Mauritius

Greetings

Men greeting Men – A handshake is common in most situations

Women greeting Women - Friends and family commonly share a kiss on each cheek. Handshakes may be appropriate during some initial introductions.

Greetings between Men & Women – Friends and family commonly share a kiss on each cheek. Handshakes may be appropriate during some initial introductions.

Note: Greetings may vary depending each group’s culture: Indian, African, French or Chinese.

Communication Style

• Most people tend to be indirect in most situations. People will often tell you what they think you may want to hear rather than risk hurting feelings or embarrassing someone with the truth.
• People are proud of their island and may expect you to admit that it’s the closest thing to Paradise, so it’s a good idea to just oblige. Be open and friendly and accept offerings.

Personal Space & Touch

• An arm’s length of personal space is common for friends and family. For business colleagues and members of the opposite sex this space may be a bit more, but it all depends on how close the relationship is.
• Female friends often hold hands while walking and touching. It is common for them to pat each other on the back, arms, shoulders, etc.
• Men often playfully slap each other on the shoulder, especially good friends and family.
• For business colleagues and members of the opposite sex touching is usually kept to a minimum.

Eye Contact

• Direct eye contact is acceptable in most situations.

Views of Time

• People tend to be punctual in both social and business situations. For example, if invited for lunch to Mauritian home that is called at noon, don’t be surprised to find that people may have already eaten if you are more than 20-30 minutes late.
• Transportation services tend to run on time for the most part.
• People do not tend to give their time freely. It’s quite challenging to have people volunteering on weekends for example.

Gender Roles

• Gender equality has begun to take hold in the last few years. For example, the first lady taxi driver was featured in the news and on the newspapers about 6 years ago. Now jobs such as bus ticket seller (on the bus) which were exclusively male have become quite common for women.
• Women are expected to achieve academic success at a high level and have jobs that meet those expectations. They tend to be very competitive in this respect.

Taboos

• The Mauritian word for taboo behavior is “sauvaze” (pronounced so vaz). It means savage which refers to a person who would be too loud, a too brazen, or a women seen drinking, dressed inappropriately, smoking, etc.

Law & Order

• The legal drinking and smoking age is 18. It does not tend to be that heavily enforced.

• Sodomy is legally prohibited and punishable by imprisonment.

• Penalties for the possession, use or trafficking of illegal drugs are severe and convicted offenders can expect prison sentences.