conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius

conventional short form: Mauritius

local long form: Republic of Mauritius

local short form: Mauritius

etymology: island named after Prince Maurice VAN NASSAU, stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, in 1598

note: pronounced mah-rish-us
Government type

parliamentary republic
Capital

name: Port Louis

geographic coordinates: 20 09 S, 57 29 E

time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: named after LOUIS XV, who was king of France in 1736 when the port became the administrative center of Mauritius and a major reprovisioning stop for French ships traveling between Europe and Asia
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 and Republic Day, 12 March (1968 & 1992); note - became independent and a republic on the same date in 1968 and 1992 respectively
Constitution

history: several previous; latest adopted 12 March 1968

amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage of amendments affecting constitutional articles, including the sovereignty of the state, fundamental rights and freedoms, citizenship, or the branches of government, requires approval in a referendum by at least three-fourths majority of voters followed by a unanimous vote by the Assembly; passage of other amendments requires only two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly; amended many times, last in 2016
Legal system

civil legal system based on French civil law with some elements of English common law
International law organization participation

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Citizenship

citizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: yes

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 out of the previous 7 years including the last 12 months
Suffrage

18 years of age; universal
Executive branch

chief of state: President Pritivirajsing ROOPUN (since 2 December 2019); Vice President Marie Cyril EDDY Boissézon (since 2 December 2019); note - President Ameenah GURIB-FAKIM, the country's first female president, resigned on 23 March 2018 amid a credit card scandal; Acting Presidents served from March 2018 until ROOPUN's appointment in 2019

head of government: Prime Minister Pravind JUGNAUTH (since 23 January 2017); note - Prime Minister Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH stepped down on 23 January 2017 in favor of his son, Pravind Kumar JUGNAUTH, who was then appointed prime minister; following 7 November 2019 parliamentary elections, Pravind JUGNAUTH remained prime minister and home affairs minister and also became defense minister

cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers (Council of Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

elections/appointments: president and vice president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for 5-year renewable terms; election last held on 7 November 2019 (next to be held in 2024); the president appoints the prime minister and deputy prime minister who have the majority support in the National Assembly

election results: 2019: Pritivirajsing ROOPUN (MSM) elected president by the National Assembly - unanimous vote; note - GURIB-FAKIM resigned on 23 March 2018

2015: Ameenah GURIB-FAKIM (independent) elected president by the National Assembly - unanimous vote; note - GURIB-FAKIM was Mauritius' first female president

Legislative branch

description: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (70 seats maximum; 62 members directly elected multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and up to 8 seats allocated to non-elected party candidates by the Office of Electoral Commissioner; members serve a 5-year term)

elections: last held on 7 November 2019 (next to be held by late 2024)

election results: percent of vote by party - MSM 61%, Mauritius Labour Party 23%, MMM 13%, OPR 3%; elected seats by party as of - the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) wins 38 seats, the Mauritius Labour Party (PTR) or (MLP) 14, Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) 8 and the Rodrigues People's Organization (OPR) 2; composition as of July 2022 - men 56, women 14, percent of women 20% (2019)

Judicial branch

highest courts: Supreme Court of Mauritius (consists of the chief justice, a senior puisne judge, and 24 puisne judges); note - the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) serves as the final court of appeal

judge selection and term of office: chief justice appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister; senior puisne judge appointed by the president with the advice of the chief justice; other puisne judges appointed by the president with the advice of the Judicial and Legal Commission, a 4-member body of judicial officials including the chief justice; all judges serve until retirement at age 67

subordinate courts: lower regional courts known as District Courts, Court of Civil Appeal; Court of Criminal Appeal; Public Bodies Appeal Tribunal
Political parties and leaders

Alliance Morisien (Mauritian Alliance 2019; coalition includes MSM, ML, Patriotic Movement, and Militant Platform) [Pravind JUGNAUTH]
Mauritian Militant Movement (Mouvement Militant Mauricien) or MMM [Paul BERENGER]
Mauritian People's Union (Linion Pep Morisien) [Bruneau LAURETTE and Dev SUNNASY]
Mauritian Rally (Rassemblement Mauricien) [Nando BODHA]
Mauritian Social Democratic Party (Parti Mauricien Social Democrate) or PMSD [Xavier Luc DUVAL]
Mauritius Labor Party (Parti Travailliste) or PTR or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]
Militant Platform (Plateforme Militante) [Steven OBEEGADOO]
Militant Socialist Movement (Mouvement Socialist Mauricien) or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH]
Muvman Liberater or ML [Ivan COLLENDAVELLOO]
Patriotic Movement (Mouvement Patriotic) [Alan GANOO]
Rodrigues Peoples Organization (Organisation du Peuple Rodriguais) or OPR [Serge CLAIR]