Mauritius Map

The Republic of Mauritius is situated off the African coast in the Indian Ocean. Mauritius is about 2,000 kilometers from the African continent, and is to the east of Madagascar. Mauritius has a total area of about 2,040 square kilometers (787 square miles) and a population of about 1,291,456.
The capital and largest city of Mauritius is Port Louis, located in the northwest. Mauritius is divided into nine districts: Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Riviere Noire, and Savanne. Until 2002, there was a tenth district of Mauritius, which was the island Rodrigues, which gained independence from Mauritius.

Mauritius History
Before the arrival of Arab sailors and later Portuguese explorers in 1507, Mauritius was relatively unknown. The Portuguese established the island as a base, but it was not until the Dutch arrived in 1598 that the island was named Mauritius, and by 1638 the Dutch had settled there. France took control of the island in 1715, after the Dutch abandoned it, renaming it Isle de France. The island remained under French control for the most part, until the British raided the island in 1810, calling it Mauritius once again.

Mauritius gained independence from the United Kingdom on March 12, 1968, and twenty-four years later, became a republic within the Commonwealth in March 12, 1992.

Economy of Mauritius
The economy of Mauritius is based heavily on tourism, as well as textiles, sugar, information technology, hospitality, and renewable energy. With its tropical weather and warm, clear waters, beautiful beaches and culture, Mauritius is a luxury vacation destination. The island does not have natural resources to support its economy, but it does have sources of renewable energy, including hydro, solar, and wind power. Mauritius consistently ranks as one of the highest economies in Africa.

Mauritius uses the Mauritian rupee as its currency. The rupee was chosen for Mauritius after an influx of immigrants from India brought Indian rupees to the island.

District	Pop-2000	Pop-1990	Area(km.²)	Area(mi.²)	Capital
Agalega Islands			70	27	Port Louis
Black River	60,587	43,768	259	100	Tamarin
Cargados Carajos			1	0	Port Louis
Flacq	126,839	112,773	298	115	Centre de Flacq
Grand Port	106,665	96,667	259	100	Mahebourg
Moka	75,479	65,176	231	89	Moka
Pamplemousses	122,252	101,666	179	69	Pamplemousses
Plaines Wilhems	358,182	321,713	205	79	Beau Bassin-Rose Hill
Port Louis	127,855	133,073	44	17	Port Louis
Riviere du Rempart	98,854	86,779	148	57	Poudre d'Or
Rodrigues	35,779	34,204	104	40	Port Louis
Savanne	66,356	60,841	243	94	Souillac
12 divisions	1,178,848	1,056,660	2,041	787

Note  : - Pop-2000: 2000-07-02 census

ACOD~20130131
Last Updated On : July 28, 2015