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Red
Sea Management provides Mauritius offshore incorporation, Mauritius offshore asset protection and a full range of services. |
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Report on Mauritius
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| Background:
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Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held
by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in
1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive
human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign
investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes.
Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic
growth leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole
community.
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| Location:
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Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
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Geographic coordinates:
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20 17 S, 57 33 E
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| Map
references:
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World
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Area:
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total: 1,860 sq km
land: 1,850 sq km
water: 10 sq km
note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint
Brandon), and Rodrigues
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| Area -
comparative:
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almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC
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| Land
boundaries:
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0 km
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Coastline:
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177 km
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| Maritime
claims:
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continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental
margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
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| Climate:
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tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to
November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
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| Terrain:
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small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling
central plateau
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| Elevation
extremes:
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lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Piton 828 m
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| Natural
resources:
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arable land, fish
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| Land use:
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arable land: 49%
permanent crops: 3%
permanent pastures: 3%
forests and woodland: 22%
other: 23% (1993 est.)
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| Irrigated
land:
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170 sq km (1993 est.)
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| Natural
hazards:
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cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs
that may pose maritime hazards
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Environment - current issues:
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water pollution, degradation of coral reefs
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| Environment
- international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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| Geography
- note:
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the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of
volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs
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Population: |
1,189,825 (July 2001 est.)
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| Age
structure: |
0-14 years: 25.53% (male 153,691; female 150,094)
15-64 years: 68.24% (male 404,940; female 407,056)
65 years and over: 6.23% (male 29,588; female 44,456) (2001
est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.88% (2001 est.)
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| Birth
rate: |
16.5 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
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| Death
rate: |
6.82 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
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| Net
migration rate: |
-0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
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| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
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| Infant
mortality rate: |
17.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
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| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population: 71.25 years
male: 67.26 years
female: 75.31 years (2001 est.)
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| Total
fertility rate: |
2.01 children born/woman (2001 est.)
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| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.08% (1999 est.)
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| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA
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| HIV/AIDS
- deaths:
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NA
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Nationality: |
noun: Mauritian(s)
adjective: Mauritian
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| Ethnic
groups:
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Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%
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Religions:
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Hindu 52%, Christian 28.3% (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant 2.3%),
Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1%
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Languages: |
French and
English. Also spoken Creole, Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bojpoori
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| Literacy: |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.9%
male: 87.1%
female: 78.8% (1995 est.)
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| Country
name:
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conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius
conventional short form: Mauritius
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy
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| Capital:
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Port Louis
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Administrative divisions:
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9 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
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Independence: |
12 March 1968 (from UK)
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| National
holiday: |
Independence Day, 12 March (1968)
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Constitution:
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12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992
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| Legal
system: |
based on French civil law system with elements of English common law
in certain areas
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| Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Cassam UTEEM (since 1 July 1992) and
Vice President Angidi Verriah CHETTIAR (since 28 June 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since
17 September 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 17
September 2000)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the
recommendation of the prime minister
elections: president and vice president elected by the National
Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 28 June 1997 (next to
be held NA 2002); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed
by the president and are responsible to the National Assembly
election results: Cassam UTEEM reelected president and Angidi
Verriah CHETTIAR elected vice president; percent of vote by the
National Assembly - NA%
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Legislative branch: |
unicameral National Assembly (66 seats - 62 elected by popular vote, 4
appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties
to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held by
September 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD
36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2
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| Judicial
branch:
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Supreme Court
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| Political
parties and leaders:
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Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra
RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in
coalition with MSM; Mauritian Militant Renaissance or MMR [Dr.
