Migration in MauritiusA COUNTRY PROFILE 2013
Migration in MauritiusA COUNTRY PROFILE 2013
Migration in M
auritius A CO
UN
TRY PROFILE 2013
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The opinions expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the report do not imply expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IOM concerning legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries
IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society. As an intergovernmental organization, IOM acts with its partners in the international community to: assist in the meeting of operational challenges of migration; advance understanding of migration issues; encourage social and economic development through migration; and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants.
This publication was made possible through the financial support provided by the IOM Development Fund (IDF).
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Migration in Mauritius:
A COUNTRY PROFILE 2013
3Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Contents
List of tables ........................................................................................4List of figures .......................................................................................6Members of the technical working group .............................................7Acronym list ........................................................................................9Acknowledgments .............................................................................11Foreword ...........................................................................................13Map of Mauritius ...............................................................................15Key information for Mauritius ............................................................16Executive summary ............................................................................17
Part A: Overview of population and migration trends in Mauritius ....21A.1 InternationalmigrationdatasourcesinMauritius .................................. 21
A.1.1Censusesassourcesofmigrationdata ...................................... 21A.1.2CensusdatainMauritius ............................................................ 23A.1.3Samplesurveys ........................................................................... 25A.1.4Borderdatacollectionsystem .................................................... 26A.1.5Residencepermits ...................................................................... 27A.1.6Internationaldatabases .............................................................. 28
A.2.ThepopulationofMauritius:Factsandtrends ........................................ 31A.2.1Historicaloverviewontheevolutionof thepopulationofMauritius ........................................................ 31A.2.2Recentpopulationtrends:Fertility, mortalityandpopulationgrowth .............................................. 33A.2.3Populationageandsexcomposition .......................................... 38A.2.4Labourforce ................................................................................ 41A.2.5Internalmigration ....................................................................... 45
A.3 Populationwithforeignbackgroundandinternationalmigrations ......... 48A.3.1Foreignresidentpopulationovertime ....................................... 48A.3.2Legislationpertainingtointernationalmigration ...................... 51A.3.3Characteristicsofnon-Mauritians ............................................... 66A.3.4Foreignworkersandothercategories offoreignersinMauritius ........................................................... 71A.3.5Internationalmigration ............................................................... 77
A.4Mauritianslivingabroad .......................................................................... 87
Part B: Effects of migration in Mauritius .............................................97B.1Mauritiusasacountryofdestination ..................................................... 97B.2Mauritiusasacountryoforiginandthevalueadded byitsdiasporatoday .............................................................................. 100B.3 Internalmigration:AfocusonRodrigues............................................... 101B.4Borderdatacollectionsystem ................................................................ 102
4 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
B.5Migrationandhealth .............................................................................. 104B.6Migrationandenvironmentalchange .................................................... 105
Part C: Recommendations ...............................................................107C.1 Improvingmigrationstatistics ................................................................ 107C.2 Mainstreamingmigrationintonationaldevelopmentplanning ............ 111C.3 Establishingtheinstitutionalframeworkallowingcontinuity inthemigrationprofileexerciseandpolicydevelopment ..................... 115
Annexes ...........................................................................................117Annex1:Conceptsandinternationallyrecommended definitionsintheareaofinternationalmigrationstatistics .......... 117Annex2:Statisticaltables ............................................................................. 122Annex3:InstitutionalframeworkinMauritiuspertainingtomigration ....... 133
Bibliography ....................................................................................135
List of tabLes
Table1: PopulationsizeofMauritius,1767–2011 .............................................. 32Table2: PopulationchangeinMauritiusbasedon2000–2013 mid-yearestimates,withnumbersofbirthsanddeaths andestimatednetmigration ................................................................. 35Table3: Births,deathsandnaturalpopulationgrowth,2000–2012 .................. 36Table4: Lifeexpectancyatbirth,1950–2010 ..................................................... 37Table5: Populationagegroupstructurebasedonthe1990,2000 and2011censusesandselectedmid-yearestimates ........................... 38Table6: Populationagestructureindicators ...................................................... 41Table7: Populationaged16andover,bysexandactivitystatus ....................... 42Table8: Labourforceparticipationrates,byagegroupandsex,2012CMPHS . 43Table9: Unemploymentrate,byageandsex..................................................... 44Table10: Unemploymentrate,byeducationandsex .......................................... 45Table11: District-to-districtmigrationflowsofthepopulation aged5yearsandover,2006and2011 .................................................. 47Table12: Population,bynationality,2000and2011censuses ............................ 50Table13: Naturalization,bysex,2008–2012 ........................................................ 51Table14: RelevantinternationalconventionsratifiedbyMauritius ..................... 65Table15: Numberofnon-Mauritiansbycountryofcitizenship accordingtothe2011censusandvalidresidence permitsinMauritiuson1January2013 ............................................... 68
5Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table16: Numberofholdersofvalidworkpermitsbycountryof origininDecember2010and2013 ....................................................... 73Table17: Foreignworkersbybranchofindustry,2005,2009and2013 .............. 74Table18: Numberofoccupationpermitsissuedbetween 2October2006and30June2013 ........................................................ 75Table19: Enrolmentofforeignstudentsintertiaryeducation inMauritiusbycountryoforigin .......................................................... 76Table20: Numberofarrivalsanddeparturesonmain borderpoints,inthousands,2000and2010–2012 .............................. 78Table21: DepartureofMauritianresidents*travelling abroadbycountryofdisembarkation ................................................... 79Table22: DifferencebetweenarrivalsanddeparturesofMauritians andnon-Mauritians,byagegroup,2010–2012 .................................... 80Table23: Totalnumberofforeignnationalsdeported, arrestedandrepatriated,bynationality,2000–2014 ............................ 81Table24: ResidentMauritiansandnon-Mauritiansaged5years andoverwholivedabroadin2006,disaggregated bysexandcountryofresidencein2006 ............................................... 82Table25: Residentpopulationaged5yearsandoverwhowere abroadfiveyearspriortothe2000and2011censuses, disaggregatedbyage,sexandnationalitystatus ................................. 83Table26: Estimationofnetinternationalmigrationbetweencensuses 2000and2011forthepopulationbornbefore2000 ........................... 85Table27: Mauritian-bornpopulationaged15yearsandolder enumeratedinthe2000census,byvariouscountries ofresidence(includingMauritius) ........................................................ 88Table28: Mauritian-bornpopulationandMauritiannationals livinginselectedEuropeanUnionMemberStates ............................... 90Table29: FirstpermitsissuedbyEUMemberStatesto Mauritiancitizensvalidforatleast12months, byreasonforapplying,2008–2010 ....................................................... 90Table30: Newadmissionsofstudentsabroad,bycountry,2000–2011 .............. 91Table31: Estimatedtotaloverseasenrollment,bycountry,2000–2011 .............. 92Table32: Estimatedremittanceflows,2003–2010 ............................................... 93Table33: NumberofrepatriatedanddeportedMauritians,2000–2014 ............. 94Table34: Maleandfemale,byagegroup,andsexratio, 2000and2011censuses ..................................................................... 122Table35: Foreignersbycitizenshipandsex,andsexratio,
2000and2011censuses .................................................................... 123Table36: Non-Mauritiansbysexandsexratiobyagegroup ............................. 124Table37: Mauritiannationalsandforeignersintheworkforce,1990–2012 ...... 125Table38: Mauritianresidentsaged5yearsandoverlivingabroad in2006,disaggregatedbycountryofresidencein2006 ..................... 126Table39: ForeignersenumeratedinMauritiusinthe2011census,
disaggreagatedbyplaceofresidencein2006.................................... 127
6 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table40: Numberofpermitsissuedbetween2October2006 and30June2013,bynationality ........................................................ 128Table41: Numberofoccupationpermitholdersper sector,2013and2014 ......................................................................... 129Table42: Residentpopulationaged5yearsandover, byselectedcharacteristics,2011 ....................................................... 130Table43: Activeinternationalstudentsasof5May2014 .................................. 131
List of figures
Figure1: Extractfromthe2011censusquestionnaire showingquestionsfortheidentification ofpopulationsinvolvedinmigration .................................................. 24Figure2: Disembarkationcardfilledoutatarrivalby everynon-residenttraveller ................................................................ 27Figure3: PopulationgrowthinMauritius,1767–2011 ...................................... 33Figure4: Totalfertilityrate,1950–2010 ............................................................. 37Figure5: Ageandgendercompositionofthepopulation ................................. 39Figure6: Childrenandolderpersonsasproportionsofthe totalpopulation,2000and2011 ........................................................ 40Figure7: Growthoftheforeignpopulation,1983to2011 ................................ 50Figure8: Foreignersbysexandcountryofcitizenship,2000and2011 ............. 67Figure9: Ageandsexcompositionofforeigners,2000and2011 ..................... 69Figure10: Ageandsexcompositionofnon-Mauritiansholding validresidencepermitsinMauritiuson1January2013 ..................... 70Figure11: Changeinnumberofforeigncitizensbetween the2000and2011censuses ............................................................... 71Figure12: GrowthofthenumberofMauritian andforeignworkers,1990–2013 ........................................................ 72Figure13: Growthofthenumberofforeignerswithvalid workpermitsatyear-end,2004–2013 ............................................... 73Figure14: RelativechangeofthenumberofMauritiansby yearofbirthasapercentageofthe 2000censuscount,2000to2011 ...................................................... 87Figure15: Mauritian-bornlivinginothercountries,2000 ................................... 88Figure16: EstimatednumberofMauritianstudentspursuing tertiaryeducationabroad,atDecember ofeachyear,2000–2011 .................................................................... 92
7Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
MeMbers of the teChniCaL Working group
• MrsKanOyeFongWeng-Poorun,SeniorChiefExecutive,PrimeMinister’sOffice(HomeAffairs)
• Mr Veersingh Boodhna, Deputy Permanent Secretary, PrimeMinister’sOffice(HomeAffairs)
• Mr Ashish Kumar Jhoerreea, Assistant Permanent Secretary, PrimeMinister’sOffice(HomeAffairs)
• Mr Vikraj Ramkelawon, Analyst, Ministry of Finance and EconomicDevelopment
• MrKannenKathapermall,InternalCommunications,MinistryofFinanceandEconomicDevelopment
• MsA.Roopchund,MinistryofFinanceandEconomicDevelopment• Mr Rajesh Humath, Assistant Permanent Secretary, Ministry of
EnvironmentandSustainableDevelopment• MrRajaramLuximon,EnvironmentOfficer,MinistryofEnvironmentand
SustainableDevelopment• MrsPreeyadarshaneeDassaye,AssistantPermanentSecretary,Ministry
ofLabour,IndustrialRelationsandEmployment• MrYogendranathRamful,PrincipalHealthEconomist,MinistryofHealth
andQualityofLife• Mr Nasser Jeeanody, Chief Health Statistician, Ministry of Health and
QualityofLife• MrRajendranathSookloll,InspectorofPolice,PassportandImmigration
Office• MrAbdoolSariffMungralee,SeniorStatistician,StatisticsMauritius• MrsNaraineeDeviGujadhur,Statistician,StatisticsMauritius• MrYousoufBuxsoo,SeniorStatisticalOfficer,StatisticsMauritius• MrsKoudijahMaudarbocus-Boodoo,DirectorCompetitiveness,Boardof
Investment,Mauritius• MrKeshwarajsinghRamnauth,Chief,EconomicAnalysisDivision,Bankof
Mauritius• MrSomkeshBeerbul,ProjectManager,CentralInformaticsBureau• DrAansaBedacee,ResearchOfficer,TertiaryEducationCommission• Mr Arunen Valaydon, Head Research and Planning Division, Tertiary
EducationCommission• Dr Ashokabose Moorgawa, Research Officer, Tertiary Education
Commission
8 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
• MrRajcoomarAuckloo,Director,HumanResourceDevelopmentCouncil• Mrs Sangeeta Nundah, Assistant Programme Manager, National
EmpowermentFoundation• MrRamNookadee,Secretary,MauritiusCouncilofSocialServices• MrsSangeetahSeetulparsad,SeniorProgrammeandProjectCoordinator,
MauritiusCouncilofSocialServices• Dr Kamlesh Dookayka,Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science, Research
andTechnology
9Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
aCronYM List
APEI AcceleratedProgrammeforEconomicIntegration
CMPHS ContinuousMulti-PurposeHouseholdSurvey
GDP Grossdomesticproduct
ILO InternationalLabourOrganization
IOC IndianOceanCommission
LFS LabourForceSurvey
NTFM NationalTaskForceforMigration
OECD OrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment
PIO PassportandImmigrationOffice
UN UnitedNations
UNDP UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgram
UNHCR UnitedNationsHighCommissionerforRefugees
UNSD UnitedNationsStatisticalDivision
11Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
aCknoWLedgMents
ThismigrationprofileforMauritiuswouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthecontributionsofanumberofpeople.Wewouldliketothanktheinternationalconsultant,ProfessorMichelPoulainandAnneHermoftheUniversitécatholiquedeLouvain (UCL,Belgium)and theTallinnUniversity (TLU,Estonia)andSariffMungraleeofStatisticsMauritiusforthedatacollectionandanalysis,preparationofthestatisticalcompendiumandtechnicalrecommendations.
