Politics

Main article: Politics of Mauritius

Politics of Mauritius takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, in which the President is the head of state and the Prime Minister is the head of government who is assisted by a Council of Ministers. Mauritius has a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the Government. Legislative power is vested in both the Government and the National Assembly. The absolute power is split between two positions: the President and the Prime Minister.

Parliament Main article: National Assembly of Mauritius

The National Assembly is Mauritius's unicameral parliament, which was called the Legislative Assembly until 1992, when the country became a Republic. It consists of 70 members, 62 elected for four-year terms in multi-member constituencies and 8 additional members, known as "Best losers", appointed by the Supreme Court to ensure that ethnic and religious minorities are equitably represented. The president is elected for a five-year term by the parliament. The island of Mauritius is divided into 20 constituencies returning three members each and that of Rodrigues is a single constituency returning two members. After a general election, the Electoral Supervisory Commission may nominate up to a maximum of 8 additional members in accordance with section 5 of the First Schedule of the Constitution with a view to correct any imbalance in community representation in Parliament. This system of nominating members is commonly called the best loser system.

The political party or party alliance which wins the majority of seats in Parliament forms the government and its leader usually becomes the Prime Minister. It is the Prime Minister who selects the members of the composition of the Cabinet from elected members of the Assembly, except for the Attorney General, who may not be an elected member of the Assembly. The political party or alliance which has the second largest majority forms the Official Opposition and its leader is normally nominated by the President of the Republic as the Leader of the Opposition. The Assembly elects a Speaker, a Deputy Speaker and a Deputy Chairman of Committees as some of its first task.

Government Main article: Government of Mauritius

Mauritius is a democracy with a Government elected every five years. The most recent General Election was held on 5 May 2010 in all the 20 mainland constituencies, as well as the constituency covering the island of Rodrigues. Historically, elections have tended to be a contest between two major coalitions of parties.

The 2012 Ibrahim Index of African Governance ranked Mauritius first in good governance. According to the 2011 Democracy Index compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit that measures the state of democracy in 167 countries, Mauritius ranks 24th worldwide and is the only African country with Full Democracy.

Office Held Office Holder Incumbency President Kailash Purryag 20 July 2012 Vice President Monique Ohsan Bellepeau 13 November 2010 Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam 5 July 2005 Deputy Prime Minister Rashid Beebeejaun 7 July 2005 Vice Prime Minister Xavier Luc Duval 5 July 2005 Vice Prime Minister Anil Bachoo 7 August 2011 Leader of the Opposition Alan Ganoo 28 January 2013 Rule of law

Laws governing the Mauritian penal system are derived partly from old French codes and English law. The crime rate reduced from 4.3 per 1,000 population in 2009 to 3.6 per 1,000 population in 2010. The Constitution of Mauritius states that for purposes of separation of powers, the judiciary is independent. According to The Heritage Foundation the trials are fair and the legal system is generally non-discriminatory and transparent. The Independent Commission Against Corruption investigates offenses and can confiscate the proceeds of corruption and money laundering. Mauritius is one of Africa's least corrupt countries.

Foreign relations Prime Minister of Mauritius Dr. Navin Ramgoolam and his wife Veena Ramgoolam with the President of the United States Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. Main article: Foreign relations of Mauritius

Mauritius has strong and friendly relations with various African, American, Asian, European and Oceania countries. It is a member of the World Trade Organization, the Commonwealth of Nations, La Francophonie, the African Union, the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), the Indian Ocean Commission, COMESA and formed the Indian Ocean Rim Association. Considered part of Africa geographically, Mauritius has friendly relations with African states in the region, particularly South Africa, by far its largest continental trading partner. Mauritian investors are gradually entering African markets, notably Madagascar, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The country's political heritage and dependence on Western markets have led to close ties with the European Union and its member states, particularly the United Kingdom and France. Relations with China and India are strong for both historical and commercial reasons.