Verena Tandrayen-Ragoobur

With the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry has been the hardest hit in Mauritius due to health containment measures linked to travel restrictions and the closure of borders to prevent the spread of the virus. The hotel industry attempted to change their operations and activities to adjust to the uncertainties of the pandemic and to avoid closure and bankruptcy. The paper assesses the strategies adopted by the luxury, large and low-cost hotels in Mauritius to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and to adjust to the ‘new normal’. The research methodology adopts a qualitative approach with interviews carried out with the hotel managers or owners of 20 hotels in different regions of Mauritius. The study probes into the various strategies adopted, namely, digital transformation and technological innovation, social media marketing, the restructuring of the labour force, diversification of activities and focus on local tourism to ensure survival.

Small states face a number of challenges, mainly because of their geographical positioning and inherent characteristics, such as small populations, limited resources endowment and market constraints that make them more vulnerable to exogenous economic shocks. Climate change is adding a further layer of difficulty, making it more challenging to build long-lasting resilience. Building resilience in small states is crucial to enhance their capacity to address external shocks, however, this can vary depending on the specific context, geographical location and the socioeconomic conditions of each country. Tailored approaches and solutions are necessary to address the unique challenges faced by individual small states. This volume, which adopts a humanitarian and development approach to address risks, vulnerability and resilience of populations in small states exposed to shocks, contributes to the growing academic literature on economic, environmental, social and climate vulnerability and resilience. In conjunction with efforts to address root causes of vulnerabilities, promote social justice and foster sustainable development, the book explores whether there is a more holistic approach that combines resilience with a focus on equity, social change and transformative actions, which can enhance the effectiveness of resilience efforts. Written by experts in the field of small states and small island developing states, this book is an invaluable tool for those researching the impact of contemporary environmental and socioeconomic issues on small states worldwide.

This chapter seeks to evaluate the impact of energy consumption on the relationship between urbanization and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in developing countries. The work stands out from the existing studies that have examined this link through interaction analysis on the one hand and from those that have used simultaneous equations such as panel vector autoregressive (VAR) models on the other. The methodology developed, after having shown the limits of these two approaches, is based on the structural equations approach developed by Ang (2013) which makes it possible to quantify the mediation of a variable (energy consumption in our study) in relation with an already established effect (the effect of urbanization on CO₂ emissions). Based on a sample of 97 developing countries, the results show that (1) urbanization and energy consumption increase per capita CO₂ emissions in developing countries, and (2) energy consumption contributes to 64% of the total effect of urbanization on CO₂ emissions per capita. It is therefore recommended that urban planners and environmentalists work towards the development of more sustainable and environmentally conscious cities in developing countries. This involves the implementation of targeted interventions promoting energy efficiency, the adoption of renewable energies and smart urban planning.

Small states face several challenges mainly because of their geographical positioning and inherent characteristics. These economies have small populations and are generally located far from international markets, which means that they need to bear higher transportation costs and have a more pronounced vulnerability to exogenous economic shocks. Moreover, these economies are fragile and are particularly vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change, especially small island states, given their limited resource endowment. Furthermore, most of their activities and services are located in coastal areas, which are more prone to disasters (Mycoo et al., 2022). The compounded impact of both the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, coupled with existing political and social instability, wars and conflicts, have resulted in intensified, and possibly new, vulnerabilities (Muzzini et al., 2022). These challenges can have severe human, economic and social impacts. Moreover, following such crises, small states’ economies frequently shrink and this can influence livelihoods, which, in turn, can lead to worsening poverty and development levels more generally. In addition to suffering directly from the negative consequences of these shocks, the most vulnerable members of society, such as women, migrants and single-income households, are also frequently impacted, and are more exposed than other categories to job losses, income reduction, financial instability and higher poverty levels (ESCAP, 2021).

This chapter examines the multidimensional vulnerability of 13 small African states. The analysis focuses on various dimensions of vulnerability, including the environmental, economic, social and institutional aspects, using composite indices constructed from different variables. The Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) is developed based on macroeconomic data collated from 1990–2020. Ten dimensions are considered in the construction of the MVI modelled by a set of 58 indicators. These dimensions encompass living conditions, livelihoods and job security, education, population characteristics, health, epidemiological characteristics, social equity, poverty and social protection, gender equality, governance and institutions, and natural hazards and disasters. The findings reveal that the vulnerability of small states is predominantly influenced by environmental factors, followed by institutional and governance vulnerabilities, economic vulnerabilities, and social vulnerabilities. Building resilience through tailored strategies and international cooperation is imperative to ensure sustainable development for the populations of African small states.

India and Mauritius have important historical and cultural ties, and trade, investment and strategic exchanges between them. India is the sixth-largest investor in Mauritius, while Mauritius is the third-largest investor in India. However, because of the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) with India and the concurrent lack of a capital gains tax in Mauritius, a sizeable amount of the capital flows from India to Mauritius were essentially round-tripping or fiscal evasion of taxes on Indian money. The majority of Indian businesses that do business in Mauritius do not have any manufacturing or trading facilities. In light of this, the current work makes an effort to conduct a qualitative case study utilising primary and secondary data to follow the development of the strategic investment ties between India and Mauritius through money migration, after the DTAA was amended in 2016. After 2018, China has surpassed India in terms of volume of capital investment into Mauritius, with Singapore emerging as the largest provider of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into India. The study observes that this shift in trend is not the result of only the treaty being amended but also the tax morale of the respective countries as well as the invasive economic policy of China. Whatever legal changes are made, if human avarice is not restrained, dishonest people will always find clever ways to circumvent the law to further their agendas. JEL Classification: F21, H26, H32, K34, K42

India, the ‘Asian Economic behemoth’, and Mauritius, the ‘African economic miracle’ have strong, long-standing bilateral trade relations. There exists undeniable cultural proximity between India and Mauritius caused by the Indian origin of the current Mauritian population. From being import-dependent on India, the exports of Mauritius to India are gradually gaining traction over time. Nonetheless, to the best of our knowledge, there is limited evidence on studies exploring the nuances of the bilateral trade dynamics of the two countries, and its association with the shared cultural context. In this connection, the current study probes into the trade competition–complementarity nexus in a common cultural framework existing between Mauritius of sub-Saharan Africa and India of South Asia and investigates the strengths and weaknesses of the relationship using secondary data from 2001 to 2022. Select trade indicators have been applied to identify and analyse the uncharted bilateral trade potential in the diaspora context. The study finds significant cultural similarity and trade complementarity between India and Mauritius.