At a time when the Indian Ocean is drawing renewed international attention, Mauritius has every reason to value partnerships that have been built patiently, pragmatically, and over the long term. Among these, the relationship with the European Union (EU) deserves particular recognition for both its historical depth and its continuing relevance to our national development.

This is not a recent relationship. Its foundations go back to the early years of our Independence and to the foresight of our first Prime Minister and Father of the Nation, Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, who understood that Mauritius, as a small island state, needed strong and diversified international partnerships to secure its economic future. Europe Day 2026 offered a timely reminder of that legacy, notably through archival references to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam’s meeting with Jean Rey, then President of the European Commission, in 1970, as well as Mauritius’ accession to the Yaoundé Convention in 1972.

That vision has been continuously built upon and refined over the decades. The partnership evolved from the Yaoundé and Lomé frameworks to the Cotonou Partnership Agreement, the Interim Economic Partnership Agreement, and, more recently since November 2023, the Samoa Partnership Agreement, reflecting a relationship that has adapted to changing economic, trade and social realities while preserving a strong foundation of mutual respect.

Today, the EU remains Mauritius’ primary economic, financial, and development partner. It is described as Mauritius’ biggest trading partner, largest foreign investor, and principal source of tourists, underlining the breadth of its contribution to the Mauritian economy.

Trade has long been one of the central pillars of this relationship. Since 2009, the Interim Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and the Eastern and Southern African countries, including Mauritius, has provided duty-free and quota-free access for Mauritian goods to the EU market, directly supporting domestic production and export activity. The same framework is now being deepened towards a more comprehensive agreement that would also cover topics attuned to the evolving economic and development realities of Mauritius such as trade in services, investment liberalisation, and digital trade, intellectual property rights, economic development, fisheries, and aquaculture, trade and sustainable development, transparency in government procurement, and competition policy, among others.

The practical impact of this cooperation is visible in everyday economic life. Mauritius’ main exports to Europe include sugar, textiles, and processed tuna, while imports from the EU include machinery, manufactured goods, and chemicals that support local consumption and productive sectors. European investment has also helped drive activity in financial services, real estate, and tourism, while reinforcing Mauritius’ role as a gateway for business into Africa.

This partnership, however, goes well beyond trade and investment. European cooperation today extends into renewable energy, fisheries, the blue economy, climate resilience, water management, higher education, research, green finance, and environmental protection, all of which are central to Mauritius’ long-term resilience as a Small Island Developing State and a Large Ocean State.

A notable recent milestone was the first EU-Mauritius Partnership Dialogue held in April 2025 under the Samoa Partnership Agreement. That dialogue has evolved from exchanges based on a donorrecipient model to a genuine partnership model. Besides reviewing progress since 2022, it further reaffirmed cooperation in development, financial governance, investment, maritime and port security, fisheries, blue economy and aquaculture, and regional integration, while also identifying common priorities such as climate action, economic resilience, research innovation, and AI.

The 2025 Partnership Dialogue was also the opportunity for the EU to highlight its continued support in maritime security through initiatives such as MASE, CRIMARIO and Operation Atalanta, which are contributing to combatting piracy and promoting regional stability in the Indian Ocean. Mauritius remains committed to deepening cooperation with the EU to address maritime security challenges such as drug and arms trafficking, human trafficking, and other transnational crime.

For Mauritius, this has real significance. A country so dependent on open sea lanes, secure trade routes, and effective ocean governance naturally values partners that contribute to the safety and stability of the wider maritime space on which its economy depends. The same can be said of fisheries cooperation, where it is hoped that the new Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement between Mauritius and the EU, currently under negotiation, would reinforce the EU’s support to the tuna industry through an increase in the export quota, sustain local livelihoods, and strengthen joint efforts against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing.

The relationship also has an important regional dimension. The EU has reaffirmed support for regional organisations such as the African Union, the Indian Ocean Commission, COMESA, and SADC, showing that Mauritius-EU cooperation is linked not only to bilateral interests but also to wider regional integration and stability. Mauritius attaches great importance to the regional and multilateral cooperation mechanisms such as the AU-EU Partnership Agreement and the OACPS-EU Partnership Agreement as strategic pathways for enhanced cooperation and partnership in a mutually beneficial manner.

For Mauritius, the larger lesson is clear. The relationship with the EU should not be viewed narrowly through the lens of aid, nor only through trade statistics, but as an enduring partnership that has evolved alongside the country’s own ambitions and needs. It is rooted in the foresight of Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, strengthened by successive agreements and dialogues, and made meaningful by practical cooperation across sectors that matter deeply to Mauritius’ future.

In a changing Indian Ocean, such partnerships should not be taken for granted. The MauritiusEU relationship has shown continuity, adaptability, and substance over more than five decades, and it remains well placed to support shared progress in the years ahead.

Bio express

Mahen Abhimanu Kundasamy is a diplomat and International Corporate Executive with over 25 years of combined high-level diplomatic and senior private sector experience.

He began his career in the private sector as Group Brand Manager at BAT Plc in Mauritius, with an assignment at BAT South Africa as part of a senior London global team tasked with reorganising its Brand Management and Marketing function.

In public service, he served as High Commissioner of Mauritius to South Africa and all SADC countries (1996–2000), during which he oversaw the signing of the first Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements and Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements with South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, and Mozambique.

He subsequently served as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (2005–2014), representing Mauritius on the Boards of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Foundation.

In the private sector, he held the position of Cluster Head for Government and Public Affairs for Sub-Saharan Africa at Citibank, based in Johannesburg, managing public affairs officers across 11 countries. He later served as Associate Partner at The Ambassador Partnership in London, specialising in African public and private sector consultancy.

He also served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Head of Strategy (UN D1 grade) at the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission in Juba, South Sudan, under the chairmanship of former President of Botswana, Festus Mogae, leading a team of international experts in monitoring and reporting on the implementation of the peace agreement.

Since May 2025, he serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Mauritius Economic Development Board, leading strategies to position Mauritius as a global hub for business, investment, exports, and international finance.

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Loin des clichés d’une machine technocratique, l’Union européenne (UE) s’invite discrètement dans le quotidien des Mauriciens – des bancs de l’université aux champs de canne, des laboratoires aux quais de pêche. À l’occasion du Mois de l’Europe, l’UE, en collaboration avec «l’express», consacre une série d’articles aux multiples facettes du partenariat entre Maurice et l’UE.

Une immersion dans ces liens concrets, humains et parfois insoupçonnés, qui relient Port-Louis à Bruxelles.