Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.

Location: Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar

Capital: Port Louis

Head of State: President Rajkeswur Kailash PURRYAG (since 21 July 2012); note - former President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH resigned on 31 March 2012
head of government: Prime Minister Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM (since 5 July 2005)

Independence: 12 March 1968 (from UK)

Population: 1,322,238  ( July 2013 est )

Population growth rate: 0.68% (2013 est.)

Ehtnic groups: Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%

Languages: English (official), Creole, French (official), Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bhojpuri

Religions: Hindu 52%, Christian 28.3% (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant 2.3%), Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1%

Currency: Mauritius Rupee