61,076 foreign workers. 3,500 Mauritians emigrating annually. Youth unemployment one in four. The economy imports labour and exports graduates simultaneously. The evidence examined.
Rs 152 billion of foreign real estate investment since 2006. Mauritian buyers: 9% of acquisitions. Property prices up 80%. Wages up 20%. The IMF flagged the gap. The Finance Act doubled the stamp duty. The Meridian examines what the IRS transferred, at what price, and what the Mauritian household received in exchange.
EEZ: 2.3 million km². Fish imports: 50% of domestic consumption. Bad weather allowance: Rs 340/day. Oreo fish from China: Rs 235. The cheapest tuna tin: Rs 15.00 — processed from fish caught in Mauritius's own ocean, exported to Europe, sold back as the margin. The evidence examined.
Mauritius imports 75 per cent of its food. A small number of conglomerates control its journey from the port to the shelf through exclusive distribution agreements. Food inflation hit 7.6 per cent in April 2026. The Competition Commission cannot fine anyone for abusing a dominant position. The evidence examined.
The PSA has a Rs 3.2 billion deficit. CEB raised tariffs 15% in May. The Competition Commission has no jurisdiction over state-owned enterprises. Mauritius has no alternative fuel supplier, no alternative electricity provider, no alternative water authority. The evidence examined.
The Global South does not lack resources. It lacks the power to price them. Mauritius imports fish from China while its EEZ covers 2.3 million square kilometres of ocean. Ghana grows 60% of the world's cocoa and cannot afford chocolate. This is not an anomaly. It is the system working as designed. Vayu Putra opens August 2026.
The Global South produces the raw materials, grows the food, and mines the minerals that run the world economy. It sets the price of almost none of it. This edition explains why.
Read the Editor’s Letter →