Mauritius: Subsidies and other transfers (% of expense)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Mauritius' subsidies and other transfers (% of expense) rose 3.07 percentage points on 2022 (from 35.26% to 38.33%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +0.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.33 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 20.81 percentage points in 1990 and the biggest yearly fall was 3.49 percentage points in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 29% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2023, Mauritius had the 48th highest value of the 79 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Mauritius in the 2023 ranking

• Thailand — 45th of 79: 40.51%
• San Marino — 46th of 79: 40.3%
• Kyrgyz Republic — 47th of 79: 38.48%
• Cambodia — 49th of 79: 37.27%
• Nicaragua — 50th of 79: 36.99%
• Kiribati — 51st of 79: 35.52%

What this measures

Subsidies are current unrequited payments that government units, including nonresident government units, make to enterprises on the basis of the levels of their production activities or the quantities or values of the goods or services that they produce, sell, export or import. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a median.

All 38 values

Subsidies and other transfers (% of expense) in nearby economies

• Angola — 19.62% (2019)
• Botswana — 16.9% (2023)
• Burkina Faso — 35.07% (2023)
• Burundi — 26.31% (2021)
• Cabo Verde — 28.21% (2020)
• Cameroon — 23.49% (2021)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 10.72% (2022)
• Congo, Rep. — 32.92% (2021)
• Côte d'Ivoire — 43.56% (2023)
• Equatorial Guinea

More public sector data for Mauritius

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 23.84 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 1.09 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 0.15% (2025)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (current LCU) — 36.29 billion (2024)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (% of GDP) — 5.23% (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 9.29 billion (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP) — 1.34% (2024)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (current LCU) — -56.16 billion (2024)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) — -8.1% (2024)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Mauritius's subsidies and other transfers (% of expense)?

38.33% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1986?

It is up 37.1 percentage points from 1.23% in 1986. The highest value was 41.67% in 2020 and the lowest 1.23% in 1986.

How does Mauritius rank?

48th highest of 79 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in subsidies and other transfers (% of expense) unusual for Mauritius?

In 2023, Mauritius' subsidies and other transfers (% of expense) rose 3.07 percentage points on 2022 (from 35.26% to 38.33%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +0.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.33 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.XPN.TRFT.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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