Special thanks go to: Lalini Veerassamy, IOMMauritius Head of OfficeandProjectManager,forhertechnicalsupportandcontributiontothereportontheeffectsofmigrationandpolicyrecommendations;NikhilTreebhoohun,whoreviewedthereportandprovidedrelevantrecommendations;RudolfAnich(IOMGeneva),forprovidingongoingtechnicalsupport;DavinaGounden(IOMMauritius),forcoordinatingandeditingthereport;AdishMaudho(GeoVision,Ltd),fordesigningthemapofMauritiusandlastbutnotleast,membersoftheTechnicalWorkingGroup,whoprovidedvaluableinputtothereportatdifferentstages.
13Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
foreWord
The Republic of Mauritius is one of the most prosperous economiesin Africa. It has been consistently ranked as the top performer in terms ofgovernanceaspertheMoIbrahimIndexandhasattainedvarioushighrankings,suchasnineteenthplaceworldwideinthe2013EaseofDoingBusinessIndex;sixthgloballyinthe2010EnvironmentalPerformanceIndexandtwenty-fourthin theDemocracy Index2011. In itsGovernmentProgramme for 2012–2015,entitled “Moving the Nation Forward,” the Government of Mauritius clearlyoutlineditsgoalofswitchingtoanewphaseofeconomicgrowthandfocusingonbecomingahigh-incomenation.
Asamiddle-incomecountry,Mauritiushasthepossibilitytocapitalizeonmigrationasatoolforsocioeconomicdevelopment.Mobility,inthecontextofamiddle-incomecountry,cannotonlyfacilitatetheintegrationofthedevelopingeconomy into regional and globalmarkets; it can also contribute towards itssocioeconomicdevelopmentatthenationallevel.Demonstratingitsobjectiveofusingmigrationpolicyasapivotaltoolinitsdevelopmentplan,MauritiuswasthefirstcountryinAfricatohosttheGlobalForumonMigrationandDevelopment(GFMD).Organizedin2012,theGFMDoutlinedthekeyinternationalroleplayedbyMauritiusasbotha“sender”and“receiver”countryintheareaofmigration.
Evidence, indeed, suggests thatmigration can be a powerful driver ofdevelopmentforbothmigrantsandtheirhouseholds.Thedevelopmentimpactsofmigrationatamoreaggregatecommunityornationalleveltendtobemoretangible,bothattheoriginandthedestination,whenmigrationflowsconcernalargeshareofacommunity’sorcountry’spopulation(thelatterbeingthecaseinsomesmallislandStateslikeMauritius,forexample),orwhenimmigrationoremigrationmovementsareveryconcentratedinaparticularregion.
Afirst situationassessmentandanalysishasbeencarriedoutwith thefinancialandtechnicalsupportoftheInternationalOrganizationforMigration(IOM). This first profile should constitute the basis of discussion for theidentificationofstrategicgoalsandprioritiesandthedevelopmentofanactionplanforMauritius.
14 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Thisnationalmigrationprofileshouldthereforeconstituteafundamentalbasis for the development of the first comprehensive policy document inMauritiuswhichaimstosetoutaroadmapshowinghowthismiddle-incomecountry intends to go about mainstreaming migration into developmentplanning.
We sincerely thank IOM for its support in the preparation of this keydocument.
Mrs. K.O. Fong Weng-PoorunSenior Chief Executive, Home Affairs Division,Prime Minister’s Office (PMO)
15Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Map of Mauritius
16 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
key information for Mauritius
OfficialnamesRepublicofMauritius
RépubliquedeMaurice(French)
Totalarea,insqkma 1,969
Capitalcity,latitudeandlongitude PortLouis,20°16’S57°50’E
Climate Tropicalmarine
Independencedate 12March1968
Politicalsystem Parliamentarydemocraticrepublic
Parliamenttype Unicameral(NationalAssembly)
Administrativedivisions 9districtsand3dependencies
MainbranchofeconomicactivityManufacturing,financialservices,tourism,informationandcommunicationstechnology,andagriculture
MainlanguagesEnglish,MauritianCreoleandFrench (noofficiallanguage)
Population,2011(lastcensus) 1,236,817
Population,2013(estimate)b 1,259,838
Populationdensity,2011(sqkm) 653
Lifeexpectancyatbirth,2012c 73.5
Labourforce,2012estimate 593,100
Unemploymentrate(%oflabourforce)d 8.1
Urbanpopulation(%oftotal),2012 41.5
GDP,total,2012(incurrentUSDmillions)e 10,492
GDPannualgrowthrate(%),2011–2012) 3.0
HDIvalueandrankamong186countries,2012d 0.737(highhumandevelopment);rank:80th
Currency Mauritianrupee(MUR)
a Source:UnitedNationsStatisticsDivision,“EnvironmentStatistics–CountrySnapshots,”webpage.Availablefromhttp://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/envpdf/Country_Snapshots_Aug%202013/Mauritius.pdf.
b EstimatebyStatisticsMauritius.c Source: United Nations Development Programme, “Human Development Indices: A statistical update
2012,”webpage.Availablefromhttp://data.un.org/Explorer.aspx.d Source: International Labour Organization, 2012 Labour Force Survey. Available fromwww.ilo.org/dyn/
lfsurvey/lfsurvey.list?p_lang=en.e Source:TheWorldBank,“WorldDevelopmentIndicators,”webpage.Availablefromhttp://data.worldbank.
org/data-catalog/world-development-indicators.
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/envpdf/Country_Snapshots_Aug%202013/Mauritius.pdfhttp://data.un.org/Explorer.aspxhttp://www.ilo.org/dyn/lfsurvey/lfsurvey.list?p_lang=enhttp://www.ilo.org/dyn/lfsurvey/lfsurvey.list?p_lang=enhttp://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/world-development-indicatorshttp://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/world-development-indicators
17Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
exeCutive suMMarY
Thismigrationprofilegivesadescriptiveanalysisof themainmigrationcharacteristicsandtrendsforMauritiusbasedonavailabledataandinformationprovidedbykeyplayersandinstitutions.ItisexpectedtobecomeatoolfortheGovernment ofMauritius to: (a) enhance the knowledge base onmigration;(b) identify the data gaps; and (c) provide the basis for coherence in thedevelopment of policies, to effectively manage migration in the interest ofnationaldevelopment.
the context
Although Mauritius is both a source and destination country forinternational migration, the inadequacy of data with respect to migrationmakesitdifficultfortheGovernmenttoelaborateamigrationpolicytopromotethe country’s socioeconomic development. It is important to strengthen thecapacityofpublicinstitutionstobettermanagemigration-relatedissues,namely,immigration,braindrain,thereturnofmigrantsandtheirreinsertionintothelabour market, remittances, mobilization of the diaspora, and the impact ofmigrationontheenvironment.
Themainobjectivesofthisdocumentaretoprovideareviewofmigrationtrends in Mauritius and to recommend how best to improve policymakingwith respect tomigration, taking into account the socioeconomic conditionsprevalentinthecountry.Itshouldprovidethebasisforabetterunderstandingofmigrationissuesandthedevelopmentofamigrationprofileasaframeworkfor the collectionandanalysis of data in supportof strategicplanning at thenationallevel.
Throughout the world, international migration has become a keycomponent of development for the achievement of individual well-being foreverybody.Several internationalbodiesand initiativeshavebeen launchedtomanageinternationalmigrationflowsandcoordinatingthesupportformigrantsallovertheworld.
Among these initiatives, the preparation of national migration profilesthatgiveacomprehensiveoverviewofthemigration ineachcountry, takesaprominentplace.Thistooliscountry-specific,butthisexercisehasbeencarriedout according to general guidelines provided by IOM in order to enhancecomparabilitybetweencountries(IOM,2011).
18 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Statisticaldataoninternationalmigrationflowsandthecharacteristicsofpopulationstockswithmigrationbackgroundsrepresentthebackboneofthismigrationprofile,whosemainobjectiveistosupportevidence-basedpolicy.Thepresentmigrationpolicybringssuchevidencebyconsideringalldataavailablethus far and extracting from these data a consistent view of the situation inMauritiusasfarasinternationalmigrationisconcerned.
