State-Building and the Emergence of a Social Democratic Consensus in Colonial Mauritius, 1598–1968

In tracing Mauritius’s welfare state experience during the colonial period, three considerations are paramount: (a) the political structure of the colonial state, (b) the make-up of a sugar-based economy and (c) the social reform movement from below. As British colony at the mercy of rudimentary poor laws dictated from Whitehall and an exploitative economy, Mauritius was ripe for a social revolution. They opened the floodgates of debate on social reforms, consequently setting the country on a path towards democracy. Means-tested old-age pensions followed these processes before taking on a more universal form a few years later. The power realignments that emerged had an abiding effect on cementing the pro-poor agenda into the nation’s consciousness well beyond colonial rule.