Mauritius-India relations: Cultural roots rebound economic thrusts

Finance Minister Pravind Jugnauth and Abhay Thakur

Finance Minister Pravind Jugnauth has on Monday signed a MoU with India in the context of the implementation of projects under the Indian Government’s recent grant assistance. To recall, India has offered Mauritius a grant of USD 353 million. These funds have been earmarked for five major projects. The move marks a new milestone and sets the stage for enhanced future economic cooperation.

The five major projects, which were announced in the recent Budget Speech, are: The Metro Express light rail project, costing Rs 9.9 billion; a New Supreme Court building at a cost of Rs 1.1 billion; Rs 500 million for the provision of tablets to primary students; construction of 1,000 housing units costing Rs 700 million and a new ENT hospital for Rs 500 million. According to the finance minister, these projects “will be game changers in five sectors which are crucial to our development, namely public transportation, education, health care, social housing and the judiciary.” The light rail project, on the cards for decades, seems to have finally reached the end of the tunnel.

Other agreements

Mauritius wants to conclude the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Partnership Agreement (CECPA) with India. This is required to further boost trade and investment relations. It is proposed that a Mauritius-India Infrastructure Development Fund be set up for the mutual benefit of both countries and for investment in the region. Both countries also want to work towards a Triangular Cooperation (India-Mauritius-Africa) that can leverage on Mauritius wide network of bilateral and multilateral cooperation arrangements in the region. This will enable both India and Mauritius to tap new markets and promote greater cross border investments in Africa. By doing so, India will be able to emerge as a key partner in the government’s New Africa Strategy. Other areas of collaboration will be in the field of film making, with the emergence of a Mauritian Film Industry high on the agenda; a further boost to the ICT sector with new value-addition investment; a Pharmaceutical Village is also in the pipeline, with the objective to cater for local needs and that of the region.

Other projects

Mauritius intends to seek further assistance to the tune of USD 200 million in order to further develop the port and related activities. Projects include an Oil Jetty at Albion; an Aviation Fuel Pipeline from the port to the airport; a joint petroleum storage project at Albion between Indian Oil, Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemical Ltd and STC of Mauritius and a breakwater in the port to house a marina. India will also providing a grant of USD 4 million and a line of credit of USD 52.3 million to finance the ‘Trident Project’, which aims to considerably upgrade facilities for maritime operations and surveillance by the National Coast Guard, the more so in the fight against drug trafficking in the Indian Ocean.

Warship visit

In a demonstration of India’s commitment to its ties with Mauritius and to promote maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region, Indian Naval Ship Shardul recently arrived at Port Louis on a three-day visit. INS Shardul, an amphibious ship of the Indian Navy, is currently on a month long deployment in the Southern Indian Ocean in keeping with the vision of SAGAR - Security and Growth for all in the Region. INS Shardul has also escorted MCGS Victory, a ship built at Goa Shipyard Limited, India and handed over to the National Coast Guard. The ship will also assist local authorities in providing logistics and medical support to the outer islands of Agalega and St Brandon. Since 2009, the Indian Navy has been deploying ships to Mauritius bi-annually to assist in patrolling the vast EEZ of the country based on requests by the Government of Mauritius.

Credit line

The last time that India has been very generous to Mauritius was in 2000-2001. At that time, India granted a line of credit of USD 100 million which was used to finance mainly the construction of Ebène Cybercity. In 2005, another important line of credit was offered to Mauritius. In 2012, the country benefited from an additional loan of USD 250 million as well as a grant of USD 20 million.

Tourism

The Indian market is in good progress and represents a huge potential for our tourism industry. Between January and October 2016, a total of 1,011,311 tourists visited Mauritius. This figure includes 67,577 tourists from India. The number of Indian tourists has been on the rise during the past few years. In 2015, we received 72,145 visitors from India, compared to 61,167 in 2014. In 2013, about 57,255 Indian nationals visited us, higher than the figure of 55,197 in 2012 and 53,955 in 2011. On the other hand, the number of Mauritians who visited India this year from January to June is 9,511. In 2015, about 20,090 Mauritians visited India. In 2014, the figure was 23,019. In 2013, India welcomed 25,038 Mauritian tourists, compared to 24,393 in 2012.

FDI into India: Mauritius tops the list

From April to September 2016, India has received a total of USD 5.85 billion through Mauritius. Mauritius is thus the highest source of Foreign Direct Investment into India, ahead of Singapore. It should be noted that, in 2013, Singapore was the highest contributor of FDI into India. According to official figures, at that time Singapore contributed 25 percent of FDI into India (in 2013 the amount was USD 6 billion) while investments routed through Mauritius to India was to the tune of USD 4.9 billion in 2013. A year earlier, a total of USD 9.5 billion was invested into India via Mauritius.

Working in Mauritius

Indian nationals account for 21% of the total number of valid occupation permits issued as at date. An occupation permit is a permit that allows a foreign national to work and live in Mauritius. Occupation Permits are issued to investors and professionals drawing a minimum salary of Rs 60,000. On the other hand, there are around 8,212 work permit holders of Indian nationality in Mauritius. A work permit is issued to foreign workers drawing a salary of less than Rs 60,000 per month.

Indian Birth Certificates

As strange as it may seems, despite the excellent brotherly relations between India and Mauritius, Indian Birth Certificates are not always recognised in Mauritius. Indian nationals seeking an occupation permit or residence permit in Mauritius often have to obtain an ‘Attestation of Birth’ from the Indian High Commission in Port Louis. This is basically an official document issued by the Indian Embassy that certifies the entries on the passport. India does not have a central birth registration system and birth certificates are issued by a wide range of bodies, ranging from civil status offices, municipal councils, ‘panchayats’, schools or even hospitals. Most often, the names are not written in full or are not in English. In Mauritius, even official translated versions are not easily accepted, hence the recourse to the Indian Embassy. The process is sometimes seen as an administrative burden, especially in the case of Indian investors as it delays the permit application process. To obtain a residence permit in Mauritius, both the passport and the birth certificate are mandatory. It costs Rs 945 to obtain a Birth Attestation at the Embassy.

PBD 2017

The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9 January every year to strengthen the engagement of the overseas Indian community with the Indian Government, reconnect them with their roots and celebrate their achievements and contributions. The 14th PBD Convention will be held in Bengaluru, Karnataka from 7 to 9 January 2017. PBD 2017 will focus on the theme “Redefining engagement with the Indian Diaspora”. The event will provide a platform for connecting with the Diaspora, address issues of concern to the Indian Diaspora and seek their insights and suggestions. It will also deepen engagement with the young Diaspora and reconnect them with their roots.

India favours Mauritius

Abhay Thakur, High Commissioner of India in Mauritius, stated at the ceremony that Mauritius derives higher benefit than other countries from the treaties signed with India. He said that according to comparisons between many countries, including South Korea and Cyprus, Mauritius has a favourable treatment. India will soon share with Mauritius the results of its comparison exercise to show how Mauritius is far better than the other countries.

Free visa for Mauritians

While Indian nationals obtain a visa upon arrival in Mauritius, Mauritian nationals have to apply for a visa before travelling. Mauritians are eligible for the e-Tourist Visa which is a paid service. However, since December 2015, Mauritius is included in the list of countries benefiting from free visas. All Mauritian nationals now obtain a visa online, free, and there is no need to visit the office of the High Commission. The e-visa is valid for 30 days, and available for tourism, meeting friends/relatives, short medical treatment or business visit. Upon online application, the visa is sent by email within 72 hours. (It should be noted that the correct website for online applications for Indian visa is: indianvisaonline.gov.in as there are a number of fake visa sites which users should beware of).

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