I created this blog some couple of years ago, but couldn’t keep it alive.  A busy professional life, two kids on board and so little time!  From 2006, when the doors were first open, up to date many have found a new life under the sun.  Some complaints, some success stories, and life went on.  On average, the strategy to attract capital and competencies has been working fairly well.  Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) reached new records, and some fresh air blew over the economy.

We were all living a happy business life, until the financial crisis took the world by storm.  Less harm in Mauritius, but the general investment phobia played its role on our side also.   Over-prudence led to hesitation, and then to mental anesthesia!  No risks, no decisions and no moves.  Stalemate!   The number of Occupation (professional residence) permits never matched the number of business created.  Clearly it meant that many foreigners settled in but never launched their business activities. 

Four years from there – it is quite understandable that the government comes out with some adjustments.   First, it had to pay the price of its success.   It was too easy to get a residence permit:  you simply need to fill-in the required forms, show your birth certificate and declare that you are able to meet the conditions imposed.  You’re set for the next three years!  

From April 2010, however, things are not that easy.  If you are planning for a residence permit as ‘investor’ you would be required to show USD100,000 and if you are going for a self-employed permit, you’ll need to show USD35,000 along with your professional qualifications.  The USD100,000 and USD35,000 are meant to be minimum investments in the respective cases.  One thing though:  as these are investments the government is unable to ‘block’ the funds …  So if we think well, I can borrow USD100,000 – show it to the government and once I get my permit I can return it to its legitimate owner.  Where’s the control?  I can’t see any.  It’s more a complicated procedure than an intelligent one!   The complication lies in finding a true friend to lend you USD100,000 – that much.

Oh, and they also require that you present a business plan.  A big leap for the business-mankind!  We all know what business plans are:  optimistic where you want it to be, pessimistic to show how good it can be in the worst situation.  After all they are only plans.  No one knows the future, so nothing compels me to ‘obey’ a business plan.  Again, more a complicated procedure than an intelligent one (I love this sentence!).  The complication here is finding a good consultant and spending some bucks on him. It’s simply a waste of time, honestly.

The increasing influx of foreign people in a country where land and resources is limited somewhat poses a delicate problem.  It gives the impression of an unfair competition between those having Euros and Dollars and those living on the small Rupee.

 The common Mauritian, after being hesitant, accepted the fact that we do require foreign expertise and capital if we wanted to bring sustainable solutions to our economy.  There has been increasing pressure from opposition parties (those who always find reasons to blame others) claiming that we were selling our country to foreigners, precisely pin-pointing to the famous exclusive IRS villas.  Nothing doing:  the population worked along the government to welcome those willing to leave their homes and try doing something on our land.  It did work well in some cases, and it didn’t in others.  Some foreigners simply came here thinking that we were some desperate nation willing to be conquered by others.  Nope, we aren’t …and we’re happy that the incentives given to foreigners are working fine.