Bridge to Africa
Mauritius as a platform for investment into Africa
Mauritius is increasingly being used by Private Equity Investors as a bridge for investments into Africa. The island has enjoyed close relationships with many African countries and these relations have been nurtured throughout the years based on deep cultural roots, friendship and effective instruments of mutual cooperation in trade and investment.
Mauritius is recognised as an ideal financial centre of choice by a number of international investment funds, private equities and investment holdings largely due to its stable economy, convenient time zone allowing trading with all major markets in a single business day and its developed business, banking and technological infrastructure. Mauritius has made significant progress on a number of international rankings. For instance the 2019 World Bank Doing Business Report places the country 1st in Africa and 20th globally for ease of doing business; the 2018 Mo Ibrahim Index of Corporate Governance ranks Mauritius 1st in Africa; the Index of Economic Freedom 2018 positions Mauritius 21st globally and the World Health Organization Environmental Performance Index classifies Mauritius 2nd globally for its quality of air. All these recognitions make the island an attractive investment destination in the region and more importantly, a success story and a best practice model in Africa.
Specific Advantages
Minimising Withholding tax on Dividends, Interests and Royalties
The majority of African states impose some withholding tax on dividends, interests and royalties paid out to non-residents. These vary between 10% and 20%. The Double Taxation Agreements (DTAs) in force in Mauritius limit withholding taxes on dividends, interests, and royalties. The treaty rates are generally 0%, 5% or 10% thereby creating potential tax savings depending on the investee country. The DTAs guarantee the effective maximum withholding tax rates, should changes occur in the fiscal policy in the countries on investment. Mauritius has signed and ratified 16 DTAs to date with African nations, namely Botswana, Cape Verde, Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Capital Gains tax minimization
Many African nations impose Capital Gains tax at a rate ranging from 30-35%. However, most of the DTAs in force in Mauritius restrict taxing rights of capital gains to the country of the seller of the assets. Since there is no capital gains tax in Mauritius, the potential tax savings for a Mauritius registered company may be substantial.
Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (“IPPA”)
Mauritius has also signed IPPAs with 21 African member states. IPPAs help in mitigating risks by guaranteeing free repatriation of investment capital and returns to investors from the contracting states as well as shielding investors against expropriation. Moreover, the jurisdiction allows foreigners to own 100% of the shares of their businesses as well as freely repatriate their returns to their home countries. IPPAs also provides for a mechanism for settlement of disputes between investors and the contracting states. Membership of Mauritius to regional trading blocks The membership of Mauritius to regional trading blocks like Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Indian Ocean Rim Countries (IOC), further adds to its offerings as a premier business and investment hub for Africa giving immediate preferential and duty free access to most of the frontier market of more than 425 million people.
Being a member of these regional organizations and a signatory to all the major African conventions make Mauritius the best offshore financial service centre for establishing any Africa Fund, Holding Company or a trading company. Mauritius is being wooed today by the world’s fastest growing economies, China and India, in their objective of tapping into the African continent. China is aggressively pursuing its objectives in Africa via Mauritius with a wave of strategic investments on the island. Similarly, Mauritius also plays a huge part in India’s maritime dominance in African territory.