The prime minister of Mauritius (french: link=no, Premier Ministre de Maurice) is the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

. He presides over the Cabinet of Ministers, which advises the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the country and is collectively responsible to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

for any advice given and for all action done by or under the authority of any minister in the execution of his office. The position is the most powerful constitutional office of the country. This is mainly because the office is amalgamated with other functions whereby conventions, the office holder is also the Minister of Defense & Home Affairs (which makes the office holder responsible for law & order, internal security, defense, the armed forces and intelligence services), the Leader of the National Assembly (which makes the office holder responsible for setting the agenda for parliament) and Minister for Rodrigues & Dependencies (which makes the office holder responsible for + occupancy, administration of local dependencies & their defense). It is also inter-alia, the head of government and presides over the cabinet of Ministers. It is second in the order of precedence just after the president and enjoys relative importance in the public as the office holder is usually the leader of the party/alliance that wins an election. The current prime minister of

Pravind Jugnauth Pravind Kumar Jugnauth (born 25 December 1961) is a Mauritian politician serving as the prime minister of Mauritius since January 2017. Jugnauth has been the leader of the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) party since April 2003. He has held a n ...

, leader of the MSM, was appointed by the president on 23 January 2017 following the resignation of his father and coalition leader Sir

Anerood Jugnauth Sir Anerood Jugnauth, GCSK, PV, (29 March 1930 – 3 June 2021) was a Mauritian politician and barrister who served both as President and Prime Minister of Mauritius. He was Member of Parliament for Piton & Riviere Du Rempart. A central fi ...

who held the post following victory of his Alliance in the 2014 General Election. The

official residence An official residence is the House, residence of a head of state, head of government, governor, Clergy, religious leader, leaders of international organizations, or other senior figure. It may be the same place where they conduct their work-relate ...

of the prime minister during his term in office is the Clarisse House, the Prime Minister's Office is located in

Port Louis Port Louis (french: Port-Louis; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Polwi or , ) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's e ...

. The longest serving prime minister is

who held the office for 19 years as prime minister.

Overview

The current Prime Minister's portfolio includes, inter-alia, the following: * Law and Order * Civil Status, Citizenship * External Communications * Electoral Commissions and Electoral Affairs * Government Information Services * Meteorological Services * Mauritius Oceanography Institute * Human Rights * Strategic Policy The prime minister is appointed by the president. The prime minister holds the second most senior position in the country, second only to the president. The prime minister is usually the leader of the largest party in the ruling coalition. The position of Prime Minister along with the office of

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...

is specified under CHAPTER VI Section 59 Part 1 of the

Constitution of Mauritius The Constitution of the Republic of Mauritius (french: La Constitution de Maurice) is the supreme law of Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an ...

. After the country became a Republic on 12 March 1992, the President became the

Head of State A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

. The President holds

prerogative powers The royal prerogative is a body of customary authority, privilege and immunity, recognized in common law and, sometimes, in civil law jurisdictions possessing a monarchy, as belonging to the sovereign and which have become widely vested in th ...

History

Pre-Independence

During the

British Mauritius Mauritius was a Crown colony off the Southeast coast of Africa. Formerly part of the French colonial empire, British rule in Mauritius was established de facto with the Invasion of Isle de France in November 1810, and de jure by the subsequen ...

period, it was the

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

who was the

executive powers The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state. In political systems b ...

was vested by the Governor, representative of the Monarch. The only Chief Minister which the country had known was

Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (in traditional Hindi: Shivsagar Ram Gulam) (18 September 1900 – 15 December 1985; often referred to as ''Chacha Ramgoolam'' or ''SSR'') was a Mauritian physician, politician, and statesman. He served as the island's ...

, from 26 September 1961 to 12 March 1968.

Independence

The office of the Prime Minister of Mauritius was created on 12 March 1968 when Mauritius became an independent state.

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

remained as head of state as

Queen of Mauritius Elizabeth II was Queen of Mauritius as well as its head of state from 1968 to 1992 when Mauritius was an independent sovereign state and a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth of Nations. She was also the monarch of other Commonwealth ...

, with her executive powers in Mauritius delegated to the

governor-general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

. After the 1967 General Election,

(SSR) became the first Prime Minister of Mauritius, he was re-elected in the 1976 General Election and remained in office. In the 1982 General Election,

Sir Anerood Jugnauth Sir Anerood Jugnauth, Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean, GCSK, Padma Vibhushan, PV, (29 March 1930 – 3 June 2021) was a Mauritian politician and barrister who served both as President of Mauritius, President and Prime Minister of ...

(SAJ) coalition was elected, he became Prime Minister. However his alliance broke up in 1983 and the 1983 General Election was held, SAJ formed another alliance, he was elected again and remain in office. In the 1987 General Election, another coalition concluded by SAJ won again, he remained in office. SAJ also won the 1991 General Election and remained the Prime Minister of Mauritius. The new leader of the Labour Party Dr. Navin Ramgoolam, became the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Republic

After the country became a Republic on 12 March 1992, the President became the

. The President holds

which includes summoning, prorogation and dissolution of parliament including appointment of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The Prime Minister has the constitutional duty to advise him/her when to exercise these prerogatives. On 12 March 1992, Mauritius became a Republic State, with a new constitution in 1992, the terms of the General Elections was regulated to 5 years. Since then, each 5 years elections take place and a new Prime Minister is elected. After the 1995 General Election, Dr. Navin Ramgoolam became Prime Minister of Mauritius for the first time. However, he lost the 2000 General Election. In 2000, the Prime Minister's office was shared between two leaders, Sir Anerood Jugnauth spent 3 years as Prime Minister and

Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK, MP (born 26 March 1945) is a Mauritian politician who was Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2003 to 2005. He has been Leader of the Opposition on several occasions – from 1983 to 1987, 1997 to 2000, 2005 to 20 ...

spent 2 years. After the 2005 General Election, Dr. Navin Ramgoolam became the Prime Minister of Mauritius again. In 2010 General Election, he was re-elected and remained in office.Nohlen, D, Krennerich, M & Thibaut, B (1999) ''Elections in Africa: A data handbook'', p618 The 2014 General Election returned Sir Anerood Jugnauth to the Prime Minister's office.

Oaths

According to the third Schedule of the

, an oath under this section shall be administered by the Prime Minister.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Minister Of Mauritius Government of Mauritius Mauritian politicians History of Mauritius Prime Ministers of Mauritius 1968 establishments in Mauritius