Paramhansa NABABSING]; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD
[Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Sir
Anerood JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or OPR [Joseph
(Nicholas) Von MALLY]
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| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
various labor unions
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International organization participation: |
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, InOC, Intelsat,
Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UN Security Council
(temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTrO
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Diplomatic representation in the US: |
chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH
chancery: Suite 441, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492
FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983
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Diplomatic representation from the US: |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mark W. ERWIN
embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port
Louis
mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis;
US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State,
Washington, DC 20521-2450
telephone: [230] 208-2347, 208-2354, 208-9763 through 9767
FAX: [230] 208-9534
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| Flag
description: |
four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green
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| Economy
- overview:
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Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income,
agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy
with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of
the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This
remarkable achievement has been reflected in increased life
expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved
infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land
area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's
development strategy centers on foreign investment. Mauritius has
attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in
India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has
reached over $1 billion. Economic performance since 1991 has continued
strong with solid growth and low unemployment.
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| GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $12.3 billion (2000 est.)
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| GDP -
real growth rate: |
7.5% (2000 est.)
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| GDP - per
capita: |
purchasing power parity - $10,400 (2000 est.)
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| GDP -
composition by sector: |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 29%
services: 61% (1996)
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Population below poverty line: |
10.6% (1992 est.)
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| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
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| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
5.3% (2000 est.)
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| Labor
force: |
514,000 (1995)
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| Labor
force - by occupation:
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construction and industry 36%, services 24%, agriculture and fishing
14%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, transportation and communication
7%, finance 3% (1995)
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Unemployment rate: |
6.4% (1999 est.)
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| Budget:
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revenues: $1.1 billion
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of
$NA (1999 est.)
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Industries: |
food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing;
chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical
machinery; tourism
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Industrial production growth rate:
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8% (2000 est.)
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| Electricity
- production:
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1.26 billion kWh (1999)
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 91.27%
hydro: 8.73%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999)
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Electricity - consumption:
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1.172 billion kWh (1999)
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Electricity - exports: |
0 kWh (1999)
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Electricity - imports: |
0 kWh (1999)
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Agriculture - products:
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sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish
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| Exports: |
$1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1999)
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| Exports -
commodities: |
clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses
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| Exports -
partners: |
UK 32%, France 19%, US 15%, Germany 6%, Italy 4% (1999 est.)
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| Imports: |
$2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999)
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| Imports -
commodities: |
manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products,
chemicals (1996)
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| Imports -
partners: |
France 14%, South Africa 11%, India 8%, UK 5% (1999 est.)
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| Debt -
external: |
$1.9 billion (1998 est.)
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| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$42 million (1997)
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| Currency:
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Mauritian rupee (MUR)
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| Currency
code: |
MUR
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| Exchange
rates:
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Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.900 (January 2001), 26.250 (2000),
25.186 (1999), 22.993 (1998), 21.057 (1997), 17.948 (1996)
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| Fiscal
year: |
1 July - 30 June
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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223,000 (1997)
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Telephones - mobile cellular: |
37,000 (1997)
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Telephone system: |
general assessment: small system with good service
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian
Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to
several countries
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| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1998)
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| Radios: |
420,000 (1997)
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Television broadcast stations: |
2 (plus 11 repeaters) (1997)
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Televisions: |
258,000 (1997)
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| Internet
country code: |
.mu
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| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
2 (2000)
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| Internet
users: |
55,000 (2000)
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| Railways:
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0 km
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| Highways: |
total: 1,910 km
paved: 1,834 km (including 36 km of expressways)
unpaved: 76 km (1998)
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Waterways: |
none
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| Ports and
harbors: |
Port Louis
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| Merchant
marine: |
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 61,909 GRT/87,313
DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, combination bulk 2, container 2,
liquefied gas 1, refrigerated cargo 2
note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of
convenience: India 1 (2000 est.)
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| Airports: |
5 (2000 est.)
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| Airports -
with paved runways: |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.)
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| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.)
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| Military
branches: |
National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force
or SMF and National Coast Guard)
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| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age 15-49: 339,473 (2001 est.)
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| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age 15-49: 171,206 (2001 est.)
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| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$11 million (FY97/98)
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| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
0.3% (FY97/98)
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| Disputes
- international: |
claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean
Territory); claims French-administered Tromelin Island
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| Illicit
drugs: |
minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia;
small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally |
