<B>BOI eases procedures</B>

The Board of Investment (BOI) wants to make it even easier for potential investors to start a business in Mauritius. Added to the fact that permits could be delivered within 24 hours with a better use of IT, the BOI intends to split into clusters. The board will be divided according to the different sectors involved: tourism, EPZ, ICT. The BOI will pilot any investor from the moment he/she expresses his/her intentions until the moment he/she obtains the permits.

<B>Battered to death by her partner</B>

Sunita Dauhoo died as she lived - miserably. This 35 year-old woman was found dead in her slum dwelling last Wednesday after her partner, Claudio Soopramanian, called the police. After first saying he had found her lifeless when he came back from an evening with friends, he finally confessed to the crime. Probably drunk, he couldn?t stand the fact that his wife led such a ?dissolute life? and he battered her to death. Sunita?s family has rejected her for more than ten years and they refused to take her body for burial.

<B>The Irrigation Authority rings the bell</B>

This could sound astonishing but reservoirs and underground reserves are nearly dry despite the heavy rains of recent days. Except for the North where the situation doesn?t need particular attention, the Irrigation Authority is worried for the rest of the country, especially the Western region. Water supply has been reduced by 75% in this part of the island. 115 planters are affected by the problem. The situation was critical two weeks ago and the recent rains have not been enough to bring water levels back to normal.

<B>Austria becomes important tourism market</B>

Thanks to a direct Vienna-Mauritius flight, more and more Austrians are visiting the country ? the peak being 10,300 tourists last year. This corresponds to the strategy of the authorities since they wish to attract more and more tourists from ?non-traditional? markets. As from the moment Austrian Airlines announced its intention of running a weekly flight to Mauritius, the number of arrivals had already started to increase. But the real boom occurred as from July with the first flight. Since Austrians are not afraid of spending money during their holidays, this increase makes the authorities happy? And Mauritius really seems to be popular with these new tourists!