In areas ofmigrationwhere available data is rare, innovativemethodsshouldbedevelopedinordertomakemaximumuseofdatacollectedforvariousstatistical purposes and in the course of administrative activities. The newmethodologiesdevelopedduringthepreparationofthismigrationprofilehavetobeusedtoensurethesustainabilityoftheprocessinthefuture.Moreover,certain data in international migration have important political dimensions,whichshouldbefactoredinwhenanalysingsuch.
Thismigration profile should not be an end in itself. It has to be seenas a tool and inputwithin the contextof theglobaldevelopment strategyofMauritiusinrelationtoitslabourpolicies.Eventhoughtheexercisehasrevealedgapsinthestatisticalcollection,thereareenoughindicatorstosupportthecasefora coherentmigrationstrategy tobeworkedout toovercome the internalstrainscausedbyanageingpopulation,adecliningfertilityrate,increasingyouthunemployment(particularlygraduateunemployment)andanincreasingnumberofforeignerscomingtoworkontheislandasnewsectorsofeconomicactivityemerge and grow (e.g. financial services, information and communicationstechnology, post-secondary education and the maritime industry). With apopulationofonly1.3million, it is clear thatmoremigrantswill be requiredifMauritiuswishestoemulateDubaiorcity-StateslikeSingapore.Atthesametimeitwillhavetofindjobsfortheincreasingnumberofgraduateschurnedoutbyagrowingtertiaryeducationsector.
Themajorthemeslinkedtomigrationmanagementwithintheframeworkofdevelopmentpolicyare:(a)institutionalarrangement;(b)datamanagement;(c)humanresourcecapacitymanagement;(d)linkageswiththediaspora;and(e)theprotectionofmigrantsandtheirhouseholds.Thesethemeshavetobecarriedforwardandmonitoredbyadedicatedbodyatthenationallevel.
It is therefore recommended that a National Task Force forMigration(NTFM)becreated,whichwillensureinter-ministrycoordinationforanoptimalimplementationofthemigrationprofile.TheNTFMwillbeanimportantbodyinchargeoftheaccurateinterpretationofcollecteddataandemergingtrends,whichwould stimulate the discussion on current and futuremigration policy
19Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
in Mauritius. The NTFM will be also responsible to find a consensus wherediscrepanciesappearincollecteddataandtocompileandupdatethemigrationprofile in a structured process that should be built in away that ensures itssustainability. Therefore, the Government should establish or strengthenstructures and mechanisms for regular data collection and reporting onmigration-relatedtrends.
Foreffectivepolicysupport,demandandsupplyofstatisticaldatashouldbereconciled.Therefore,aclosecooperationisneededbetweendataownersanddatausersfortheidentificationofindicatorsthatdescribetheongoingprocessesinthefieldofmigration.Withinanactionplan,eachoftheseindicatorsshouldbeassignedtoaresponsiblebody,withfixedtimelinesforregularupdates.Usingappropriatemethodsfortheaccurateinterpretationofdataisneeded,keepinginmind that reliability andtimeliness are crucial for theproductionof theseindicators.Moregenerally,comparingthelevelsoftherelevantindicatorsandassessingrelatedtrendsrepresentconcretesupporttopolicydevelopment.ThisistheobjectiveofthisfirstversionofthemigrationprofilebeingastartingpointforthemanagementofthenumeroustopicsrelatedtointernationalmigrationinMauritius.
21Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
part a: overvieW of popuLation and Migration trends in Mauritius
a.1 international migration data sources in Mauritius
Whilecensusesarethemaindatasourceforpopulationmigrationissues,other potential data sources exist inmany countries. These include nationalsurveys, including labour force surveys and household or migration surveys;administrativeregisters,suchaspopulationregisters,alienregistersandconsularregisters; and other administrative data collected by authorities responsibleformanagingmigration,suchasrecordsofresidencepermit,workpermitandasylum applications, and by border control, such as passenger surveys, visarecordsandentryandexitcards.
Theabove-mentionedrecordsandreportswereexploredforthepurposeofthismigrationprofileinordertoidentifyallexistingandpotentialsourcesofmigrationdatainMauritius.Whilecensuseshaveinthepastbeen(andarestilltoday)themostimportantdatasourceforpopulationissuessuchasmigration,administrativedatasourcesshouldbeusedmoreinthefuturefortheproductionofstatisticsoninternationalmigration.
a.1.1 Censuses as sources of migration data
Censuses constitute the most important tool for the collection ofpopulation data, including that on international migration. Population andhousing censuses attempt to determine the usual resident population ofa country and, consequently, tend to be good sources of informationon thenumberofmigrants living inacountryatagivenpoint intime (theso-called“migrantstock”).Somecountries,suchasComoros,haveusedtheircensusesinanattempttoestimateandcharacterizetheemigrantstock.However,becauseoftheirrelativelylowfrequency(censusesareusuallycarriedoutevery10years),censuseshavelimiteduseinmeasuringmigrantflows(thenumberofmigrantsenteringorleavingacountryinagiventimeperiod).Censusesarealsolimitedbythenumberofquestionsthattheyask,whichmeansthatobtainingdetailedinformation onmigration processes is usually not feasible. Specificmigrationsurveysarethereforerequiredforthecollectionofmoredetailedinformationonmigrantpopulationsonasamplebasis.
22 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
The benefits and disadvantages of using censuses for the collection ofinternational migration data are varied. In theory, a census counts the totalresident population, thus allowing the retrieval of statistics on all populationgroupsrelevanttointernationalmigration,irrespectiveofcitizenship,countryofbirthorevenlegalstatus.Sinceinternationalmigrantsstillconstituteonlyasmallproportionofthetotalpopulationinsomecountries,acensusisoftentheonlydatacollectioninstrumentthatprovidesadequateinformationoninternationalmigrantsdespitetheriskofunderestimation.
Acensusprovidesasnapshotofacountry’spopulationatagivenpointintimeandcanthereforebethebestsourceofdataonmigrantpopulationstocks.Censusesmaycollectdataonindividuals’countriesofbirthandofcitizenship,whicharetwopossiblevariablesthathelpidentifypopulationgroupsrelevantto internationalmigration. A census collects data on basic demographic andsocioeconomic characteristics of individuals, thereby allowing for the cross-classification of international migrants by characteristics such as age, sex,employment,educationandhousehold composition,amongothers.Given itsnature, a population census is particularly important for stock figures, sinceinformationoncountryofbirthandcountryofcitizenshipareusuallycollected.Itcanalsoprovidedataonimmigrationinflows,whenquestionsrelatingtopastplace(s)ofresidenceareasked.Giventhatinformationisself-reported,however,thereliabilityofcensusescanbequestionable. Sincecensusesonlytake intoaccount themovements of individualswho are present at the time they aretaken, they do not reflect departures or deaths thatmay occur in between,resultinginanimportantunderestimationofmigrationflows,asmigrantswhoarriveandleavebetweencensusesarenotaccountedfor.
Acensuscanonlycountimmigrantsstilllivinginthecountryatthetimeitistaken,thusexcludingthosewhohaveemigratedprior.Attemptstocollectdataonemigrantsareoftenunsuccessfuloncethese individualshave leftthecountry, and any information obtained from remaining family or householdmembersmaynotbeveryreliable.Censusesare,consequently,morefocusedonimmigrantpopulationstocksthanonmigrationflows.
Obtaining reliable statistics on emigration flows is not possible sincethemovementsofpersonswhohave leftthecountryatthetimeofacensuscannotbeadequatelycovered.Byaddressingquestionstoahouseholdmemberonhowmanymembersofthehouseholdhaveleftorarecurrentlyabroad, itmaybepossibletoestimatebothemigrantstockandflow.However,relyingoninformationfromthefamilyandrelativesthatemigrantshaveleftbehindislikelytoresultinanunderestimationoftheirtrue,asthereisnoonetoreportifallhouseholdmembershaveemigrated.
23Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Eventhoughthe2008UNCensusRecommendationsdonotrecommendincludingquestionstoaidinthemeasurementofemigrationflows,itisworthintroducing an emigration module in the census questionnaire. Usually,informationiscollectedonpeoplewhohavebeenabsentformorethanacertainminimumperiod.However,onlya fewdetails canbegathered,andany suchinformationwouldreferonlytoasubsetofemigrants.Moreover,sincethedatacollectionisoftenmeanttocoverpersonswhoareonlytemporarilyabsent,thedatacanbeinterpretedinvariousways.
a.1.2 Census data in Mauritius
Thehistory of census-taking inMauritius dates back to the eighteenthcentury. The first censuswas carried out in 1735, under the governorship ofMahé de Labourdonnais (SM 2011 census history). From 1767 to 1817, theFrenchcarriedoutcensusesevery10yearsandtheBritishdidthesamestarting1830.Thepost-WorldWarIIcensuseshavebeencarriedoutregularlybutthedecennialintervalwasnotstrictlymaintained.
ThelastpopulationcensuswasorganizedasperCensusOrder2011,withenumerationlastingfrom19June2011to1August2011.Defactoenumerationtookplacefrom20Juneto31July2011inrespectofallpersonsaliveonthemidnightbetween3and4July2011.ThecensuscountedallpersonspresentonCensusNightinallprivatehouseholdsandcommunalestablishments(includingcollectivequarters),aswellasusualresidentswhowereabsentonthesaidnight.Dataonwhereaboutsandusualaddressesenabledboththepresentpopulation(defacto)andtheresidentpopulation(dejure)counts.Thepopulationcountsofonlytwoislands,MauritiusandRodrigues,wereincludedinpublishedtables;AgalegaIslandhadlessthan200inhabitants,whileStBrandondidnothaveanypermanentresidents.
Thecensusquestionnaireincludedagroupofquestionsthatwereusedfortheidentificationofcertaincategoriesofmigrants(Figure1).
24 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 1: Extract from the 2011 census questionnaire showing questions for the identification of populations involved in migration
Thepreliminaryresultsof thecensuswerepublishedonlineonlya fewmonthsafter itwastaken. Theoverviewofthemainfindingsextractedfromthe2011censuswasbasedonunadjusteddata.StatisticsMauritiuspublishedfouranalyticalreportscoveringthe(a)demographicandfertility,(b)education,(c)disabilityand(d)economiccharacteristicsofthepopulation.Thepost-censusreport(SM,2014)featuredadjusteddata,withtheexhaustiveanalysisofcensusdata is still ongoing. Tabulations of geographic and migration characteristicswere published in October 2012; the corresponding analytical report will bepublishedin2014(SM,2014).
The2011censusreportsconsideredthreedifferentpopulations:(a)theenumeratedpopulation, (b)thepresentpopulationand(c)theusualresidentpopulation. Following UN recommendations (UN, 2008), the place of usualresidencewasdefinedastheplaceatwhichthepersonlivesatthetimeofthecensusandhasbeentherecontinuouslyforthepast12monthsorintendstolivetherecontinuouslyforatleast12months.
