Paradise in Mauritius
Global businesses based in Mauritius have assets valued at $630bn — 50 times the tax haven’s GDP. Little wonder its African neighbours have complained that the island’s gains have come at their expense
Micah Reddy, Rob Rose, Will Fitzgibbon, ICIJ and amaBhungane The Paradise Papers have shone an unforgiving spotlight on how Mauritius, an island nation with a population of 1.3m, plays an outsize role in offshore business dealings with Africa. Central to it all is Appleby, the global offshore law firm which kept a staff of more than 40 people on the island which, until fairly recently, was more commonly known for its pristine beaches than its tax structures. But as thousands of leaked e-mails, bank account applications and PowerPoint presentations on tax avoidance from Appleby reveal, Mauritius is a pivotal hub in the secretive offshore financial network that shields the wealthy’s assets and profits from tax. "Some of the most important ways of stripping profits from African countries are done through offshore jurisdictions, including Mauritius," says Alexander Ezenagu, an international tax researcher at the International Centre for Tax & Development.Though the use of tax havens is ...
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