Released on July 24, the partial 2026 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) report places Mauritius third on the continent with a score of 65.7 points. The country trails only two joint leaders — Rwanda and Seychelles, both at 76.6 points — confirming Mauritius's podium position in African governance.
A Ranking That Reassures Investors
For any decision-maker assessing the reliability of an Indian Ocean business destination, the message is unambiguous: Mauritius remains the region's institutional benchmark. With 65.7 points, the island places well ahead of Senegal (4th, 64.0 pts) and Botswana (6th, 57.8 pts). The report highlights «the solidity of Mauritian institutions» as the key driver of this performance.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation's IIAG covers 54 African countries across security, rule of law, citizen participation and human development criteria. The full dataset will be published on October 31, 2026. July's partial release focuses primarily on anti-corruption measures and economic governance.
Private Sector Pulls the Score Up; Public Sector Lags Behind
The report identifies a structural tension: «anti-corruption efforts in the private sector are recording the sharpest gains, while the public sector stagnates.» For Mauritius, this echoes criticism voiced by the IMF in June, which called for reducing public debt and strengthening the independence of the Bank of Mauritius.
In its Budget 2026-2027 memorandum, Business Mauritius had specifically warned against an economy too reliant on public spending, advocating for growth «driven by ambitious reforms, supported by private investment.» The IIAG ranking partly validates that direction.
Why It Matters
For foreign partners, the IIAG ranking is a due diligence signal. A well-positioned country more easily attracts private equity funds, regional headquarters, and institutional investors. As Mauritius seeks to consolidate its role as a financial hub for Africa and the Indian Ocean, this third place is a card to play in negotiating rooms in Dubai, London, or Singapore.
The warning about the public sector remains the key watch point: if the structural reforms promised in the 2026-2027 budget do not advance quickly enough, the next full IIAG score could reveal vulnerabilities that today's partial figures still conceal.
Source: Mo Ibrahim Foundation, IIAG 2026 (partial data, July 2026) / Business Mauritius / IMF.