Thepost-censusdataevaluationreporthasbeenpartofcensusactivitiessince1952.Theevaluationofcensusdata isbasedondatafromthepreviouscensus(i.e.in2000),thenaturalincreasebasedonthevitalstatisticsoftheinter-censusperiodandnetmigrationestimatedfrominternationalpassengertraffic.Theanalysisofthe2000and2010censuses(SM,2005)notedthatthenumberofenumeratedchildrenbetween0and10yearsofage(i.e.childrenbornbetweencensuses)wasabout5to7percentlessthanthenumberexpectedaccordingto vital registration. There is no such under-enumeration of children abovetheageof10(i.e.those bornbeforethepreviouscensus). In2011thesame
25Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
magnitudeofunder-enumerationwasfoundamongchildrenages10to14whencensusfigureswerecomparedwiththeestimatedpopulationincorrespondinggenerations.
Even if passenger traffic records are regarded as complete becausepassengers can enter and exit only through two border points, that is, theairportandtheseaport,ithasbeennotedinthecensusevolutionreportthatthenetmigrationestimatedfromthesedataisnotfullyreliable.OnereasonisthatsomeMauritiansmayhavemorethanonecitizenship,andtheseholdersofdoublepassportssometimesuseonepassportwhenenteringandanotherwhenleaving the country, resulting in a discrepancy between visitor and residentcountsinthetwodirectionsoftravel.
a.1.3 sample surveys
Until 2004 the Labour Force Sample Survey collected information onlabour force employment and unemployment among the population. Since2004theContinuousMulti-PurposeHouseholdSurvey (CMPHS)hascollecteddataonvariousthemes,includinglabourforceandemploymentindicators.Thissurveyonly coversMauritians and excludes foreignworkers. Fromyear 2007labourforceestimateshavebeenbasedonthesegmentofthepopulationages16yearsandabove,followingtheamendmenttotheLabourActinDecember2006wherebytheminimumlegalworkingageis16years.
Thepublication“DigestofLabourStatistics2011,”circulatedinJuly2011,notedthatestimatesofthelabourforce,employmentandunemploymentwerebasedon the total residentpopulationages16yearsandover,and that“thelabour force includes foreignworkers,but separatefigures forMauritiansarealso given.” The information on foreign workers was actually obtained fromanother survey, the “Survey of Employment, Earnings and Hours of work inLargeEstablishments,”carriedouteveryyear inMarchamongestablishmentsemploying at least 10 persons on the day of the survey. This survey collectsaggregated data from establishments and employers in Mauritius anddistinguishes betweenMauritians and foreigners workers. The population offoreignworkers is disaggregated by sex andwork category (e.g.manager or“otherworker”);distributionacrossthedifferentbranchesof industryfollowsfromtheidentificationofthesectorof industryofeachrespondentcompany.Thissurveywasfirstorganizedprior to the1990s,andpublisheddataonthetotalnumberofforeignworkersinsuchestablishmentsareavailablefrom1990.Smaller establishments andpeopleworking at homeare not coveredby thissurvey.
26 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
a.1.4 border data collection system
The Passport and Immigration Office (PIO)maintains a database of alltravellersenteringand leaving the country that servesas themain sourceofdataforthecompilationofpassengertrafficstatistics.Dataiscollectedatbordercontrolpointsthroughdisembarkationcardsfilledoutbynon-residentsenteringthe country. Residents ofMauritius, whetherMauritian nationals or not, donot have to fill out the disembarkation card; returning residents’ passportdata is entered into theborder control databasebyPIO. Thedisembarkationcardfilledbynon-residents (Figure2) includesquestionsoncountryofbirth,country of citizenship, passport number a expiry date, purpose of visit andintendeddurationofstay.Attheendofeachmonth,dataonpassengertrafficforthatparticularmonthisdownloadedfromthebordercontroldatabaseandsuppliedtotheStatisticsUnitoftheMinistryofTourismandLeisure,whichthengeneratesstatisticaltablesandforwardsthesefigurestoStatisticsMauritiusforpublicationanddissemination.AdditionaldataoncruiseshipsissuppliedbytheMauritiusPortsAuthority.Thesedataaremostlyusedforthemanagementoftourismpolicy.Arrivalsanddeparturesarecountedanddata isdisaggregatedbyage,sexandthedistinctionbetweenMauritianandnon-Mauritian.Fornon-Mauritians,theonlydataavailablearethecountryofcitizenshipanddurationofstay(numberofnights).Asfarasmigrationstatisticsareconcerned,theannualdifferencebetweenarrivalsanddeparturesisconsideredasanestimationoftheannualnet internationalmigrationfigure.PIOiscurrently linkingthedifferentbordercrossingsofagivenpersonbasedonpassportnumber,nameanddateofbirth.Suchlinkageallowstheidentificationofinternationalmigrantsbasedontheiractualdurationofstaywithinoroutsidethecountry.
According to theMinistry ofHealth andQualify of Life, theuseof thehealth declaration form is for the surveillance of vector-borne diseases suchas malaria, dengue and chikungunya, as well as emerging and re-emerginginfectious diseases, among migrants and other mobile populations enteringthroughthemainborderposts.Foractivecasedetection,passengersarrivingfromcountrieswithendemicinfectiousdiseasesareinitiallyscreenedatportsofentry.Attheairport,forexample,athermalcameraisusedtodetectfever.Inaddition,HealthInspectorateDivisionstaffmemberspostedattheportandtheairportscrutinizehealthdeclarationformstocheckfordeclarationsofmedicalsymptomsbyincomingpassengers.Thehealthdeclarationformiscompulsorilycompleted by all incoming passengers, as required by the Public Health Act.Datafromhealthdeclarationformsarecapturedbycomputer,andpassengerswhomayhavebeenexposedtoanydiseaseundersurveillanceareclassifiedbyregion.Thelistsofsuchpassengersaresenttotherespectivehealthoffices,of
27Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
whichthereare14inthemainislandandoneinRodrigues.Thereafter,thelistedpassengersarefollowedupbyhealthsurveillanceofficersattheirresidencesorotherplacesofaccommodation,asindicatedontheirhealthdeclarationforms.
Figure 2: Disembarkation card filled out at arrival by every non-resident traveller
a.1.5 residence permits
ThePIOhasbeendelegatedauthoritybythePrimeMinister’sOffice(PMO)toissueresidencepermitstoforeigners(exceptinrespectofforeignersacquiringresidentialpropertiesundertheRealEstateDevelopmentScheme,permanentresidence for 10 years and residence permits for an indefinite period). ThedatabaseofresidencepermitholdersthatPIOmaintainsisthereforecoordinatedwiththeresidencepermits,whichareonlyissuedbythePMO.Suchadatabaseusuallyprovidesinformationonimmigrationflowsandstocksofforeignersinacountry.Thepopulationconcernedisthelegal,non-nationalpopulationentitledtoliveinthecountrybyvirtueoftheirresidencepermits.
Statisticspertainingtointernationalmigrationareaproductoftheutilityoftheresidencepermitdatabase.Whenusingdataderivedfromtheresidencepermitregistry,dueattentionshouldbepaidtoexistingregulationsregardingentryandlengthofstayinthecountry,sincethesewouldaffectthestatistics.Discrepanciesbetweenthenumberofissuedpermitsandthenumberofdefactoimmigrationsmayalsoarisebecauseofnon-arrivals,earlydeparturesordoublecountsduetothesimultaneousvaliditiesofmultiplepermits.Nevertheless,evenifonlyafewspecificsubgroupsof immigrantsarecovered,residencepermits
28 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
canstillprovideimportant informationonmigrationflows.Theadministrativedatabases that compile information on permits are thus valuable sources ofvariousstatisticsoninternationalmigration.This importancederivesfromthedatabase’sgoodcoverage,thelimitedcostsentailedandtheavailabilityofdatainelectronicformat.Thisdatasourcecanthereforebeusedinmakingestimatesof several basic indicators of the migration-related population, such as thestocksofforeignersandnewimmigrants,andchangesinstatusamongresidentforeigners.
At any rate, several conceptual andmethodological issues need to beresolvedbeforeproducingmigrationstatisticsbasedonthisdatasource.Closecooperationbetweennationalstatisticalinstitutesandtheministryoftheinteriorinchargewithadministeringandmaintainingthepermitdatabasesappearstobethemostimportantprerequisitefordevelopingthisdatasource.
Inlightofthepreparationofthismigrationprofile,theresidencepermitdatabasewasanalysedtodetermineasuitablemethodforproducingstatistics.Previously, from2011to2013, individual residencepermitdata recordswereusedforcharacterizingthestockofforeignerslivinginthecountry.Theresidencepermit database appeared to be a good proxy source for such data, even ifresidence permit holders do not necessarily stay in Mauritius for the entirevalidityperiodoftheirresidencepermits.Whilethedatabasewasapromisingsourceofreliabledataoninternationalmigrantstock,someproblemshadtobesolvedbeforethedatacouldbeusedforaggregations,forexample,cleaningthedatabaseofduplicaterecords,inordertofitwithinternationallyrecommendeddefinitiononinternationalmigration.Therefore,onlyresidencepermitswithacumulativedurationofvalidityexceeding180dayswereselected.
a.1.6 international databases
Whereparticularnationaldataweremissingordifficulttocollect,UNandotherinternationaldatabaseswereexploredinordertocollectsuchdataforthismigrationprofile.Thesedataconcernsmainlynationalslivingabroadandsomeindicatorsusedforassessingacountry’slevelofsocioeconomicdevelopment.
Figures pertaining to international migration available on variousinternational databasesmay differ from their country-produced counterpartsfor reasons that arenotnecessarily identifiable. Thesefigures remainuseful,however,notonlybecausetheyserveasacomparativetool,butalsobecausetheyincludedataonemigrationandthediaspora,whichareusuallydifficulttocollectbyeachnationalstatisticaloffice.Emigrationdatacanonlybeobtained
29Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
ifimmigrationdatainreceivingcountriesarelikewisecollected.However,thisispossibleonlyifthecountryoforigin(orcitizenship)providesenoughdetails.Thediasporacanbecharacterizedthroughstatisticsfromtheircountriesofactual(orcurrent)residence,namely,immigrants’countryofcitizenshiporbirth.Somedetaileddatabasesalsoprovidedataonremittancessentbyemigrantstotheirfamiliesbackhome,andasylum-seekersandrefugeesbycountryoforigin.
