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Mauritius Industry and Commerce
Export Processing Zones
Industrial development in Mauritius expanded rapidly
after
1971, when the government established EPZs. In return for
tax
benefits, duty-free imports of raw materials and
machinery, and
other inducements, the owners of EPZ enterprises agree to
export
all their products. In the first year of operation, nine
EPZ
firms employing 644 persons accounted for 1 percent of
export
earnings. In 1992 a total of 568 EPZ enterprises employing
89,949
persons produced such items as flowers, furniture,
jewelry, and
leather goods. The EPZ rate of growth of employment and
foreign
exchange earnings slowed in the 1980s and early 1990s.
However,
the value of EPZ exports in 1993 set a record of MauR15.8
billion.
Textiles are the main EPZ product, accounting for 89
percent
of jobs and 83 percent of exports. With regard to wearing
apparel, Mauritius benefits from preferential treatment in
the
European Community
(EC--see Glossary)
marked under the Lomé
Convention. Hong Kong, the source of 22 percent of all
foreign
investment, is the largest foreign investor in the textile
sector. Other countries participating include France,
Britain,
and Germany. Two foreign firms dominate the textile
industry:
Socota and Woventex. In a 1991 policy paper, the
government urged
diversification of EPZ industries and pledged to give
priority to
nonclothing industries such as electronics.
Data as of August 1994
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