Natalia Bayona, 
 Executive Director, UN Tourism

The investment guideline "Tourism Doing Business, Investing in Mauritius" provides an in-depth analysis of the economic overview and recent performance, value proposition, and competitive positioning of Mauritius as a tourism foreign direct investment (FDI) destination.

Economic Outlook

The guide highlights the favorable business environment of Mauritius to attract FDI, particularly in tourism. The island has developed into one of the most prosperous countries in Africa. It offers a marvelous blend of unique attractions for travelers and a remarkable business environment characterized by long lasting economic stability, high growth rates and a strategic geographic location that positions Mauritius as a regional business hub that bridges two continents.

With an average growth rate of around 5% from 1980 to 2009 and 4% from 2010 to 2019, Mauritius has become one of the most dynamic and prosperous countries in the region. It describes how the sound economy of the country led to an impressive recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic and maintains good expectations for the following years.

The report also shows certain social and economic indications that reinforce the attractiveness of the country such as employment, inflation, levels of investment, public financing and insights about the different sector's contribution to GDP, highlighting the relevance of tourism. Provided that the thriving economy of Mauritius cannot be understood without international trade, this report describes the regulation and polices that have positioned it as an export-oriented country.

FDI Performance

The guide examines Mauritius' performance in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) and explains its robust and favorable investment environment. It highlights the impressive rebound in FDI inflows after the pandemic, with 2022 showing figures even above any pre-pandemic peak. FDI inflows by sectors are displayed, in which investments in real estate tourism-related schemes and accommodation and food service activities stand out among the main FDI recipients.

Tourism has maintained its contribution to total FDI, reaching an average of 7.5% between 2010 and 2022, while the importance of the Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) of this sector has been growing in the last decade.

Value Proposition

The report highlights Mauritius' diversified economy and solid environment for investment and business as well as its strategic location and well-developed infrastructure. This makes Mauritius an international trade hub and a gate to the huge markets of Eastern and Southern Africa.

Investment Incentives

Mauritius offers a variety of incentive schemes to invest in the country and a well-defined legal and regulatory framework that provide a solid business environment. The report describes the available incentives provided by Mauritius to investors, starting with an overview of tax regimes and the main tax incentives such as the so-called investment certificate, which is applicable to many sectors and grated by the Economic Development Board Mauritius.

This investment guide also includes a detailed summary of several incentive schemes related to tourism, such as the Property Development Scheme, Silver Economy incentives, the Invest Hotel Scheme, Smart City Scheme, Hotel Development Scheme, and so forth.

Competitive Outlook

Finally, this report portrays the outstanding position of Mauritius as a regional benchmark in economic and social indicators, at both the regional and global level. The high ranks in terms of doing business parallels its exceptional performance regarding the Human Development Index and the African Governance ranking.

Moreover, the performance of Mauritius' tourism sector is compared with other countries by using the Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021, in which the island ranks at the top compared to other African country. This is complemented by a detailed description of the country's tourism cluster, statistics on tourist arrivals and the full country profile regarding tourism.