Prime Minister of Mauritius, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam completed a week-long state visit to India from September 9-16, 2025. This is the first visit of Dr. Ramgoolam to India in his present term as the Prime Minister of Mauritius. Besides New Delhi, Dr. Ramgoolam visited Varanasi, Ayodhya, Mumbai and Tirupati. Thus, the visit had both a diplomatic and a spiritual significance for PM Ramgoolam.
Coming on the heels of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Mauritius in March this year, this current visit has further strengthened the bilateral relations and regional cooperation between the two countries. During the visit of PM Modi’s visit to Mauritius in March this year, India-Mauritius relations were elevated to an Enhanced Strategic Partnership. The current visit further strengthened the bilateral relations to the next level. Though less talked about, the strategic importance of India-Mauritius relations needs to be put in the correct perspective.
Mauritius is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, about 2000 km off the eastern coast of East Africa. Roughly 5000 km away from India, the country comprises of the main island of 2040 sq km and two other big islands. Mauritius has an Exclusive Economic Zone covering 20 lakh sq km which makes it extra special for maritime exploration. The country has a population of approximately 12.5 lakh and 67 per cent of this population is of Indian origin. About 50% of the population is Hindu, followed by 32 per cent being Christians. With a sparse population, it is amongst the most developed economies in the African region.
Mauritius is strategically located in the western part of the Indian Ocean which helps India to secure Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC) in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). PM Modi launched Vision SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) in the year 2015 to enhance maritime cooperation in the IOR. The maritime cooperation also includes humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. India provided essential aid, food items and vaccines to the IOR nations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The broader strategic aim of Vision SAGAR is to strengthen India’s maritime influence in the IOR.
Specific to Mauritius is India’s growing interest in Africa, particularly under PM Modi government. Mauritius is an important gateway for India’s trade and investment in Africa, particularly with the East African nations. One recent significant development is the active participation of Indian private industry in Africa. Key investment areas include oil and gas, mining, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications. The investments from private industry have reached $ 75 billion and companies like Tata, Mahindra and Bharti telecom have benefitted from a secure passage to Africa via Mauritius.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been the principal driver of close relationship with Mauritius, and he has taken pains to give a personal touch to the visit of PM Ramgoolam. PM Modi hosted his Mauritius counterpart in Varanasi to drive home the point of close relationship between two Hindu majority nations. Such indulgence is necessary as China has increased its influence over Mauritius in the last decade.
China has raised investments in Mauritius and has cleverly invested in developing multiple ports and other infrastructure projects. China is already the largest investor in Africa and desires a safe passage of goods through the IOR. It is here that the strategic and maritime interests of India and China clash. Compared to China, India is in a better position to provide maritime security to Mauritius from the threats of piracy, drug trafficking and illegal fishing. Though not stated officially, it is assumed that India would have conveyed its concerns about Chinese presence in Mauritius.
With the status of Enhanced Strategic Partnership between India and Mauritius, the possibilities to further increase trade and economic partnership are immense. With the Hinduism connect, Mauritius is already a favourite tourist destination for the Indians. For the people of Mauritius, Varanasi and Ayodhya are going to be even more attractive tourist destinations. It is people to people connect that would shape the contours of India-Mauritius relationship.
From the strategic perspective, India has to outbid China in developing infrastructure in Agalega Island in Mauritius. Indian presence here would boost surveillance capabilities and maritime security for Indian ships. Even our private players should invest more in Mauritius because of the relative peace and stability as compared other African nations. The Indian workforce in Mauritius can also play a huge role to engage more actively with the support of Indian diaspora.
The two visits by the respective prime ministers in the last six months have elevated the relationship between India and Mauritius to the next level. Today India-Mauritius ties are at the apex level of strategic, economic and cultural partnership between two Hindu majority nations. With further fine tuning of the relations, the strategic partnership between India and Mauritius are fully capable of dealing with the emerging security challenges in the IOR.
