- US-British Strategy on Iraq Close to Collapse (October 28, 2002)
...he present US-British text. The swing votes are Cameroon, Ireland, Guinea, Mauritius and Mexico. President Bush, attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-ope... - US Peacekeeping at Risk (June 21, 2002)
... In the Security Council, Britain, France, Ireland, Norway, Bulgaria and Mauritius have ratified it. All other members, except for China and Singapore, h... - A New Voice in Shaping Africa's Future (July 17, 2002)
...e Verde, Mali, Senegal, South Africa, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania, Malawi, and Mauritius then there is a foundation on which to build. If there is support an... - US Backs Off Court Immunity Demand (July 16, 2002)
...uctive approach of the U.S. at least to work with the other members," said Mauritius' U.N. Ambassador Jagdish Koonjul. Britain's U.N. Ambassador Jeremy Gree... - Frustrated, US Shifts its Course at UN (October 25, 2002)
... veto power are currently Bulgaria, Cameroon, Colombia, Guinea, Ireland, Mauritius, Mexico, Norway, Singapore, and Syria. At this point, say observers, the o... - US Suspends $47m in Aid Over Int'l Criminal Court Dispute (July 2, 2003)
... Republic of Congo, East Timor, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Honduras, Macedonia, Mauritius, Mongolia, Nigeria, Panama, Romania, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tajikistan and... - - Mauritian portal
- - Official governmental site
- - Official tourism site
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Mauritius
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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| National : Stella Clavisque Maris Indici (: "Star and Key of the Indian Ocean") | ||||
| Official | , and | |||
| President | Sir | |||
| Prime minister | ||||
- Total - % water | 1,860 0.05% | |||
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- Total () - |
1,189,825 588/km² | |||
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- Date | From the
, | |||
| Mauritian | ||||
| +4 | ||||
| .MU | ||||
| 230 | ||||
The Republic of Mauritius is an country in the southwest , about 900 km east of . The island is part of the islands, with the island of 200 km to the southwest and the fellow island nation of the to the northwest.
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History
Main article:The island was discovered by the in , and first colonised by the in , naming the island in honour of Prince . The controlled the island during the and renamed it Ile de France. The island was taken over by the in and reverted to its former name.
Independence was attained in , with the country becoming a within the in . Mauritius has been a stable with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, and has attracted considerable foreign investment earning one of 's highest per capita incomes.
Politics
Main article:The of Mauritius is the , who is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly, the Mauritian . Of the 66 members of the assembly, 62 are elected directly by popular vote, while 4 are appointed to represent ethnic minorities, depending on the results of the election. The parliament is headed by the and a council of ministers.
Districts and dependencies
Main article:The island of Mauritius itself is divided into 9 districts:
Three islands or island groups also belonging to Mauritius are dependencies:
Geography
Main article:
Together with and Rodrigues, Mauritius is part of the islands. This were formed millions of years ago as a result of underwater eruoptions. The island of Mauritius itself is formed around a central plateau, with its highest peak in the southwest, at 828 m. Around the plateau, the original crater can still be distinguished from several mountains.
The local is tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; there is a warm, dry winter from May to November and a hot, wet, and humid summer from November to May. affect the country during -.
The island's capital and largest city is , in the northwest. Other important towns are , , and .
Economy
Main article:Since independence in , Mauritius has developed from a low-income, based economy to a middle income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been of the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much improved .
is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. A record-setting drought severely damaged the sugar crop in , however. The government's development strategy centers on foreign investment. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in and , and investment in the sector alone has reached over USD 1 billion. Economic performance in 1991-99 continued strong with solid growth and low .
Demographics
Main article:The official languages of Mauritius are and , of which French is still the most widely used one, even though the French lost control over the island about 200 years ago. A , with influence from both European languages, is also widely spoken. Several Asian languages, including and are also spoken also.
The latter are spoken by descendants of the labourers brought from by the British - they form almost 70% of the population. Most of these Indo-Mauritians are and they constitute 50% of the religious population. The other major religions are and . The remainder of the population are of , French, or mixed descent.
Culture
Main article:The mixed colonial past of Mauritius is reflected in its culture. For example, the of Mauritius is a blend of Dutch, French, Indian and Creole.
In Mauritius became the fifth country in the world to issue . The two types of stamps issued then, known as the and the are probably the most famous stamps in the world, being very rare and therefore also very expensive.
When discovered, the island of Mauritius was home to a previously unknown species of bird, which the Portuguese named the (simpleton), as they appeared not too bright. However, by , all dodos had been killed by settlers or their pets. Nevertheless, the dodo is prominently featured as a supporter of the national coat-of-arms (see above).
Miscellaneous topics
External Links
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