Government of Mauritius

Government Of Mauritius

Coordinates: 20°12′S 57°30′E / 20.2°S 57.5°E / -20.2; 57.5

For other uses, see Mauritius (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Mauritania.

Republic of Mauritius
Motto: "Stella Clavisque Maris Indici" (Latin) "Star and Key of the Indian Ocean"
Anthem: Motherland Sorry, your browser either has JavaScript disabled or does not have any supported player. You can download the clip or download a player to play the clip in your browser.
Capital (and largest city)		Port Louis
Official languages		Nonea
Vernacular languages		Mauritian Creole French English
Demonym		Mauritian
Government		Parliamentary republic
-	President	Kailash Purryag
-	Prime Minister	Navin Ramgoolam
Legislature		National Assembly
Independence
-	from the United Kingdom	12 March 1968
-	Republic	12 March 1992
Area
-	Total	2,040 km2 (179th) 787 sq mi
-	Water (%)	0.07
Population
-	2012 estimate	1,291,456 (151st)
-	2011 census	1,233,000
-	Density	630/km2 (19th) 1,636.5/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2012 estimate
-	Total	$20.225 billion
-	Per capita	$15,595
GDP (nominal)		2012 estimate
-	Total	$11.224 billion
-	Per capita	$8,654
HDI (2011)		0.728 (high) (78th)
Currency		Mauritian rupee (MUR)
Time zone		MUT (UTC+4)
-	Summer (DST)	not observedb (UTC)
Date formats		dd/mm/yyyy (AD)
Drives on the		left
Calling code		+230
ISO 3166 code		MU
Internet TLD		.mu
a.	English and French are official in parliament.
b.	Mauritius's last DST period started on the last Sunday in October 2006 and ended on the last Sunday in March 2007. It was re-introduced in 2008 but Mauritius has not repeated it since 2009.

Mauritius i/məˈrɪʃəs/ (Mauritian Creole: Moris; French: Maurice, ), officially the Republic of Mauritius (Mauritian Creole: Republik Moris; French: République de Maurice) is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) off the south east coast of the African continent. The country includes the islands of Agaléga, Saint Brandon and Rodrigues. Mauritius forms part of the Mascarene Islands, which include the neighbouring islands of Réunion, Saint Brandon and Rodrigues. The area of the country is 2040 km2, its capital is Port Louis.

The first Portuguese explorers found no indigenous people living on the island in 1507. The island of Mauritius was the only home of the Dodo bird. The bird became extinct fewer than eighty years after its discovery. The Dutch settled on the island in 1598 and abandoned it in 1710, Mauritius became a French colony in 1715 and was renamed Isle de France. The British took control of Mauritius in 1810 during the Napoleonic Wars. The country became an independent state as a Commonwealth realm on 12 March 1968 and Republic within the Commonwealth on 12 March 1992.

The country's populace is composed of several ethnicities, mostly people of Indian, African, Chinese and European descent. Most Mauritians are multilingual, English, French, Creole and Asian languages are used.

The Mauritian Constitution is based on the Westminster model. The head of government is the President but constitutional power is vested by the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. Mauritius is the only African country with Full Democracy according to the Democracy Index.