The French diaspora in Mauritius ranks first amongst expatriates on the island. Analysts estimate that there are more than 15,000 French nationals in Mauritius and almost 200 French businesses operate in the country.

History tells us how this came about. The first French settlers arrived on the island in 1722 and called it Isle de France. Earlier, Dutch pioneers had tried settling in the island but soon abandoned it, which led to the French takeover.

The British seized the island in 1810 during the Anglo-French war and renamed it Mauritius. France formally ceded Mauritius and its two other dependencies—Seychelles and Rodrigues—to Britain in the 1814 Treaty of Paris.

French influence remains strong

Britain, nonetheless, allowed the early French diaspora in Mauritius to stay as a distinct francophone ethnic group. The French influence, as a result, remained prevalent on the island.

French, along with English, are the dominant languages in Mauritius. The lingua franca in the country, the Mauritian Creole, is also largely French-based.

Many French curriculum schools have been established in Mauritius as well, thus helping draw expat families from France to the island in recent years. Significantly, France supports these local schools through its Agency for French Education Abroad.

Leading economic partner

Mauritius has likewise continued to attract French investors who were the top source of Mauritian foreign direct investment (FDI) in recent years. They accounted for MUR7.09 billion of the MUR10.7 billion FDI total during the 2019 first half, Bank of Mauritius figures showed.

Real estate counts as a leading conduit of FDI from France, indicative of the robust influence of French diaspora in Mauritius. Other leading French FDI destinations in the island include construction and financial services.

France, on the other hand, is the 5^th largest supplier of Mauritian imports. In 2019, Mauritius imported USD392 million worth of goods from France, 7.01 per cent of the island’s total importation.

Circular migration pact

The French diaspora in Mauritius notably remains significant in recent years not only because there are several France-based companies with interest on the island. France and Mauritius has a bilateral agreement on circular migration. This pact signed in 2008 has facilitated employment of French nationals in Mauritius and the deployment of Mauritian workers to France.

Mauritius was able to send as many as 1,000 Mauritian workers to France, thus further strengthening the relations between the two countries. Some 1,000 Mauritians are also studying in France, further indicating the depth of the influence of the historic French diaspora in Mauritius.

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