Overview
Mauritius, an island state in the Indian Ocean, is located about 1 800 km east of mainland Africa and inhabits approximately 1.3 million people. Despite its inherent vulnerability as a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy into an upper middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors.
Our partnership
The EU supports Mauritius in its efforts towards sustainable development and climate change adaptation and mitigation in line with Mauritius’ Vision 2030 - Transforming Our Future for the Better, the five-year Government Programme 2020-2024 and the EU’s Global Gateway Strategy.
This support focuses on three areas: strengthening human development, transitioning to a blue and green economy, and improving public finance management and governance.
Over the last decades, the EU has been Mauritius’ most important economic, financial and development partner, supporting the country through the sugar and textile reforms imposed by the alignment with World Trade Organisation obligations. The EU and Mauritius are linked by the EU-Eastern Southern Africa Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).
For the period 2021-2027, the EU allocated €8 million to Mauritius. The country also benefits from a number of multi-country EU programmes.
EU-Mauritius partnership programming documents can be found in the 'Related documents' section below.
Our key initiatives
- Jobs and growth
To improve infrastructure and transport, promote trade and strengthen entrepreneurship, the EU partners with Mauritius on:
- Extension of Rodrigues Airport - Enhancing the national, regional, and international connectivity and accessibility of the Rodrigues Island, increasing the safety of the airport and contributing to the social and economic development (including tourism and air freight).
- Supporting Mauritius’ EPA and trade negotiations by streamlining business and investment regulations, improving operational procedures for licensing and business operations.
- Enhancing entrepreneurship, competitiveness, and trade readiness of SMEs, with a focus on promoting equal access for women and youth to decent work, financial services, and credits, while facilitating the transition to a green economy.
- Circular economy and biodiversity
To foster sustainability and climate change adaptation, key initiatives include:
- Strengthening institutional and regulatory foundations to implement Mauritius' Circular Economy Roadmap and Action Plan, focusing on climate resilience, sustainability, and inclusive growth.
- Supporting the private sector with technical assistance and green credit lines for climate change projects, such as SUNREF.
- Promoting sustainable business practices and leveraging climate finance to support green initiatives.
- Aiding biodiversity conservation and climate adaptation in the Western Indian Ocean through initiatives like the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), along with reforestation and marine conservation efforts.
- Enhancing disaster risk reduction strategies, climate services, and regional coordination to reduce climate-related losses in the Indian Ocean region.
- Supporting food security, sustainable agriculture, and agroecology practices through various initiatives, including seed distribution, sustainable agricultural production, and nutrition support.
- Sustainable fisheries and maritime security
Actively supporting sustainable management of marine resources and improving ocean governance in the region, our actions focus on:
- Supporting the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement, aimed at promoting responsible fishing practices.
- Developing and enforcing international and regional agreements on blue economy policies, regional fisheries management, and combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
- Enhancing the capacity of maritime authorities and port agencies in the ESA-IO region, focusing on inspections, legislation development, and regional information sharing.
- Supporting criminal justice actors to improve prevention, investigation, and prosecution of maritime crimes, strengthening regional security and inter-agency cooperation.
- Governance
Supporting a sound, accountable and transparent institutional framework by 2030 and strengthening regional integration, the EU partners with Mauritius on:
- Building the capacity of countries in sub-Saharan Africa to address money laundering and terrorism financing.
- Empowering civil society, including investigative journalists and whistleblowers.
- Strengthening regional organisations, with a focus on anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism (AML/CFT).
- Health
To improve access to and the quality of essential health services, the EU assists Mauritius in:
- Enhancing the regional capacity to address epidemics and pandemics, focusing on zoonotic disease surveillance in livestock and wildlife, and strengthening laboratory services and response networks.
- Supporting efforts to fight harmful practices and improve access to sexual and reproductive health services, while promoting accountability for sexual and reproductive health and rights.
- Education and youth
The EU supports various initiatives in Mauritius to enhance education, training, and youth opportunities, aiming to improve employability and education quality.
The country participates in the ERASMUS+ programme, promoting student and staff mobility with 590 mobilities and 3 scholarships since 2021. The EU and Mauritius also work together on providing teacher training support, aligning VET programmes, promoting youth participation and promoting intercultural dialogue.