Industrial Development and the Labor Force

Abstract

In 1990 Mauritius had a per capita GNP of $2,250 which is about equal to that of Bulgaria, Algeria, Malaysia, and Argentina. The average growth rate in total GNP was 5.2 percent between 1965 and 1980 and 6.0 percent over the last decade. Growth rates in manufacturing were more than 10 percent (World Bank, 1992b). This very rapid growth was mostly due to the development of the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in the 1980s. This chapter traces the industrial development of the Mauritius economy since the colonial period. The chapter then focuses on the conditions under which EPZ grew, giving special emphasis to the role of labor and in particular female labor.