Because of you…

Youth for Christ carried out a major renovation project in 2004 to inaugurate a Youth Resource Centre.

Young people are involved in weekly youth meetings, a highly popular monthly Cine Club, gospel concerts, music ministries, youth camps, social outreaches, training programs, social involvement and sensitization campaign against drug abuse.

Though the ministry is recognized nationally and has developed a strong organisational and spiritual base through the years, the need for sound and sharp strategy in reaching out to  young people is still pressing.

Prayer Needs

  • For commitment and renewal of the national board
  • For sound leadership and vision from our chairperson, Pierre Wong
  • Finances and resources to complete the work on the Youth Centre.
  • For economic and political stability in Mauritius.
  • For acceptance among churches and ministries on the island, partnership and support instead of competition.
  • Wisdom in spreading the Gospel in ways that minister best to youth and programs that meet their needs.
  • For social peace and harmony among various ethnic groups.

About Mauritius

Mauritius

Location of Mauritius

Introduction

Although known to Arab and Malay sailors as early as the 10th century, Mauritius was first explored by the Portuguese in the 16th century and subsequently settled by the Dutch - who named it in honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU - in the 17th century. The French assumed control in 1715, developing the island into an important naval base overseeing Indian Ocean trade, and establishing a plantation economy of sugar cane. The British captured the island in 1810, during the Napoleonic Wars. Mauritius remained a strategically important British naval base, and later an air station, playing an important role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy operations, as well as the collection of signals intelligence. Independence from the UK 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, declining sugar prices, and declining textile and apparel production, have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.

Geography

Location

Location: Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Geographic Coordinates: 20 17 S, 57 33 E

Area

Total Area: 2,040 sq km Rank: 180
Land Area: 2,030 sq km
Water Area: 10 sq km
Note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues
Comparison: almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC
Land Boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 177 km
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate

tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)

Terrain

small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau

Elevations

Lowest Point: Indian Ocean 0 m
Highest Point: Mont Piton 828 m

Natural Resources

arable land, fish

Land Use

Arable land: 49.02%
Permanent Crops: 2.94%
Other: 48.04% (2005)
Irrigated Land: 220 sq km (2003)
Renewable Water Resources: 2.2 cu km (2001)
Total Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 0.61 cu km/yr (25%/14%/60%)
Freshwater Withdrawal Per Capita: 488 cu m/yr (2000)

Environment

Natural Hazards: cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards
Environmental Issues: water pollution, degradation of coral reefs
Environmental Agreements: Party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

Geography Notes

the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs; home of the dodo, a large flightless bird related to pigeons, driven to extinction by the end of the 17th century through a combination of hunting and the introduction of predatory species

People

Population: 1,284,264 (July 2010 est.) Rank: 154

Age Structure

0-14 years: 22.5% (male 147,136/female 142,121)
15-64 years: 70.4% (male 449,176/female 455,057)
65 years and over: 7.1% (male 36,309/female 54,465) (2010 est.)
Median Age: 31.4 years

Population Growth

Growth Rate: 0.776% (2010 est.) Rank: 142
Birth Rate: 14.41 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 146
Death Rate: 6.59 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Rank: 147
Net Migration Rate: -0.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 86

Urbanization

Urban Population: 42% of total population (2008)
Rate of Urbanization: 0.9% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Life and Death

Infant Mortality Rate: 12.2 deaths/1,000 live births Rank: 145
Life Expectancy at Birth: 74 years Rank: 96
Fertility Rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2010 est.) Rank: 158

Health and Disease

HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate: 1.7% (2007 est.) Rank: 36
People living with HIV/AIDS: 13,000 (2007 est.) Rank: 93
HIV/AIDS Deaths: fewer than 100 (2001 est.) Rank: 136

Nationality and Culture

Noun: Mauritian(s)
Adjective: Mauritian
Ethnic Groups: Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%
Religion: Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other Christian 8.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)
Languages: Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4%, English (official; spoken by less than 1% of the population), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)

Education

Literacy (Meaning, age 15 and over can read and write): 84.4% Male: 88.4% Female: 80.5% (2000 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education): 14 years Male: 14 years Female: 13 years (2005)
Education expenditures: 3.9% of GDP (2006) Rank: 107

Government

Country Name

Conventional Long Form: Republic of Mauritius
Conventional Short Form: Mauritius
Local Long Form: Republic of Mauritius
Local Short Form: Mauritius
Government Type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Port Louis Geographic Coordinates: 20 09 S, 57 29 E

Administrative divisions

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
Independence: 12 March 1968 (from the UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 12 March (1968)
Constitution: 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992
Legal system: based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Chief of State: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003); Vice President Angidi Veeriah CHETTIAR (since 24 August 2007)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM (since 5 July 2005)
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 (eligible for a second term); elections last held on 19 September 2008 (next to be held in 2013); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly
Election Results: Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH reelected president by unanimous vote; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA

Legislative Branch

unicameral National Assembly (70 seats; 62 members elected by popular vote, 8 appointed by the election commission to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members to serve five-year terms)
Elections: last held on 5 May 2010 (next to be held in 2015)
Election Results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - AF 41, MMM 18, MR 2, MSF 1; appointed seats - to be assigned 8

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Politics

Political Parties and Leaders: Alliance of the Future or AF [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM] (governing coalition - includes MLD, MMSM, MR, MSD, PMXD); Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER]; Mauritian Militant Socialist Movement or MMSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH]; Mauritian Socialist Militant Movement or MSMM [Madan DULLOO]; Mauritian Solidarity Front [Cehl FAKEERMEEAH]; Mouvement Republicain or MR [Jayarama VALAYDEN]; Parti Mauricien Xavier Duval or PMXD [Xavier Luc DUVAL]; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR]
Political pressure groups and leaders: various labor unions
International Organization Participation: ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, C, COMESA, CPLP (associate), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, SAARC (observer), SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Flag Description: four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green; red represents the blood shed for independence, blue the Indian Ocean surrounding the island, yellow has been interpreted as the new light of independence, golden sunshine, or the bright future, and green can symbolize either agriculture or the lush vegetation of the island

Economy

Economy Overview: 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 more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. The economy rests on sugar, tourism, textiles and apparel, and financial services, and is expanding into fish processing, information and communications technology, and hospitality and property development. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 15% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on creating vertical and horizontal clusters of development in these sectors. Mauritius has attracted more than 32,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India, South Africa, and China. Investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). In 2009, GDP grew 2.1%.

Gross Domestic Product

GDP (purchasing power parity): $16.65 billion (2009 est.) Rank: 130
GDP - real growth rate: 3.1% (2009 est.) Rank: 61
GDP - per capita (PPP): $13,000 (2009 est.) Rank: 84
GDP - Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 4.9% Industry: 24.6% Services: 70.5% (2009 est.)

Labor Force

Labor Force: 587,000 (2009 est.) Rank: 155
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture and fishing: 9%
construction and industry: 30%
transportation and communication: 7%
trade, restaurants, hotels: 22%
finance: 6%
other services: 25% (2007)
Unemployment Rate: 7.3% (2009 est.) Rank: 68

Poverty

Population below poverty line: 8% (2006 est.)
total: 3
country comparison to the world: 137
by type: passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 1

Transnational Issues

International Disputes: Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius; claims French-administered Tromelin Island

Want to know more? Show Full Profile