Economy of Mauritius
Mauritius became a high-income country in July 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic drastically impacted the country, however, despite effective management of the public health emergency. Its economy contracted by 15.8%, with GDP shrinking by 14.9% in the same year. Indeed, after the 2 periods of strict lockdown, 3 economic pillars were affected, namely tourism, exports and foreign direct investment.
But there is hope. With the recovery of the tourism sector, coupled with a national vaccination campaign against COVID-19, experts predict that Mauritius' GDP growth will accelerate to 5.8% by 2023.
To achieve this result, the government has announced the implementation of several policy measures to:
- Stimulate investment through an infrastructure program that will run for the next 3 years;
- Invest in green industrialization;
- Overhaul the tourism sector;
- Promote business recovery, competitiveness and digitalization.
Inflation in Mauritius in 2022
By the second half of 2021, the Mauritian population had to learn to cope with a sharp rise in prices, which pushed the country's inflation rate to 4%. The situation continues, with food and fuel prices rising sharply and pushing inflation to 9.5% from January to April. On average, it is expected to reach 10.5% by the end of 2022 (information obtained in November 2022).
Mauritius in terms of economic freedom
On the Economic Freedom Index 2022, Mauritius scores 70.9, placing the Mauritian economy in the 30th place. In the Sub-Saharan African region, the country ranks first ahead of 47 countries, while its overall score is higher than the regional and global averages.
Currency in Mauritius
The official currency is the Mauritian rupee, the generic sign of the Mauritian rupee is Rs, and the international code of the rupee is "MUR".
The rupee banknotes were first circulated in 1876, and the coins in 1877.
The Bank of Mauritius produces banknotes in denominations of 25, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1,000 and 2,000 rupees, as well as coins of 1, 5, 10 and 20 rupees plus 5, 20 and 50 cents. Please note that the Mauritian rupee can only be exchanged in Mauritius. It is possible to exchange currency at the exchange offices found at the airport and in the various regions of the island, as well as at banks. However, only foreign currency bills can be exchanged.
Most credit cards are accepted in Mauritius, and there are many ATMs over the island.