Themaininternationalbodiescompilingstatisticaldatabasesinthefieldofinternationalmigrationareasfollows:
1. TheUnitedNationsStatisticalDivision(UNSD,NewYork)collectsdataoninternationalmigrationflowsandmigrantstocksforallthecountriesoftheworld.Thesedataareorganizedinauniquedatabaseandareaccessibleonthe Internet at http://data.un.org.Inordertoprovideaglobalperspectiveoninternationalmigration,UNSDpreparesanannualreportthatfeaturesestimatesofmigrantstocks,eitherbyconsideringdataproducedbythecountriesthemselvesor,ifsuchisnotavailable,byusingadhocmodels.
2. TheUnitedNationsPopulationDivisioninNewYorkpublishesanannualtable entitled “International Migration Wall Chart,” the most recentupdate is available on the Internet, at http://esa.un.org/unmigration/wallchart2013.htm, and in CD-ROM. A number of reports onmigration(e.g. International Migration Policies, World Migration Figures and International Migration) are available from www.un.org/development/desa/population.
3. TheUnitedNations Development Program (UNDP,New York) publishestheHumanDevelopmentReporteveryyear.Thereport includesa largenumber of statistics on various aspects of human development and isavailableathttp://hdr.undp.org.
4. TheInternationalLabourOrganization(ILO,Geneva)collectsandanalysesalargenumberofstatisticsonlabourmigrationonallcountrieswhichareaccessiblefromhttp://laborsta.ilo.org.
5. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR,Geneva)collectsandanalysesdataconcerningasylum,refugeesand displaced persons around the world. These are accessible from http://popstats.unhcr.org.
6. TheWorldBank(Washington,D.C.)proposesdataonremittancessentbyemigrantstotheircountryoforigin,aswellasvariousindicatorsrelatedtodevelopment.TheGlobalBilateralMigrationDatabaseincludesdataonstocksofmigrantsbycountryoforiginanddestinationcountriesofmigrants
http://data.un.orghttp://esa.un.org/unmigration/wallchart2013.htmhttp://esa.un.org/unmigration/wallchart2013.htmhttp://www.un.org/development/desa/populationhttp://www.un.org/development/desa/populationhttp://hdr.undp.orghttp://laborsta.ilo.orghttp://popstats.unhcr.org
30 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
and is accessible from http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/global-bilateral-migration-database.Somebasicinformationonremittancesanddevelopment indicatorscanbe found in theMigration and Remittances Factbook 2011,fromhttp://econ.worldbank.org/.
7. Eurostat (Statistical Office of the European Communities, Luxembourg)collects data on international migration from Member States of theEuropeanEconomicAreaandEuropeanUnioncandidatecountries.Thedatabase is accessible from http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/population/data/database.
More precisely, the Eurostat database includes data on the followingthemes:
(a) Dataonmigrationandcitizenshipincludingdataonpopulationstockdisaggragatedby(a)countryofcitizenshipand(b)countryofbirth;anddataonmigrationflowsdisaggregatedby(a)countryofcitizenship,(b)countryofbirthand(c)countryofpreviousornextresidence,aswellasdataonacquisition;
(b) Data on residence permits issued to citizens of non-EU countries,disaggregated by either country of citizenship, duration of permitvalidityormotiveforapplying;
(c) Dataonasylum-seekers,includingdecisiontakenatthefirststageoftheasylumprocedureandfinaldecision;
(d) Statisticsonnationalimmigrationlegislation,includingdataonnon-EUcitizenswhoareillegallypresentonEUterritoryorwhoseentrywasrefused,andontherepatriationofnon-EUcitizenswhosepresenceisnotauthorized.
8. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, Paris)alsomakes a database on immigrants available to itsMember States at www.oecd.org/migration/mig/oecdmigrationdatabases.htm.Thedatabase,namedDatabaseonImmigrantsinOECDCountries(DIOC-E),alsoincludesdataon68non-MemberStates,includingMauritius.
http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/global-bilateral-migration-databasehttp://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/global-bilateral-migration-databasehttp://econ.worldbank.org/.http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/population/data/databasehttp://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/population/data/databasehttp://www.oecd.org/migration/mig/oecdmigrationdatabases.htm
31Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
a.2 the population of Mauritius: facts and trends
a.2.1 historical overview on the evolution of the population of Mauritius
TheislandofMauritius,situated800kmeastofMadagascarandwithalandsurfaceofabout1,860sqkm,wasuninhabiteduntiltheDutchEastIndiaCompanystartedtosettlethere in1638, leaving in1710. In1721,theFrenchtookovertheisland,andthepopulationquicklyincreasedtoabout3,000bythemiddleoftheeighteenthcentury.TheFrenchengagedinsugarcanecultivationandimportedslavesfromMadagascarandcontinentalAfrica.Theisland’sfirstpopulationcensusdatesbackto1767,whenmorethan18,000personswereenumerated(Table1).
WhentheBritishconqueredMauritiusin1810,thepopulationwasalmost100,000;however,morethan80percentwereslaves.Theabolitionofslaveryaquarterofacenturylater–in1830–reducedthesizeofthepopulation(asseeninTable1),probablybecausemostslavesreturnedtoMadagascarortheAfrican continent.More than 100,000 Indians were recruited to replace theslaves,whichisthemainreasonwhyMauritiansofIndianoriginstillmakeupthelargestsegmentofthepopulationtoday.WhileimmigrationflowswerethemaindriverofMauritius’population increase inthenineteenthcentury, theirimpactwas largely reduced from1860onwards; natural increase constitutedthemainreasonoftheslowevolutionofthepopulationuntilWorldWarII.Theeradicationofmalariainthelate1940sandtheoverall improvementof livingconditionsthroughoutthegloberesulted inasharpdecreaseinthemortalityrate.Asthetotalfertilityratewasstillashighassixchildrenperfamilyuntil1965,populationgrowthwassteady,doublingfrom419,000to829,000between1944and1973.Inthe1960s,familyplanningstartedbeingpromotedinMauritius.Itisconsideredasthedriveroftheworld’smostrapidfertilitydecline,bringingthetotalfertilityrateinthecountrytolessthanthreechildrenperwomanwithinadecade.Accordingly,thegrowthofthepopulationstillcontinuestobepositive,butatalowerrate:thepopulationpassedthemillionmilestonejustbefore1990andreached1.2millionin2010(seeFigure3).
32 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 1: Population size of Mauritius, 1767–2011
Census year Population size Annual growth rate for the intercensal period (%)
1767 18,777 -
1777 29,761 4.7
1787 40,439 3.1
1797 59,020 3.9
1807 77,768 2.8
1817 97,847 2.3
1830 96,945 -0.1
1840 124,335 2.5
1851 181,318 3.5
1861 310,743 5.5
1871 317,150 0.2
1881 361,305 1.3
1891 372,656 0.3
1901 374,185 0.0
1911 373,620 0.0
1921 383,069 0.3
1931 401,440 0.5
1944 431,070 0.5
1952 514,748 2.2
1962 699,954 3.1
1972 850,968 2.0
1983 999,945 1.5
1990 1,056,660 0.8
2000 1,178,848 1.1
2011 1,236,817 0.4
Source:StatisticsMauritius.
33Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 3: Population growth in Mauritius, 1767–2011
Source:StatisticsMauritius;DigestofDemography(from1851).
a.2.2 recent population trends: fertility, mortality and population growth
Betweenthe last twocensuses (i.e. from2000to2011) thepopulationgrewby58,000persons–a4.9percentincreasewithin11years.However,thepopulationgrowthrateiscontinuouslydeclining,withoutsignsofstabilization.Thisdemographic trend isexclusivelyduetodecreasingnaturalgrowthrates.Theestimatednetmigration is considered slightlynegativeand stableduringthesaidperiod.
The residentpopulation is thecountofallusual residentsofacountryat thetimeof the census. For census purposes, “usual residence” is definedastheplacewherethepersonislivingatthetimeofthecensusandhasbeentherecontinuouslyforthepast12monthsorintendstolivetherecontinuouslyforatleast12months.The1990censusenumerated1,056,660residents;inahistoricaldataseries,itisconsideredtobethedejurepopulation.Theestimatedmid-year figure for 1990 was adjusted for the under-enumeration of 2,115childrenages0to5years.
34 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
The 2000 census counted among the country’s resident population1,143,069personslivingonthemainislandofMauritius;35,779personsontheislandofRodrigues;and289ontwosmallerislands,givingatotalof1,179,137.Another2000censusfigureexists–1,178,848–whichrepresentsthecombinedpopulation count for the twobigger islands ofMauritius andRodrigues. Likein 1990, the 2000 census under-enumeratedminor children. 8,025 childrenwereaddedex-posttocensusdata,resultinginanadjustedtotalpopulationof1,186,873persons.
The post-census evaluation of the 2011 census showed that 15,587childrenages0to14yearsweremissing.Accordingly,theadjustedcensusfigurewouldbe1,252,404.
AscanbegleanedfromthedatapresentedinTable2,naturalchangeisthemostimportantfactorexplainingthegrowthofMauritius’population.Thecountry’sbirthratedecreasedfrom17.0to11.2per1,000inhabitantsbetween2000and2011,while thedeathrate increased from6.7 to7.2 (Table3).Thesizeofnaturalchangewasreducedbyafactoroftwoduringthisperiod.Astheestimatedinternationalmigrationbalancehasaminoreffectonthetotalchangeinpopulationsize,theamplitudeofthatchangewasdividedbymorethantwoduringtheperiod.
35Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Tabl
e 2:
Pop
ulati
on c
hang
e in
Mau
ritius
bas
ed o
n 20
00–2
013
mid
-yea
r esti
mat
es, w
ith n
umbe
rs o
f birt
hs a
nd d
eath
s and
esti
mat
ed n
et m
igra
tion
Year
Star
t of y
ear
popu
latio
nM
id-y
ear
popu
latio
nCe
nsus
po
pula
tion
Adju
sted
cen
sus
popu
latio
nEn
d-of
-yea
r po
pula
tion
Num
ber
of b
irths
Num
ber o
f de
aths
Nat
ural
ch
ange
Estim
ated
net
m
igra
tion
Tota
l ch
ange
2000
1,18
0,36
11,18
6,87
31,17
8,84
81,18
6,87
3**
1,19
1,58
120
,205
7,98
212
,223
2001
1,19
1,58
11,19
6,28
7
1,20
0,45
419
,696
7,98
311
,713
500
12,213
2002
1,20
0,45
41,20
4,62
1
1,20
8,99
619
,983
8,31
011
,673
-569
11,104
2003
1,20
8,99
61,21
3,37
0
1,21
7,18
719
,343
8,52
010
,823
524
11,347
2004
1,21
7,18
71,22
1,00
3
1,22
4,62
919
,230
8,47
510
,755
-822
9,93
3
2005
1,22
4,62
91,22
8,25
4
1,23
1,12
518
,820
8,64
610
,174
350
10,524
2006
1,23
1,12
51,23
3,99
6
1,23
6,81
317
,604
9,16
28,44
2-300
8,14
2
2007
1,23
6,81
31,23
9,63
0
1,24
1,87
617
,034
8,49
88,53
6-400
8,13
6
2008
1,24
1,87
61,24
4,12
1
1,24
5,77
516
,372
9,00
47,36
8-200
7,16
8
2009
1,24
5,77
51,24
7,42
9
1,24
8,91
515
,344
9,22
46,12
0-300
5,82
0
2010
1,24
8,91
51,25
0,40
0
1,25
1,40
215
,005
9,13
15,87
4-21
5,85
3
2011
1,25
1,40
21,25
2,40
41,23
6,81
7*1,25
2,40
4**
1,25
3,86
514
,701
9,17
05,53
1-262
5,26
9
2012
1,25
3,86
51,25
5,88
2
1,25
7,21
614
,494
9,34
35,15
1-293
4,85
8
2013
1,25
7,21
61,25
8,65
3
1,25
9,56
413
,688
9,44
04,24
8-1900
2,34
8
Sour
ce:Statistic
sMau
ritiu
s(Dem
ograph
yUnit)and
autho
rs’calculatio
ns.
