Challenges of Governance During COVID-19 Pandemic: The Case Study of Mauritius

ABSTRACT Mauritius is usually portrayed as one of the most democratic countries in the world and a symbol of good governance. In the COVID-19 context, it is also cited as one of the very few countries that has successfully halted local transmission of the virus. While this reputation is deserved to some extent, there are very real governance issues and undemocratic tendencies that are experienced by its people but rarely captured by outsiders. Using documentary analysis, this article draws from the COVID-19 context to provide a different view of governance in Mauritius. It shows that Mauritius has long-standing governance issues and points out that the government that came to power in 2014 has had a pronounced autocratic tendency that has exacerbated these governance issues. However, no major protest occurred because it was able to balance public outcry with populist measures. The responses to the pandemic acted as a magnifying glass on those governance issues and the new socio-economic situation created by the pandemic neutralised the effect of populist measures. This, in turn, generated an explosive context worsened by another event like the Wakashio oil spill that led to an emerging citizen’s movement that holds the potential to fuel reforms of the country’s ailing governance.