249 lines
20 KiB
Plaintext
249 lines
20 KiB
Plaintext
MAURITIUS
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 1,860 km2; land area: 1,850 km2; includes Agalega
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Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues
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Comparative area: slightly less than 10.5 times the size of
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Washington, DC
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Land boundaries: none
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Coastline: 177 km
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Maritime claims:
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Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
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Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
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Territorial sea: 12 nm
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Disputes: claims Chagos Archipelago, which includes the island of
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Diego Garcia in UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory; claims
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French-administered Tromelin Island
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Climate: tropical modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry
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winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
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Terrain: small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains
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encircling central plateau
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Natural resources: arable land, fish
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Land use: arable land 54%; permanent crops 4%; meadows and pastures
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4%; forest and woodland 31%; other 7%; includes irrigated 9%
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Environment: subject to cyclones (November to April); almost
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completely surrounded by reefs
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Note: located 900 km east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean
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PEOPLE
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Population: 1,081,000 (July 1991), growth rate 0.8% (1991)
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Birth rate: 19 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: - 4 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 20 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 66 years male, 74 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 2.0 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Mauritian(s); adjective--Mauritian
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Ethnic divisions: Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian
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3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%
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Religion: Hindu 52%, Christian (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant
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2.3%) 28.3%, Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1%
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Language: English (official), Creole, French, Hindi, Urdu, Hakka,
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Bojpoori
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Literacy: 61% (male 72%, female 50%) age 13 and over can
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read and write (1962)
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Labor force: 335,000; government services 29%, agriculture and
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fishing 27%, manufacturing 22%, other 22%; 43% of population of working
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age (1985)
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Organized labor: 35% of labor force in more than 270 unions
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: none
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Type: parliamentary democracy
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Capital: Port Louis
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Administrative divisions: 9 districts and 3 dependencies*;
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Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos*, Flacq, Grand Port,
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Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart,
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Rodrigues*, Savanne
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Independence: 12 March 1968 (from UK)
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Constitution: 12 March 1968
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Legal system: based on French civil law system with elements of
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English common law in certain areas
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National holiday: Independence Day, 12 March (1968)
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Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
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minister, deputy prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
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Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
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represented by Governor General Sir Veerasamy RINGADOO (since 17 January
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1986);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 12
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June 1982); Deputy Prime Minister Prem NABABSING (since 26 September
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1990)
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Political parties and leaders:
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government coalition--Militant Socialist Movement (MSM), A.
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JUGNAUTH; Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM), Paul BERENGER;
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Organization of the People of Rodrigues (OPR), Louis Serge CLAIR;
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Democratic Labor Movement (MTD), Anil BAICHOO;
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opposition--Mauritian Labor Party (MLP), Navin RAMGOOLMAN;
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Socialist Workers Front, Sylvio MICHEL;
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Mauritian Social Democratic Party (PMSD), G. DUVAL
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Suffrage universal at age 18
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Elections:
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Legislative Assembly--last held on 15 September 1991 (next to be
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held by 15 September 1996);
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results--MSM/MMM 53%, MLP/PMSD 38%;
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seats--(70 total, 62 elected) MSM/MMM alliance 59 (MSM 29, MMM 26,
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OPR 2, MTD 2); opposition 3
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Communists: may be 2,000 sympathizers; several Communist
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organizations; Mauritius Lenin Youth Organization, Mauritius Women's
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Committee, Mauritius Communist Party, Mauritius People's Progressive
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Party, Mauritius Young Communist League, Mauritius Liberation Front,
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Chinese Middle School Friendly Association, Mauritius/USSR Friendship
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Society
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Other political or pressure groups: various labor unions
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Member of: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA,
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IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
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IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
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UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Chitmansing JESSERAMSING;
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Chancery at Suite 134, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008;
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telephone (202) 244-1491 or 1492;
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US--Ambassador Penne Percy KORTH; Embassy at 4th Floor, Rogers
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House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis; telephone 230 208-9763 through
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208-9767
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Flag: four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow,
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and green
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ECONOMY
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Overview: The economy is based on sugar, manufacturing (mainly
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textiles), and tourism. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated
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land area and accounts for 32% of export earnings. The government's
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development strategy is centered on industrialization (with a view to
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exports), agricultural diversification, and tourism. Economic performance
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in 1989 was impressive, with 5.0% real growth and low unemployment.
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GDP: $2.1 billion, per capita $2,000; real growth rate 5.5% (FY89)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 12.7% (1989)
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Unemployment rate: 2.7% (1989 est.)
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Budget: revenues $477 million; expenditures $540 million, including
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capital expenditures of $112 million (FY89)
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Exports: $993 million (f.o.b., 1989);
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commodities--textiles 44%, sugar 40%, light manufactures 10%;
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partners--EC and US have preferential treatment, EC 77%, US 15%
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Imports: $1.2 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
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commodities--manufactured goods 50%, capital equipment 17%,
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foodstuffs 13%, petroleum products 8%, chemicals 7%;
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partners--EC, US, South Africa, Japan
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External debt: $670 million (December 1989)
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Industrial production: growth rate 12.9% (FY87); accounts
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for 25% of GDP
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Electricity: 233,000 kW capacity; 420 million kWh produced,
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375 kWh per capita (1989)
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Industries: food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles,
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wearing apparel, chemicals, metal products, transport equipment,
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nonelectrical machinery, tourism
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Agriculture: accounts for 10% of GDP; about 90% of cultivated
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land in sugarcane; other products--tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses,
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cattle, goats, fish; net food importer, especially rice and fish
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Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the international
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drug trade
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $76
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million; Western (non-US) countries (1970-88), $628 million; Communist
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countries (1970-89), $54 million
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Currency: Mauritian rupee (plural--rupees);
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1 Mauritian rupee (MauR) = 100 cents
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Exchange rates: Mauritian rupees (MauRs) per US$1--14.295 (January
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1991), 14.839 (1990), 15.250 (1989), 13.438 (1988), 12.878 (1987), 13.466
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(1986), 15.442 (1985)
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Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Highways: 1,800 km total; 1,640 km paved, 160 km earth
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Ports: Port Louis
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Merchant marine: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 94,619
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GRT/140,345 DWT; includes 2 passenger-cargo, 2 cargo, 1 container,
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1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 liquefied gas, 2 bulk
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Civil air: 4 major transport aircraft
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Airports: 5 total, 4 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways;
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none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
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3 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: small system with good service; new microwave
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link to Reunion; high-frequency radio links to several countries; 48,000
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telephones; stations--2 AM, no FM, 4 TV; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth
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station
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: paramilitary Special Mobile Force, Special Support Units,
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National Police Force, National Coast Guard
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 302,588; 155,176 fit for
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military service
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Defense expenditures: $4 million, 0.2% of GDP (1988)
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