*Th
e20
11cen
susad
optedtheUN-recom
men
dedde
finition
ofu
sualre
side
nce.Con
sequ
ently,the
201
1censusfigu
reisnotstrictly
com
parablewith
thecorrespo
ndingmid-yea
restim
ate.Statistic
sMau
ritiu
sestim
ated
thatth
eap
plicati
onofthe
new
defi
nitio
nredu
cedthecensusfigu
reby1.3pe
rcent(o
r15
,300
persons).
**Thisad
justed
figu
recon
side
rsth
e20
11cen
susfig
urean
dad
optsth
ene
wdefi
nitio
nof“usua
lresiden
ce.“The
adjustedfig
uresfo
rbo
th200
0an
d20
11cen
susesinclud
eun
der-en
umerated
childrenan
dare
backda
tedtoth
e1sto
fJuly.The
mid-yea
rpo
pulatio
nfig
uresin
200
0an
d20
11havebe
enestimated
byusingthead
justed
cen
susfig
ures.
36 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 3: Births, deaths and natural population growth, 2000–2012
2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2011 2012
Birthrates(annualnumberofbirthsdividedbythemid-yearpopulation,in%)
17.0 16.6 15.7 14.3 13.2 12.0 11.7 11.5
Deathrates(annualnumberofdeathsdividedbythemid-yearpopulation,in%)
6.7 6.9 6.9 7.4 7.2 7.3 7.3 7.4
Naturalgrowthrate(differencebetweenbirthanddeathrates,in‰)
10.3 9.7 8.8 6.9 6.0 4.7 4.4 4.1
Source:StatisticsMauritius;DigestofDemography(forcrudebirthandcrudedeathrates).
Aspreviouslymentioned,thereductioninthefertilityratestartedinthe1960s;thefertilityratefellfrom6.2childrenperwomanin1960–1964to2.2in1980–1984.Thesteadydecreaseinthenumberofbirthsobservedduringthelast intercensalperiodshouldnotbemistakenasaresultof thecontinuationofthistrend(thecurrent levelofthefertility isestimatedbytheUNtobeaslowas1.6childrenperwoman)(Figure4).Themainfactorresponsibleforsuchadecrease inthenumberofbirths isthedecliningnumberofyoungwomen,whichcouldbeexplainedbyeitheragenerationeffect(specifically,adecreasein thesizeofwomenbirthcohorts)oremigration (a relativelybignumberofwomenleftthecountry).Thesizeofthebirthcohortsstartedtodecreaseonlyinmid-1990s,andthisimpactisexpectedtocontributetothedecreaseinthenumber of births only in the coming years. Accordingly, the decrease of thenumberofbirthsduringthelastdecadeisastrongindicationoftheemigrationofwomenofreproductiveage.
37Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 4: Total fertility rate, 1950–2010
Source:UnitedNations,DepartmentofEconomicandSocialAffairs,PopulationDivision(2013).WorldPopulationProspects:The2012Revision,DVDEdition.
TheincreaseinlifeexpectancysincethemiddleofthetwentiethcenturyisevidentinUNdata(Table4).Lifeexpectancyforbothsexesrosefrom50tomorethan72yearswithinhalfacentury.ItmovedMauritiusfromasituationstilllargelyobservedinAfricatoalevelsimilartothoseindevelopedcountries.
Table 4: Life expectancy at birth, 1950–2010
Both sexes Male Female Gender gap1950–1955 50.2 49.0 51.5 2.5
1955–1960 55.8 54.0 57.6 3.7
1960–1965 61.2 59.4 63.0 3.6
1965–1970 63.0 60.8 65.0 4.3
1970–1975 63.5 60.7 66.3 5.6
1975–1980 65.7 61.5 70.0 8.5
1980–1985 68.1 64.5 71.8 7.3
1985–1990 68.5 64.7 72.5 7.8
1990–1995 70.3 66.6 74.1 7.4
1995–2000 70.4 66.8 74.2 7.5
2000–2005 72.1 68.9 75.5 6.6
2005–2010 72.8 69.4 76.3 6.9
Source:UnitedNations,DepartmentofEconomicandSocialAffairs,PopulationDivision(2013).WorldPopulationProspects:The2012Revision,DVDEdition.
38 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
a.2.3 population age and sex composition
Theageand sexdistributionof theMauritianpopulation,presented inTable5andFigure5,clearlyshowsanincreasinglyageingpopulationinMauritiussince1990.Thisreflectsthestrongeffectofthedeclineinfertilityinthe1960sand1970s.Thepopulationpyramidfeaturedatraditionalshapeinthe30-and-oversegmentin1990,inthe40-and-oversegmentin2000,andinthe50-and-oversegment in2011.Belowtheseages,theagegroupsweremoresimilar insizeasa resultof thebalancingeffectof thedecreasing fertility rateand thedecreasingnumberofyoungwomen.In2011,asFigure5shows,thissituationisnolongerobserved,andtheshrinkingofyounggenerations(i.e.0to14yearsofage)isobviousinthecensus.TheageingofthepopulationissummarizedinFigure6,whichshowsasharpdecreaseinthepopulationshareofthe0–14agegroup,asopposedtothestronggainsmadebythoseaged40to64.
Table 5: Population age group structure based on the 1990, 2000 and 2011 censuses and selected mid-year estimates
1990 census
2000 census
2004 mid-year
2006 mid-year
2008 mid-year
2011 census
2012 mid-year
TOTAL 1,056,660 1,178,848 1,233,386 1,252,698 1,268,565 1,236,817 1,291,167
0–4 96,719 94,303 97,648 94,526 88,963 73,078 76,111
5–9 103,482 105,189 99,797 98,351 97,839 89,015 91,948
10–14 113,273 97,740 108,949 106,917 101,621 93,639 97,700
15–19 97,202 102,088 94,963 101,339 107,965 101,008 104,064
20–24 102,664 110,892 107,584 97,341 93,335 92,671 104,638
25–29 105,582 93,797 106,753 113,237 110,489 90,937 93,103
30–34 93,589 99,515 92,847 94,834 102,743 103,429 112,269
35–39 81,209 101,946 99,909 95,178 90,411 87,797 96,599
40–44 60,435 90,406 98,979 103,091 101,672 89,386 92,208
45–49 44,710 77,931 85,477 89,635 93,938 99,341 99,858
50–54 38,039 56,939 74,229 76,123 80,590 86,337 88,627
55–59 32,163 40,491 50,550 60,356 67,856 73,054 75,595
60–64 30,846 33,097 35,201 38,627 44,761 57,342 59,644
65–69 24,253 25,768 28,565 29,101 29,283 35,439 36,882
70–74 14,749 21,694 20,769 22,200 24,133 25,375 24,887
75andabove
17,674 26,933 31,166 31,842 32,966 38,350 37,034
Unknown 72 119 619
Source:StatisticsMauritius;DigestofDemography.
39Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 5: Age and gender composition of the population
Source:StatisticsMauritius(1990,2000and2011censuses).
40 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 6: Age groups as proportions of the total population, 1990, 2000 and 2011
30%
45%
20%5%
25%
43%
26%
6%
21%
38%
33%
8%Age group
1990
2000
2011
0–14
15–39
40–64
65andover
Source:CalculationsbasedonStatisticsMauritiusdata.
Thedependencyratio–thatis,theratioofthenumberofpersonsinthedependent age groups (0 to 14, and 65 and over) to that in theworking-agepopulation(i.e.15to64)–hasdecreasedduringthetwolastdecades(Table6).Thisisduetoasimultaneousdecreaseinthenumberofchildrenandanincreaseinthepopulationaged15to64and65andover.However,theincreaseinthesizeofthe65-and-oversegmentcannotcompensateforthelargedecreaseobservedamongyounggenerations.Theso-called“seniorsupportindex,”whichmeasuresthedegreeofsupportfortheelderlythatthegenerationoftheirchildrenmaypotentiallygiveisverylowandfurtherdecreasing,albeitslightly.Theagestructureindexfortheworking-agepopulationshowsthattheshareofolderadultshasalmostdoubledsince1990; thisgroupcomprised40percentof theworking-agepopulationin2012.Therapiddeclineinthenumberofpeoplebelongingtoyounggenerationsismostlyresponsibleforthelargedropinthedemographiclabourpressureindex(theratiobetweenthenumberofpeoplebelowworkingage(thoseaged5to14),whowilleventuallyenterthelabourmarket,andthosewhoabouttoleavethelabourmarket(i.e.thoseaged55to64).
Inconclusion,therecentdemographicchangesinMauritiusandtheoverallageingofthepopulationarestillfavourableintermsofsupporttodependentpersonsand,morespecifically,theretiredpopulation.Neverthelesstherelativeageingoftheworking-agepopulationmayreducethedynamismofthelabourforceintheforthcomingyears.
41Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 6: Population age structure indicators
1990 census
2000 census
2011 census
2012 mid-year
Populationbelowworkingage(0to14years) 315,610 297,232 255,732e 265,759
Working-agepopulation(15to64years)a 686,485 807,102 881,302 926,605
Populationaged65yearsandover 56,680 74,395 99,164 98,803
Demographicdependencyratio:
(0–14)+(65+)/(15–64)54.2 46.0 40.3 39.3
Childdependencyratio:(0–14)/(15–64) 46.0 36.8 29.0 28.7
Elderlydependencyratio:(65+)/(15–64) 8,3 9.2 11.3 10.7
Seniors’supportindex:(65+)/(40–64) 27.5 24.9 24.5 23.8
Populationinworkingages15to39years 480,279 508,238 475,842 510,673
Populationinworkingages40to64years 206,206 298,864 405,460 415,932
Agestructureindexfortheworking-agepopulationb 0.43 0.59 0.85 0.81
Populationaged5to14years 217,132 202 929 182,654 189,648
Populationaged55to64years 63,013 73,588 130,396 135,239
Demographiclabourpressureindexc 3.45 2.76 1.40 1.40
Working-agefemales,15to39years 235,914 253,125 236,244 254,765
Working-agefemales,40to64years 105,258 151,614 204,658 211,798
Femininityratio,15–39agegroupd 97 99 99 100
Femininityratio,40–64agegroupd 104 103 102 104
Source:StatisticsMauritius(1990,2000and2011censusesand2012mid-yearestimates)andauthor’scalculations.
NOTES:
aTheworking-agepopulationincludesallpersonsaged15to64years,accordingtotheUNdefinition.
bRatioofthenumberofpersonsaged40to64yearstothenumberofpersonsaged15to39years.
cRatioofthenumberofpersonsaged5to14yearstothenumberofpersonsaged55to64years.
dRatioofthenumberoffemalesaged15to39years,orthoseaged40to64years,tothenumberofmalesinthesameagegroup.
The15,587childrenaged0to14yearsaddedtothepopulationastheresultoftheadjustmentdoneinthepost-censusevaluationreportarenotincluded.
a.2.4 Labour force
Labour forcedatahavebeencollectedsince2004 through theCMPHS,whichisconductedonaquarterlybasis.TheestimatesbasedonthesedatareferonlytotheMauritianpopulationaged16yearsandaboveandexcludeforeignworkers.Asthesampleofthesurveyincludesalladultswithoutanyupperagelimit,wehavetoconsiderthatapartoftheincreaseintheinactiveproportionofthepopulationislinkedwiththeglobalageingpopulation.
AccordingtodataonactivitystatuspublishedbyStatisticsMauritius,thelabourmarkethasbeenverystableinrecentyears,withonlyasmallincrease
42 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
in theeconomically activepopulation since2000 (seeTable7).However, thelabourforceparticipation(i.e.theshareoftheeconomicallyactivepopulationofthetotalpopulationaged16andabove)isverylow–justabovehalf.Thisisactuallyduemainlytotheyoungestagegroup(thoselessthan20)andelderly(65andabove)havingverylowparticipationrates(accordingto2012data;seeTable9). Inotheragegroups, the labour forceparticipationrate ishigh (80%forthoseaged25to29forbothsexestogether;95%forthoseaged30to49formen).Asfarassexisconcerned,women’slabourparticipationrateisonlyabouttwothirdsthatofmen’s,andthissituationisroughlythesameinallages.Nevertheless, the changes in women’s labour force participation rates from2000to2011reflectan increase intheir levelofactivity.This isconfirmedbymorerecent(specifically,2012)CMPHSdata.
Table 7: Population aged 16 and over, by sex and activity status
Total population aged 16 years and above
2000 census 2011 census 2012 CMPHS
Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total
424,154 438,828 862,982 472,261 489,578 961,839 486,600 506,900 993,500
Economicallyactivepopulation
338,029 171,917 509,946 356,213 208,147 564,360 368,400 224,700 593,100
Labourforceparticipationrate(%)
80.0 39.3 59.1 76.0 42.7 58.7 75.7 44.3 59.7
amongtheemployed
309,441 155,059 464,500 337,070 185,128 522,198 348,700 196 100 544,800
amongunemployedjob-seekers
28,588 16,858 45,446 19,143 23,019 42,162 197,00 28,600 48,300
Unemploymentrate(%)
8.5 9.8 8.9 5.4 11.1 7.5 5.3 12.7 8.1
Inactive 84,698 265,793 350,491 112,586 279,363 391,949 118,200 282,200 400,400
Notreported 1,427 1,118 2,545 3,462 2,068 5,530 0 0 0
Source:StatisticsMauritius(2000and2011censusesand2012CMPHSdata).
43Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 8: Labour force participation rates, by age group and sex, 2012 CMPHS
AgeLabour force participation rate (%)
Male Female Total
16–19 23.0 15.6 19.3
20–24 72.9 55.2 64.3
25–29 92.2 67.2 80.0
30–34 95.8 61.1 78.5
35–39 95.6 61.8 78.4
40–44 94.6 63.9 79.0
45–49 95.0 55.5 75.1
50–54 92.4 42.8 67.2
55–59 83.9 37.6 60.2
60–64 47.6 16.1 31.0
65andover 16.1 4.5 9.3
TOTAL 75.7 44.3 59.7Source:StatisticsMauritius.
TheunemploymentrateisrelativelylowamongmencomparedtowomeninMauritius– justabove5percentofeconomicallyactivemen,accordingtoStatisticsMauritius(Table9).Theemploymentsituationofyounggenerations,particularlyamongwomenismoreproblematic.AsTable9shows,morethanonethirdofpeopleinthelabourmarketagedbelowareunemployed;amongyoungwomen,unemploymentreaches45percent.Asthelabourforceparticipationintheseagesislow,thehighlevelofunemploymentmaybearesultoftoo-lowqualifications, asmostof inactive individuals are students trying toacquireahighereducation.Nevertheless,inthe20–29agebracket,inwhichnearlytwothirdsofwomenareactive,theunemploymentisremarkablyhighaswell,witheveryfifthactivewomanbeinganunemployedjob-seeker.
44 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 9: Unemployment rate, by age and sex
Unemployment rate (%) by age group:
2000 census 2011 census 2012 CMPHS
Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total
8.5 9.8 8.9 5.4 11.1 7.5 5.3 12.7 8.1
Below20 41.2 38.8 40.4 38.1 49.1 42.2 29.4 45.2 35.7
20–29 14.9 14.9 14.9 11.1 16.5 13.4 12.6 21.8 16.4
30–39 4.1 6.6 4.9 3.0 9.6 5.5 3.0 11.2 6.3
40–49 2.7 3.9 3.1 2.1 7.0 3.9 2.3 8.0 4.5
50andabove 2.0 2.6 2.1 1.6 3.6 2.2 1.9 4.2 2.6
Source:StatisticsMauritius(2000and2011censusesand2012CMPHS).
Accordingtocensusdata,unemploymentamongpeoplewithatertiaryeducation(obtainedeither locallyand/orabroad)has increased,from1.7percentuptonearly5percentin2011(Table10).ThereasonwhytheCMPHSshowsfourtimeshigherlevelsofunemploymentamongthetertiary-educatedisnotyetclearandmaybeduetodifferentclassificationsofeducationalattainmentusedbycensusesandsurveys.Infact,inmakingunemploymentestimates,theCMPHSdefinesthetertiary-educatedpopulationascomprisingholdersofcertificates,diplomas,degreesandhigherqualifications,whilecensusesincludeonlyholdersofdegreesandhigherqualifications.WithhigheraspirationsfromtheMauritianpopulation, therehasbeena growingdemand forhigher educationover theyears,anditshouldbenotedthataboutonethirdofMauritianstudentsenrolledinhighereducationstillstudyoverseas.OutofthefivepublictertiaryeducationalinstitutionsinMauritius,fourimposefullfeesandothercharges.TheUniversityofMauritiusistheonlypublicinstitutionwhichdoesnotimposetuitionfees–basedona1976governmentdecisiontograntfreeeducationattheprimary,secondaryandtertiarylevels.TheUniversityofMauritius,whichcurrentlyhasthe largest student population among tertiary educational institutions in thecountry,however,enforcesadministrativeandothercharges.Privateuniversitiesandtertiaryeducationalinstitutionsestablishedlocallyhaverelativelyhighfees,rangingfromMUR45,000toMUR240,000annually.Areliableestimateoftheunemployment ratewouldbe required toassess this current trend, as it is akeyindicatorgenerallylinkedtotheemigrationofhighskilledpersons–atopicconsideredinthenextsection.
45Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Table 10: Unemployment rate, by education and sex
2000 census 2011 census 2012 CMPHS**
Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total
Primary 12,409 5,219 17,628 4,937 5,744 10,681 4.900 6,800 11,700
Secondary 15,191 10,820 26,011 13,342 16,142 29,484 11,000 16,000 27,000
Tertiary* 402 347 749 813 1,105 1,918 3,800 5,800 9,600
Total 28,002 16,386 44 388 19,092 22,991 42,083 19,700 28,600 48,300
Shareamongunemployed(%)
Primary 44.3 31.9 39.7 25.9 25.0 25.4 24.9 23.8 24.2
Secondary 54.2 66.0 58.6 69.9 70.2 70.1 55.8 55.9 55.9
Tertiary* 1.4 2.1 1.7 4.3 4.8 4.6 19.3 20.3 19.9
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source:StatisticsMauritius(2000and2011censusesand2012CMPHS).
NOTES:
* Includespeoplepursuinghigher-levelpostgraduatedegreesandprofessionaldevelopmentcourses.
** Estimatesofunemploymentbasedonthe2012CMPHSdefinition,wherebytertiary-educatedpopulationcompriseholdersofcertificates,diplomas,degreesandhigherqualifications;unemploymentfiguresinthecensusesincludeonlyholdersofdegreesataminimum.
a.2.5 internal migration
The analysis of internal migration is based on data collected throughthe 2011 census question on place of current usual residence and place ofusualresidencefiveyearsprior(Figure1,questionP11B).Ittakesintoaccountmovementsbetweenmunicipalwardsandvillagecouncilareas(VCAs)butdoesnotconsidermovementswithin theseareas.Also,0.6percentof thecensuspopulationdidnotstatetheirusualaddressin2006.Thesepeoplehavebeenexcludedfromthisanalysis;therefore,themigrationnumbersmayundercount,eveniftoalittleextent,theactualnumberofmigrantsbetween2006and2011.
Between2006and2011,94,218(8.1%ofthetotalpopulationagedfiveyears and over) people changed their place of residence to a different areawithinthecountry.Amongallpersonswhomigratedwithintherepublic:
(a) 89,808(95.3%)changedresidencewithintheislandofMauritius.
(b) 2,232(2.2%)changedtheirresidencewithintheislandofRodrigues.
(c) 2,178(2.3%)changedtheirplaceofresidence,movingbetweentheislands of Mauritius and Rodrigues. Of these inter-island migrants,1,116(51.2%)leftRodriguestosettleinMauritius,while1,062(48.8%)movedfromMauritiustoRodrigues.
(d) Youngadultsagedbetween16and29yearswerethemostmobileagegroup.
