This is a best prospect industry sector for this country. Includes a market overview and trade data.
Last Published: 8/19/2019

This is a best prospect industry sector for this country.

Overview
Public hospitals are free in Mauritius, but there are also several private clinics.  Mauritius’ healthcare infrastructure includes five major public hospitals, six specialized public hospitals, 18 private multi-specialty clinics, 11 private specialized clinics, and 28 medical laboratories.  As of the beginning of 2018, there were 4,371 beds in both public and private hospitals.  In 2018, Mauritius imported close to $27 million worth of medical equipment, mainly from the United States (16 percent), South Africa (11 percent), Japan (11 percent), Germany (9 percent) and China (9 percent).  In 2018, there were seven medical device manufacturers in Mauritius, employing about 600 people.  Most local production is exported to France (61 percent), India (20 percent) and the United States (7 percent).

 

Unit: USD Thousands

2016

2017

2018

2019 (Estimate)

Total Local Production

NA

24,079

26,857

28,200

Total Exports

29,408

25,870

30,129

31,635

Total Imports

27,812

23,812

26,887

28,231

Imports from the U.S.

3,954

2,951

4,221

4,432

Total Market Size

-

22,021

23,615

24,796

Exchange Rates

36.00

35.30

34.62

35.50

(total market size = (total local production + imports) - exports)
Data Source:  i) Statistics Mauritius, ii) Economic Development Board

Leading Sub-Sectors
·     Cancer Center Equipment
·     Ear, Nose, Throat (ENT) Hospital Equipment
·     Eye Hospital Equipment
·     Medical Imaging (MRI, CT and X-Ray) and Diagnostic Equipment
·     Surgical Equipment
·     Orthopedics Supplies and Artificial Parts of the Body
·     Dialysis Equipment
·     Laboratory Equipment
·     Dental Surgery and Dentofacial Orthopedics
·     Healthcare IT Solutions

Opportunities
Mauritius has a well-developed health system.  About 73 percent of the health needs of the population are catered by public health institutions and 27 percent by the private sector.  Non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, and chronic respiratory diseases account for 85 percent of total mortality in Mauritius every year.

New cancer and ear-nose and throat (ENT) hospitals are currently under construction, with finanacial assistance from India.  Bids for linear accelerators and other equipment for the cancer center are expected to be issued in 2019 or 2020.  In the 2019 budget speech, the Prime Minister announced the construction of (i) a new renal transplant unit in one of the major hospitals, (ii) a new eye hospital, (iii) a teaching hospital, and (iv) a central warehouse for pharmaceutical products.  The government budget also made provision for an e-health project that will include the computerization of medical records, nursing management, patient management, and pharmacy services.  All these projects will generate demand for a range of medical equipment and software.  

In the past few years, the government of Mauritius has promoted shifts in the healthcare sector to develop high-value activities like hi-tech medicine, medical tourism, and medical education.  In 2017, the most recent statistics available, Mauritius attracted more than 11,500 foreign patients for treatment in specialty areas such as cosmetic surgery and procedures, orthopedics, cardiology, fertility treatment, and opthalmology.  The main source countries are France, Madagascar, and Seychelles.

There are potential opportunities for establishing:
·         Specialized diabetes research and treatment centers;
·         Specialized centers for elderly care and rehabilitative medicine;
·         Specialized centers for novel treatments stem-cell therapies;
·         Plastic reconstructive surgery clinics;
·         Clinics for dental surgery and dentofacial orthopedics; and
·         Convalescence and pain clinics providing specialized care to patients suffering from acute and chronic  
           conditions.

The medical device manufacturing industry has also seen sustained growth over the last few years.  Due to the preferential market access that Mauritius enjoys with the EU, leading medical devices manufacturers (mostly from France and Germany) have established operations here.  The main items manufactured in Mauritius for exports include angioplasty catheters, stents, cardiovascular and oncology implants, artificial skin, ophthalmic implants, bone implants and substitutes, orthopaedic implants and dental implants.  To attract more medical device manufacturing companies, the government offers a number of incentives, including tax holidays for eight years, three percent corporate tax on profits derived from exports, value-added tax on raw materials reimbursable on exports, investment tax credit of fifteen percent over three years for investment in hi-tech machinery, and air and sea freight rebate for exports.

Web Resources
Economic Development Board
Government Information Service
Ministry of Health and Quality of Life
National Export Strategy, Medical Devices Sector
Public Procurement Portal
Statistics Mauritius

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