The Pharmaceutical Industry in Mauritius – Promoting Local Setup

The pharmaceutical industry plays an essential role in strategies surrounding the discovery, research and development of new medications.

The development of the pharmaceutical industry in Mauritius represents a fundamental component of the government’s economic agenda to diversify into new sectors of activity, more so now than ever given the current COVID-19 crisis.

In light of the above, the Economic Development Board (the “EDB”), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness, has provided guidance and information on setting up a pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Mauritius. The EDB also assists promoters in decision making.

Various incentives have been established by the government to promoters willing to set up a pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Mauritius. We believe this will be of interest to many of our clients.

Incentives

The downloadable table below lists the mains incentives applicable to companies engaged in pharmaceutical, medical devices, cosmeceutical/dermatological products and R & D/ Research (Source: Economic Development Board Mauritius, 2021)

Download the incentives table.

JTC capabilities and experience

At JTC, we enable our clients to focus on their core business by providing all the essential administrative, accounting and company secretarial services. We provide a wide range of corporate, trust and fiduciary services. We have set up a variety of entities, ranging from trading and manufacturing companies to international companies. We assist our clients in cutting through the complexity by providing the best solution.

Several licences and/or clearances with Ministries and the Pharmacy Board are required in order to set up a manufacturing facility in Mauritius.

When a prospective client wishes to establish a pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Mauritius, JTC will assist the client during the entire establishment process. JTC will facilitate the process by liaising with the EDB and all relevant authorities in order to obtain the required licences/authorisation/clearance, such as:

• The Mauritius Pharmacy Board for the licence to build a factory and for the licence to manufacture;
• The Ministry of Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change for the Environment Impact Assessment Licence; and
• The Ministry of Local Government and Outer Islands for Building and Land Use Permit.

Once the entity is set up, JTC will provide ongoing administrative, company secretarial and accounting services to the entity.

Opportunities – Why Mauritius

Mauritius is one of the world’s most creditable jurisdictions. It has a robust social, political and economic stability and strong governmental support to the financial sector.

The island is seizing this opportunity to attract pharmaceutical companies across the world to manufacture pharmaceutical products such as medicine and/or generics for the local market and also for the African market.

Mauritius is set to become one of the leading pharmaceutical manufacturing hubs in the African continent. In addition, developing the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry in Mauritius will have a positive economic impact in the long term, including economic growth and job creation and in terms of public health, such as access to medicines.

Mauritius trade agreements in place

The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between The Government of the People’s Republic of China and The Government of the Republic of Mauritius came into force on 1 January 2021.

The FTA gives Mauritius duty-free access on 96 % of items listed in China’s tariff schedule and covers more than 40 services sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, ICT, professional services, construction, and health.

Recently, Mauritius and India reinforced their special relationship through the implementation of a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) which was signed on 22 February 2021 and entered into force on 1 April 2021. The CECPA covers four main areas: trade in good, trade in services, Sanitary & Phytosanitary measures and technical Barriers to Trade and Trade Remedies.

As a member of Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), exports from Mauritius to members of these organizations benefit from duty-free access, provided the rules of origin are met.