46 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Themovementofpeoplehasanumberofpotentialimpactsonexpandingeconomicopportunityandontheactivitiesofdailylife–forexample,commutingtoandfromtheplaceofwork,shopping,visiting,amongothers.Thesetypesofactivitiesareofinteresttocertainusers.
inter-district mobility
Table 11 shows how inter-district migrants impacted the size of thepopulation of each district and their share of the 2011 population. It alsoshows the population share of inter-district emigrants in 2006. Black Riverand Moka Districts attracted the highest number of immigrants (7.8% and4.8%,respectively),whilePortLouisDistrict registeredthehighestnumberofemigrants(5.5%).PortLouisremainsthemainloserandBlackRiverDistrictthelargestbeneficiaryintermsofnetinter-districtmovementofpeople.
Theanalysisshowedthatnetinternalmigrationrateswerepositiveinonlyfourdistricts:Pamplemousses,Flacq,MokaandBlackRiver.Ofalldistricts,thelargestnetgainwasexperiencedbyBlackRiver(+2,559peopleor+3.9%).Themaindriversof thisnetpopulation increasewereRichelieuandAlbionVCAs,wheretherehavebeennewhousingprojectsduringthe2000–2011intercensalperiod.
Asmentioned,thelargestnetlosswasexperiencedbyPortLouis(-2,960peopleor-2.6%).Itisworthnotingthatasimilarscenariowasobservedduringthe1995–2000period.Rodrigues,ontheotherhand,registeredthesmallestnetloss,thatis,54people.
47Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Tabl
e 11
: Dis
tric
t-to-
dist
rict m
igra
tion
flow
s of t
he p
opul
ation
age
d 5
year
s and
ove
r, 20
06 a
nd 2
011
Imm
igra
nts
Emig
rant
sN
et in
ter-
dist
rict
mig
rant
s
Popu
latio
n 20
11 (e
xclu
ding
th
ose
who
wer
e ab
road
an
d un
know
n)
Popu
latio
n 20
11
by d
istr
ict o
f re
side
nce
in 2
006
%
Imm
igra
nts
%
Emig
rant
sN
et in
tern
al
mig
ratio
n ra
te
AB
C =
A –
BD
EA/
DB/
E2C
/(D+
E)
Repu
blicof
Mau
ritiu
s36
,455
36,455
01,13
1,28
71,13
1,28
73.2%
3.2%
-
Port
Lou
is3,23
06,19
0-2,960
109,07
511
2,03
53.0%
5.5%
-2.68%
Pamplem
ousses
5,41
14,28
11,13
012
3,58
912
2,45
94.4%
3.5%
0.92
%
R.duRe
mpa
rt2,68
82,75
2-64
97,679
97,743
2.8%
2.8%
-0.07%
Flacq
2,98
92,79
419
512
5,19
212
4,99
72.4%
2.2%
0.16
%
Grand
-Port
2,63
02,74
7-117
103,28
010
3,39
72.5%
2.7%
-0.11%
Savann
e1,67
12,04
3-372
62,442
62,814
2.7%
3.3%
-0.59%
Plaine
sWilh
ems
7,92
08,72
3-803
331,36
933
2,17
22.4%
2.6%
-0.24%
Moka
3,63
83,15
248
675
,187
74,701
4.8%
4.2%
0.65
%
BlackRiver
5,21
62,65
72,55
967
,093
64,534
7.8%
4.1%
3.89
%
Island
of
Rodrigue
s1,06
21,11
6-54
36,381
36 4
352.9%
3.1%
-0.15%
Sour
ce:Statistic
sMau
ritiu
s.
48 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Commuters from place of residence to place to work
Oneofthemaingoalsofthenationalphysicalstrategyistheimprovementof inter-urban and intra-urban traffic flows through the formulation of long-termroadschemesandshort-termtrafficmanagementprojects.Roadsleadingto thecityhavereachedtheir traffic-bearingcapacity.Variousmeasureshavebeen implemented by theMauritian Government tomake traffic flowmorefluid incertainregions. Inordertostudythemovementofpeople fromtheirplaceofusual residenceto theirworkplace,aquestiononplaceofworkwasaskedduringthe2011populationcensus.Thecensusshowedthatmorethan201,000employedpersonscommutetoanotherdistrictdaily.PortLouisDistricthadthehighestinfluxofworkers,withatotalof66,798persons(42,857malesand23,941females)enteringthedistrictforworkeveryday.Morethan38percent(27,534)camefromPlainesWilhems,followedbyPamplemousses(21.8%or12,045).
a.3 population with foreign background and international migrations
Thereareseveralwaystoidentifythepopulationwithforeignbackgroundlivinginagivencountry.Either:(a)countryofbirthisidentifiedand,withthisinformation, the foreign-born population is considered, or (b) citizenship ornationality is considered and, in the case ofMauritius, a distinction ismadebetween Mauritians and non-Mauritians. In the former group, a furtherthe distinction may be made between Mauritians by birth and naturalizedMauritiansatalaterstage.BasedonUNcensusrecommendations(2008),itisimportanttoincludeintheresidentpopulationbothtemporaryforeignworkersandotherforeignerswhohavelivedinthecountryforatleastoneyearorhavetheintentiontodoso.ThisrulehasbeenappliedbyStatisticsMauritiusinthe2011censusenumeration.Theuseofadministrativedatarecordsonresidencepermitsandbordercrossingsrepresentsanalternativewaytoassessthenumberofforeignersinthecountrybasedonthedurationofthevalidityoftheirpermitsordurationofstayinthecountry.
a.3.1 foreign resident population over time
Mauritius did not have an indigenous population, and the populationhas historically been composed of immigrants and their descents. The 1972censuswasthefirstcensusorganizedafterindependenceandtheintroductionofMauritiancitizenship.In19725,524non-Mauritianswereenumerated.The1983 and 1990 censuses included a question on nationality and identified,
49Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
respectively,5,039and7,181non-Mauritians.Thereafter,thisnumberincreasedsteadily,reaching15,556in2000and26,028in2011(Figure7).
It is importanttonote,however,thatthetwolastcensusesdidnotuseasimilardefinitionfor“resident.”In2011StatisticsMauritiususedarestricteddefinitiontoidentifyaresidentpopulationinordertocomplywithUNguidelines.The new definition (UN, 2008) considers only those personswho have beenlivinginthecountryduringlast12monthsorthosewhoenteredrecentlybutintend to stay in the country as usual residents for at least 12months. Thenationaldefinitionusedinthe2000censusdidnotapplythistimerestriction.StatisticsMauritiusestimated the loss causedby thenewdefinition toabout1.3 per cent of thewhole population. The loss for the number of foreignerscouldbeevenbiggerbecauseforeignersaremobileandalargenumberofthemcannotmeetthistimeconstraint.Asshownfurtherinthismigrationprofile,theestimatednumberofforeignersdiffersbetweencensusresultsandaggregatedbordercrossing,residencepermitandworkpermitdata.Infact,thereisahighprobabilitythatthenumberofforeignersdoubledinMauritiusbetweenthelasttwocensuses.
WhileMauritiansconstitute98percentofthepopulation,thisshare isslowlydecreasingwith therespectivegrowthof foreignpopulation: the2000census estimated that 1.3 per cent of theMauritian population consisted offoreigners (in the 2011 census, this proportionwas already 2.1% (Table 12)).AssessingtheoriginsofMauritiannationalslivinginMauritius,itisfoundthatmostofthemwereborninMauritius(99.5%).Naturalizationisveryrare,andnaturalized Mauritians represent only 0.2 per cent of all Mauritians; theirabsolute number even decreased between the 2000 and 2011 censuses.Moreover,comparingthenumberofnaturalizationsperyear(Table13)tothenumber of enumerated naturalizedMauritians, it appears that a part of thenaturalizeddonotliveinMauritius.
To encourage business formation via direct investment and to supporthigh-endrealestatedevelopments,Mauritiusissues“occupationpermits,”viawhichprofessionals,investorsandretirednon-citizenswhotransfertoMauritiusandearnatleastUSD40,000annually,aswellastheself-employed,securesarenewablethree-yearrightofresidenceinthecountrysubjecttotheinvestmentofcapitaland/oranongoingtransferofincome.Thenumberofpermitscurrentlyissuedissmall–approximately4,000professionals,justover2,000investors,600retireesand400self-employedindividuals.Unlikevisasandresidencepermits,“occupationpermits”canbeappliedforafterarrivalinMauritius.
50 Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
Figure 7: Growth of the foreign population, 1983 to 2011
Source:StatisticsMauritius.
Table 12: Population, by nationality, at different censuses (1972–2011)
1972 1983 1990 2000 2011
Both sexes
Both sexes
Both sexes
Both sexes Male Female
Both sexes Male Female
Totalpopulation 826,199 966,863 1,055,482 1,178,848 583,756 595,092 1,236,817 610,848 625,969
AllMauritians
ofwhich:820,675 961,892 1,048,167 1,163,292 578,042 585,250 1,210,789 596,667 614,122
bybirth 815,591 956,898 1,043,151 1,155,516 574,406 581,110 1,204,702 594,074 610,628
bydescent - - 3,061 1,531 1,530 1,594 812 782
byregistration 2,105 1,858 2,255 2,047 833 1,214 1,577 601 976
bynaturalization 2,979 3,136 2,615 2,668 1,272 1,396 2,916 1,180 1,736
Non-Mauritians 5,524 4,971 7,181 15,543 5 705 9,838 26,028 14,181 11,847
Proportionsofthetotalpopulation(%)
AllMauritians 99.3% 99.5 99.3 98.7 99.0 98.3 97.9 97.7 98.1
bybirth 98.7% 99.0 98.8 98.0 98.4 97.7 97.4 97.3 97.5
bydescent - - - 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.1 0.1 0.1
byregistration 0.3% 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.2
bynaturalization 0.4% 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3
Non-Mauritians 0.7% 0.5 0.7 1.3 1.0 1.7 2.1 2.3 1.9
Source:StatisticsMauritius.
51Migration in Mauritius: A Country Profile 2013
The number of persons naturalized from 2008 to 2012 (Table 13)providedbythePIOseemstobe inconsistentwiththenumberofnaturalizedMauritians enumerated in the 2011 census, considering that the numberof recent naturalizations is almost equal to the total number of naturalizedcitizensenumeratedduringthe2011census.ThemostprobablereasonforthisinconsistencycouldbethatmanynaturalizedMauritiansdidnotreportbeingsuchduringthecensus.
Table 13: Naturalizations, by sex, 2008–2012
Total Male Female
2008 899 469 430
2009 668 320 348
2010 510 246 264
2011 493 255 259
2012 543 234 288
2008–2012 3113 1524 1589Source:PassportandImmigrationOffice.
Considering the change of the population composition in terms ofnationality status between 1983 and 2011,we observe a limited increase inthenumberofMauritiancitizenswhowerenotMa