Industrialization: The Mauritian Model

Streevarsen P. Narrainen
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Streevarsen P. Narrainen: Ministry of Finance

Chapter 6.5 in The Industrial Policy Revolution II, 2013, pp 569-584 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract On March 12 1968, when Mauritius became an independent nation, it was no more than another third world economy taking its destiny in its own hands. All the development indicators were despondently off the acceptable norms. The country, facing a demographic explosion and high and rising unemployment, depended almost entirely on a one-crop sugar economy. The ratios of population to doctors, lawyers, and other professionals were extremely high. So was the infant mortality rate. Life expectancy was low. More than 50 percent of houses were vulnerable to damage by cyclone. The literacy rate was low, reflecting poor enrolment in secondary schools. Public infrastructure was dilapidated even by third world standards. For some analysts the constraints to industrialization and growth were simply too overwhelming. A few years before independence, James Meade et al. (1961) thought there was little scope for industrialization because of the lack of skills. Four years after independence, V.S. Naipaul (1972) added to such pessimism when he described Mauritius as an ‘overcrowded barracoon’ where ‘problems defy solutions’ and as a country plagued by despair.

Keywords: Ethnic Diversity; Trade Liberalization; Soft Core; Trade Preference; Industrialization Strategy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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DOI: 10.1057/9781137335234_22

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