election 7 Nov 2019); note - Prime Minister Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 17 December 2014) stepped down on 23 January 2017 in favor of his son, Pravind Kumar JUGNAUTH, who was then appointed prime minister; 7 Nov 2019 Pravind Jugnauth remains prime minister and home affairs minister and also becomes defense minister (2019)

cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers (Council of Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

elections/appointments: president and vice president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for 5-year renewable terms; election last held on 7 Nov 2019 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly (2019)

election results: seats by party as of 7/11/2019- (MSM) 38, (PTR) 14, (MMM) 8, (OPR) 2; note - GURIB-FAKIM, Mauritius'- first female president, resigned on 23 March 2018 (2018)
Legislative branchdescription: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (70 seats maximum; 62 members directly elected multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and up to 8 seats allocated to non-elected party candidates by the Office of Electoral Commissioner; members serve a 5-year term)

elections: last held on 7 November 2019 (next to be held by late 2024)

election results: percent of vote by party - MSM 61%, Labour Party 23%, MMM 13%, OPR 3%; elected seats by party as of - the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) wins 38 seats, the Labour Party (PTR) or (MLP) 14,  Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) 8 and the Rodrigues People's Organization (OPR) 2; composition - men 49, women 13; percent of women 20% (2019)
Judicial branchhighest courts: Supreme Court of Mauritius (consists of the chief justice, a senior puisne judge, and 18 puisne judges); note - the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) serves as the final court of appeal

judge selection and term of office: chief justice appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister; senior puisne judge appointed by the president with the advice of the chief justice; other puisne judges appointed by the president with the advice of the Judicial and Legal Commission, a 4-member body of judicial officials including the chief justice; all judges serve until retirement at age 67

subordinate courts: lower regional courts known as District Courts, Court of Civil Appeal; Court of Criminal Appeal; Public Bodies Appeal Tribunal
Political parties and leadersAlliance Lepep (Alliance of the People) [Pravind JUGNAUTH] (coalition includes MSM and ML)
Labor Party (Parti Travailliste) or PTR or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]
Mauritian Militant Movement (Mouvement Militant Mauricien) or MMM [Paul BERENGER]
Mauritian Social Democratic Party (Parti Mauricien Social Democrate) or PMSD [Xavier Luc DUVAL]
Mauritian Solidarity Front (Front Solidarite Mauricienne) or FSM [Cehl FAKEERMEEAH, aka Cehl MEEAH]
Militant Socialist Movement (Mouvement Socialist Mauricien) or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH]
Muvman Liberater or ML [Ivan COLLENDAVELLOO]
Patriotic Movement (Mouvement Patriotic) [Alan GANOO]
Rodrigues Peoples Organization (Organisation du Peuple Rodriguais) or OPR [Serge CLAIR]
International organization participationACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, C, CD, COMESA, CPLP (associate), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, SAARC (observer), SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the USchief of mission: Ambassador Purmanund JHUGROO (since 7 July 2021)

chancery: 1709 N Street NW, Washington, DC 20036; administrative offices at 3201 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20036

telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491; [1] (202) 244-1492

FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983

email address and website:
mauritius.embassy@verizon.net; washingtonemb@govmu.org

https://mauritius-washington.govmu.org/Pages/index.aspx
Diplomatic representation from the USchief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Judes E. DEBAERE (since June 2019); note - also accredited to Seychelles

embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Avenue, Port Louis

mailing address: 2450 Port Louis Place, Washington, DC 20521-2450

telephone: [230] 202-4400

FAX: [230] 208-9534

email address and website:
PTLConsular@state.gov

https://mu.usembassy.gov/
Flag descriptionfour equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green; red represents self-determination and independence, blue the Indian Ocean surrounding the island, yellow has been interpreted as the new light of independence, golden sunshine, or the bright future, and green can symbolize either agriculture or the lush vegetation of the island

note: while many national flags consist of three - and in some cases five - horizontal bands of color, the flag of Mauritius is the world's only national flag to consist of four horizontal color bands
National anthemname: Motherland

lyrics/music: Jean Georges PROSPER/Philippe GENTIL

note: adopted 1968
National symbol(s)dodo bird, Trochetia Boutoniana flower; national colors: red, blue, yellow, green

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021