The Heritage Foundation has released the 2020 Index of Economic Freedom (the “Index"). In this 26th edition of the Index, Mauritius progressed up on its 2019 ranking and is now positioned 21st out of 180 countries worldwide (2019 ranking: 25th out of 180), and takes the lead in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.

With an overall score of 74.9, Mauritius has improved by 1.9 points over last year, but the Index also highlights the need for it to improve government integrity and judicial effectiveness.

Mauritius maintains its 1st position in Sub-Saharan Africa and is the only country, alongside Rwanda, to be rated as “mostly free" in the region.

Launched in 1995, the Index of Economic Freedom analyses the political and economic development of countries in five regional categories, namely America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East/North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. It is based on 12 quantitative and qualitative factors, grouped into four broad categories, or pillars, of economic freedom:

• Rule of Law (property rights, government integrity, judicial effectiveness)
• Government Size (government spending, tax burden, fiscal health)
• Regulatory Efficiency (business freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom)
• Open Markets (trade freedom, investment freedom, financial freedom)

The Heritage Foundation’s Index of Economic Freedom can be accessed Here