A melting point of the world's oldest civilizations, Mauritius is a rare example of social peace and unity in a multi-cultural society. The population boasts origins from the European and African continents, as well as from India and China. With such a cosmopolitan legacy, no wonder its hospitality is legendary. Mauritius is also a safe place to live, Mauritians being naturally well-inclined and of a peaceful nature. All Mauritians enjoy freedom of expression and of religion.
The Mauritian economy is one of the fastest growing in sub-Saharan Africa. In just three decades, the country has moved from a mono-crop sugar-dominated economy to a sophisticated and diversified services oriented one.
Mauritius also has a smart brand of fine professionals, most of who qualified from internationally recognized institutions and/or world class professional bodies: chartered accountants, financial analysts, corporate lawyers, tax specialists, business consultants, IT engineers, architects. Recently too, the Government of Mauritius enacted legislation encouraging young foreign professionals to set up in the country.
Mauritius has the highest adult literacy rate of the whole of Africa. Mauritius is now reaping the benefits of a strong commitment to free education for all initiated in the late 1970s.
Today, any foreign investor can settle hassle-free in Mauritius and be operational in just 3 days. Add to this one of the world's most generous tax regimes, where personal and corporate tax are harmonized at a low 15% and where dividends are tax free. A country with no exchange control and Mauritius also has signed non-double taxation agreements with 33 countries.
While endowed with a small, but increasingly affluent local population, Mauritius has secured preferential access to markets worth several hundreds of millions of consumers. With the EU, through the Cotonou agreement; with the US under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act; with Eastern and Southern Africa, through the COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) and SADC (Southern African Development Community).
Mauritius has a well developed network of internal and external communications. An extensive and well maintained road infrastructure, a modern and efficient port capable of berthing vessels up to 100 meters, a web of sea links and direct air connections with several cities around the world, high band fiber cable connectivity, a reliable fixed and mobile telephone network, express courier service providers and freight forwarders, fully serviced business and industrial parks, a free port, well equipped and comfortable offices.
The Government has ensured doing business in and from Mauritius is both easy and smooth and complies with best practices in terms of transparency, good governance and ethics. Mauritius has enacted anti-money laundering and terrorist financing legislation while the business framework itself has been made simpler. Commercial law in Mauritius is a combination of the English Common Law and the French Code Napoleon.
Mauritius international business sector has also been growing fast as Mauritius is increasingly recognized as a safe and well-regulated jurisdiction from which to conduct global business. As a major platform to the countries of the region and much beyond as an investment spring board into the leading economies of India and China, Mauritius offers interesting prospects for efficient international corporate structuring and tax mitigation.
