The Alliance for Change (AdC) won an overwhelming victory in the parliamentary election held in Mauritius on 10 November 2024. The AdC obtained 60 out of the 62 directly elected seats, while the Organisation of the People of Rodrigues (OPR) secured the remaining two seats. With its victory, Mr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, leader of the AdC became Prime Minister of Mauritius. While there was a slight increase in the percentage of women directly elected to the National Assembly, Mauritian women’s political representation remains low.
On 10 November 2024, the Republic of Mauritius held its parliamentary polls. The Alliance for Change (Alliance Du Changement, AdC), led Mr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, won a landslide victory, obtaining 60 out of the 62 seats up for election. Organisation of the People of Rodrigues (OPR), led by Mr Pravind Jugnauth, won the remaining two seats. Mr Ramgoolam was sworn in as Prime Minister of Mauritius on 13 November 2024. The Prime Minister serves a five-year term and is appointed by the President and approved by the National Assembly.
African Union Election Observation Mission to Mauritius (AUEOM) and the SADC Electoral Observation Mission (SEOM) observed that the elections took place in a peaceful and calm environment and there were no major incidents or threats of violence during this electoral cycle according to SEOM.
Some stakeholders made allegations of discrepancies in the register of electors, such as containing names of persons not in Mauritania or deceased, which some believed could create an opportunity for rigging the election. The Office of the Electoral Commissioner assured the SEOM that it had updated the register of electors.
Many Mauritians experience economic hardships, such as rising costs of living and unemployment. During the campaign period, the AdC and OPR promised various measures to improve the situation of the Mauritian people. For example, the AdC promised to create a fund to assist struggling families, increase pensions, reduce fuel prices, and provide free public transportation. The AdC also called for constitutional and electoral reforms.
On 1 November 2024, the Mauritian government suspended access to social media platforms until after the elections. However, the government rescinded the ban a day later following widespread outcry from opposition politicians, civil society organisations and the business community. A wire-tapping scandal with “secretly recorded phone calls of politicians, diplomats and journalists were leaked online” dominated much of the campaign period. Prime Minister Ramgoolam promised to dismantle the spying system so that Mauritians would be free to talk.
Women’s political participation and representation
Mauritian women’s representation in the National Assembly and cabinet positions remain low, and few women stand for election. In the 2024 parliamentary polls, of the 891 candidates, 165 (18.5%) were women, and 726 were men. While their representation remains low, following the 2024 polls, there was a slight increase in the percentage of women directly elected to the National Assembly. In 2024, women comprised 17.7% (11 out of 62) of directly elected members, in contrast to 2019, when they made up 16.1% (10 out of 62).
The Mauritian parliament can also include indirectly elected members nominated by the Electoral Supervisory Commission. The Commission may nominate a maximum of eight additional members to correct any imbalance in community representation in Parliament. Of the four appointed members in 2024, one was a woman. In comparison, in 2019, 8 additional members were appointed of which 4 were women.
Thus, following the 2024 election, women (directly and indirectly elected) now comprise 19.4% (13 out of 67) members in the National Assembly compared to 80.6% (54 out of 67) men. After the 2019 elections, women constituted 20% (14 out of 70) of the National Assembly's members and men 80% (56 out of 70 seats). All members in the National Assembly serve five-year terms.
There were positive developments concerning women’s participation in the 2024 Mauritian electoral process. The AUEOM observed that women made up 68% of the polling staff at the sites they visited and women made up “a considerable number of polling agents.” Additionally, women comprised 51.3% of voters compared to 48.7% men.
In the current cabinet, women hold two of the 25 ministerial positions. The two ministers are:
- Dr Jyoti Jeetun, Minister of Financial Services and Economic Planning
- Mrs Marie Arianne Navarre-Marie, Minister of Gender Equality and Family Welfare
Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, also serves as Minister of Defence, Home Affairs and External Communications, Minister of Finance and Minister for Rodrigues and Outer Islands. In the previous cabinet, women held three of the 22 ministerial positions.
While women’s representation in the National Assembly remains low and few women hold ministerial positions, there were notable achievements. On 29 November 2024, Ms Shirin Aumeeruddy-Cziffra became Speaker of the National Assembly. She is the second woman to hold this position. In 2014, Ms Santi Bai Hanoomanjee became the first woman to be elected Speaker.
Mauritian women have held and currently serve in leadership positions. In 2015, Ms Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was elected the first female President of Mauritius. The National Assembly elects the President for a five-year term. Vice-President Agnès Monique Ohsan Bellepeau served twice as acting President. At the judicial level, more than 60% of the highest court judges are women. The current Supreme Court Chief Justice is the Honourable Mrs Bibi Rehana Mungly-Gulbul.
Legal and other reforms on women’s rights
Over the years, Mauritius has enacted gender-responsive legislation ensuring the principles of non-discrimination and equality. For example, the Workers' Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment based on gender and mandates equal remuneration for work of equal value. The Criminal Code provides criminal penalties for sexual harassment. The Criminal Code and the Protection from Domestic Violence Act provide Mauritian women and girls with legal protection from domestic violence.
Other legislative efforts have sought to ensure equality concerning inheritance. The Civil Code stipulates that women and men have equal ownership rights to immovable property and that female and male surviving spouses have equal rights to inherit assets. It also provides daughters and sons equal rights to inherit assets from their parents. Concerning entrepreneurship, the Civil Code guarantees equality in signing contracts and opening bank accounts, and the Equal Opportunities Act prohibits discrimination in access to credit based on gender.
