Hospitality and Tourism sector: Key to high income economy, says Prime Minister

The hospitality and tourism sector is a vital economic pillar and it will be one of the key drivers in propelling Mauritius towards a high income economy, the Prime Minister, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, said last week at the opening of the Mystic Life Style Hotel in Mont Choisy. The Prime Minister recalled that in 2015, tourism recorded the highest year-on-year sectoral growth in terms of GDP contribution. “There is much buoyancy within the sector and with a more open air access policy, we are making inroads in new European and Asian markets while consolidating our traditional markets. Our achievement within a year is encouraging, as we recorded over 1.15 million tourist arrivals in 2015,” he said. Vast opportunities can ensue in that sector following the agreement signed between Air Mauritius and Changi Airport, Singapore, for the creation of an air corridor between Asia and Africa. This agreement, observed Sir Anerood Jugnauth, paves the way for Asia to use Mauritius as a gateway to enter the African continent and vice versa. The Mauritian tourism and hospitality sector is poised to benefit directly from this windfall of passenger traffic along this corridor, he stated. Moreover, Sir Anerood Jugnauth spoke about the initiatives introduced to boost the hotel sector such as the revised Invest Hotel Scheme whereby hoteliers can use the condominium financing model that would allow the participation of individual investors, both local and foreign, in the financing of new hotel developments and refurbishment of existing hotels. The Prime Minister also mentioned the implementation of the Hotel Classification System which aims at reinforcing the image of Mauritius as a reliable and upmarket holiday destination based on a brand promise of excellent service delivery.