Port Louis:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to embark on a two-day state visit to Mauritius on Tuesday to grace the island nation’s 57th national day celebrations as the chief guest. During the Prime Minister’s visit, India and Mauritius are set to ink a raft of agreements to advance economic and security ties.
A contingent of Indian armed forces will also participate in the celebrations, along with a warship of the Indian Navy and the Akash Ganga skydiving team of the Indian Air Force.
Talking about PM Modi’s visit, his Mauritius counterpart, Navinchandra Ramgoolam, said, “It is indeed a singular privilege for our country to host such a distinguished personality who is doing us this honour, inspite of his very tight schedule and inspite of his recent visits to Paris and the United States, he has agreed to be here as our special guest.”
“The visit of PM Narendra Modi is a testimony of the close relations between our two nations,” he added.
What On Agenda
According to the Foreign Ministry, a number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) will be exchanged between the two sides during the visit. Moreover, Prime Minister Modi and Ramgoolam will also hold wide-ranging talks.
At a media briefing on Saturday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the Indian Navy and Mauritius authorities will sign a technical agreement on exchanging information on white shipping during Prime Minister’s visit.
“It will enable Indian and Mauritius authorities to cooperate in preventing illegal activities and improve Mauritius’ maritime domain awareness in the region,” he said.
The two sides will also sign several agreements in the field of capacity building, bilateral trade, tackling cross-border financial crimes and promoting small and medium enterprises, he said.
According to Misri, the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services and the Mauritius Prime Minister’s Office will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to create a framework for cooperating in maritime zone management and ocean observation and research.
PM Modi will also join Ramgoolam during the inauguration of a civil service college and a health centre built with Indian grants.
India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Financial Crime Commission of Mauritius will sign an MoU on combating financial crimes during Modi’s visit. The pact is aimed at enhancing cooperation in intelligence and technical assistance to combat money laundering and related crimes.
The Indian Prime Minister will also meet senior dignitaries and leaders of political parties and interact with members of the Indian-origin community.
Describing Mauritius as a close maritime neighbour, Misri said India has been privileged to have been a preferred development partner for the island nation.
India-Mauritius Ties
India has close and longstanding relations with Mauritius, an island nation in the Western Indian Ocean. A key reason for the special ties is the fact that people of Indian origin comprise nearly 70 per cent of the island nation’s population of 1.2 million (12 lakh).
Since 2005, India has been among the largest trading partners of Mauritius. For the financial year 2022-2023, Indian exports to Mauritius were USD 462 million, while Mauritian exports to India were USD 91.50 million. The total trade volume was USD 554 million.
Per the official data, the trade between the two countries has grown by 132 per cent in the last 17 years, from USD 206 million in 2005-06 to USD 554 million in 2022-23.
Moreover, cooperation in maritime security and defence between the two sides has also grown significantly over the past decade. India has helped expand a strategic airstrip and jetty on Agalega, one of the outer islands of Mauritius, to bolster the country’s ability to monitor its vast exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of 2.3 million sq km.
Last year in July, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar visited the island nation and met Prime Minister Ramgoolam, who was in opposition at the time. Son of Mauritius’ founding father Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, PM Ramgoolam shares a strong affinity for India. During the Covid-19 pandemic, he fell critically ill and was flown to New Delhi for treatment.
Balancing Act Between India And China
Amid China nudging it to help it keep conducting surveys in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius remains India’s steadfast partner in the Indian Ocean region and is set to work with New Delhi to work out a framework of cooperation on ocean observation, research and information management.
A month after the China-Mauritius Free Trade deal in February 2021, Port Louis signed a comprehensive economic cooperation and partnership agreement with New Delhi.
During his first visit to the island nation in 2015, PM Modi had also announced SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), India’s doctrine of maritime cooperation in the Indian Ocean region.
Amid China nudging it to help it keep conducting surveys in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius remains India’s steadfast partner in the Indian Ocean region and is set to work with New Delhi to work out a framework of cooperation on ocean observation, research and information management.
A month after the China-Mauritius Free Trade deal in February 2021, Port Louis signed a comprehensive economic cooperation and partnership agreement with New Delhi.
During his first visit to the island nation in 2015, PM Modi had also announced SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), India’s doctrine of maritime cooperation in the Indian Ocean region.