Regarding political rights, Mauritius does not use a legislated quota at the national level, only at the local level. The gender quota for local elections is 33%. One party, the Mauritian Militant Movement (Mouvement Militant Mauricien) uses a voluntary political party quota. According to its Party Constitution, MMM will “strive to achieve the threshold of one-third of female representation in its bodies as soon as possible." It will gradually increase to 40% in 2020, 45% in 2025, and 50% in 2030."
There have also been institutional reforms. Mauritius has also undertaken institutional reforms. One of the main functions of the Mauritian Parliamentary Gender Caucus Committee, established in 2016, is to mainstream gender equality in the work of the National Assembly and its other committees. It also has the power to propose amendments to legislation and make recommendations to the Executive. The Committee often cooperates with civil society organisations.
Challenges to women’s political participation
Despite legislative and other reforms, challenges and barriers hinder Mauritian women’s full and equal political participation. Among the gaps observed by the AU Election Observation Mission is a “lack of affirmative action measures to ensure participation of women, youth and persons with disabilities in the political process.”
In their assessments, the AUEOM and SEOM took note of the low representation of women among the candidates for parliament. For its part, AUEOM noted that the percentage of female candidates (18.5%) in Mauritius was “lower than the 50% gender representation prescribed by the AU Protocol on the rights of women in Africa.” The SEOM observed that efforts at the national level and by political parties were insufficient to address the gender imbalance among candidates.
Research suggests that there is a lack of political will by political parties to include more women, as evidenced by the low number of female candidates in the 2024 parliamentary elections. Women are also generally disadvantaged by the First Past the Post system, which Mauritius uses. Under this system, the candidate with the most votes in each constituency wins a seat in the National Assembly. Mauritian political parties play a significant role in a candidate’s chances of winning. If a party places a candidate in a constituency where the political party has strong support, the candidate is more likely to win. Historically, political parties have sent women to constituencies where the parties perceive they have little chance of winning.
Mauritian society is patriarchal and conservative. Women are expected to assume domestic responsibilities and care for the family. The strong gender roles limit women's opportunities to participate in political life and take on leadership positions.
Politics is seen as a male domain which often deters women from entering politics. Female candidates shared that hostile campaigns also played a part in discouraging women from running for parliamentary seats. It is not uncommon for women in politics to receive sexist remarks and actions from men and insults on social media. They also face personal attacks and appearance-based criticism.
Another significant obstacle for women is access to sufficient resources to stand for candidates and cover all election-related expenses. Female candidates often do not have training on how to raise funds for their campaigns. Moreover, there is a 26% gender gap in workforce participation, and even though the law mandates equal remuneration, women generally earn less pay than men for equal work. Thus, few women can rely on personal funds to cover campaign expenses.
Women in Mauritius advocating for change
In advance of the 2024 parliamentary elections, Mauritian women’s movements, such as Fam Ape Zwenn (Women Meet), mobilised and called on women to vote for female candidates and send a clear message to future candidates and policymakers. Among its activities, Fam Ape Zwenn distributed a booklet that included the priorities of Mauritian women such as access to land, the fight against violence and access to better healthcare. At a women’s rally, activists such as academic Sheila Bunwaree called for a “complete overhaul of the Mauritian education system.”
Other initiatives sought to train women in politics and empower them politically. For example, the Ministry of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare has provided women with training on, electoral laws, campaign planning, development of campaign materials, public speaking and media relations.
Mauritanian women, particularly young women, increasingly use social media networks to demand change, raise awareness, and voice their opinions and concerns. During the 2024 parliamentary elections a social media campaign and online petition called for greater representation of women in politics. When politician Joanna Bérenger was negatively described in a headline of one of the country’s most-read papers, many Mauritian women responded by protesting on social media.
Mauritian women’s groups also focus on issues such as domestic violence, sexual harassment, health and income generation. They organise campaigns and awareness-raising events and have contributed to amending discriminatory provisions in existing legislation and enacting laws such as the Domestic Violence Act of 1997 and the Sex Discrimination Act of 2002.
Conclusion
In the 2024 parliamentary election, the AdC, led by the newly elected Prime Minister, Mr Ramgoolam, won 60 out of the 62 seats. OPR won the remaining two. Women’s political participation following the 2024 polls remains low. While women make up 50.7% of the Mauritian population, their demographic advantage results in more women in leadership positions. After the 2024 polls, women comprise 19.4% of members of the National Assembly and hold two of the 25 ministerial positions.
Mauritian women have held and currently serve in leadership positions. However, the country has yet to elect a female Prime Minister or achieve gender parity in elected and appointive offices. Significant structural, political, economic, social and cultural barriers limit women’s full and equal political participation in Mauritius. At the legislative level, there does not appear to be any current effort to adopt a quota at the national level. Moreover, while there is a Women’s Gender Caucus, it does not have the power to introduce bills into parliament and cannot scrutinise Bills from a gender perspective.
Although challenges remain, Mauritian women’s groups and activists advocate for change. During the 2024 parliamentary election, women’s organisations mobilised support for female candidates. In Mauritius, young women are becoming increasingly active. They use social media to advocate for change, organise campaigns and voice their concerns. They call for equality in political life and challenge the perception that politics is for men.