Chronically Cyclonic?

I consider myself to be a cyclone guru. Most people in Mauritius would agree with me. They also consider themselves to be cyclone guru's.

The season has yet to begin in earnest (officially November 15). Only two numbered weather systems have been identified this season, that runs from Spring 2009 to Autumn 2010, with a peak scheduled for February 2010. Both these systems were over a thousand k's north east of us, and lasted a day or two before petering out.

Cyclone info for Dummies:

Warm seas cause cyclones. That is why they appear in the southern hemisphere in our summer and the northern hemisphere in theirs.

What is the difference between a Cyclone, a Hurricane, a Typhoon and a Tornado?

Cyclones in the Indian Ocean, Hurricanes in the Atlantic and Typhoons in the Pacific. Tornados? Twisters, usually found hurling cows and cars around the southern US. Nothing to do with this blog.

What happens?

A low pressure system (no wind) forms over a warm bit of water, clouds form, they become bigger, the breeze caused by the rotation of the earth starts spinning the clouds around (clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere.

The air then behaves like water down a plug hole and the storm (low pressure system) draws ever increasingly powerful winds spinning in at right angles (cariolus effect, I think) to the centre of the system. Soon you have this massive lump of spinning storm cloud that then wanders around the sea being guided by the air moved by the spinning earth, nudged by high pressure ridges, and chipped away by wind shear, until they hit land. They then run out of water to suck into the system, and start losing power, until they fade away. Or they get pushed into cooler seas and collapse by themselves.

If you want to track a cyclone

If you want to track a cyclone and don't have the internet to do this, all you need is a barometer and your left arm.

As the barometer falls to around 1000 Hp (hectopascals) and then below, a wind will grow. Clouds and light rain could also start.

When the winds are gusting at a fair rate, turn your face into the wind so that it blows your hair back, and point out your left arm sideways. Your finger will be aiming at the cylcone. As it tracks around you, the wind direction will change, the pressure will drop and you will be able to work out a rough direction of the cyclone.

If the wind suddenly stops and everything is calm, you are in the eye. Don't go fishing. In a short period of time the storm will return with a vengeance. When you notice the barometer going back up, you know the storm has passed and the weather will be improving.

Here are the storm tracks for last season (2008/2009) compliments of Meteo France - Reunion

Visit them on: http://www.meteo.fr/temps/domtom/La_Reunion/#

You will notice that there are ten tracks above, because there were ten 'named' storms. Also notice how lucky we were in Mauritius.

Once a storm is named, it becomes official and then applies to the small print of your insurance policies. Earlier in this blog, I referred to numbered storms. These don't get included. Cyclones all start their life as numbered storms and then as they get big and strong enough, they get names in alphabetical order as the year progresses.

Our list of names for this year is:

Anja, Bongani, Cleo, David, Edzani, Fami, Gelane, Hubert, Imani, Joel, Kanja, Lunda, Mohono, Nigel, Olympe, Pamela, Quentin, Rahim, Savana, Themba, Uyapo, Viviane, Walter, Xangy, Yemurai, Zanele.

The countries in the region all have a chance to propose names for cyclones, so if you ever want to have one named after you, become friends with someone who works in the met office of any country in our region (South Western Indian Ocean).

The 'news' today is that the met office predicts ten named storms for this season. This is an average and is not news.

Mauritius is due a big cyclone.

We haven't had a serious one since 1994 (Hollanda) and it seems that a major cyclone hits Mauritius every ten to fifteen years. Oh Oh. 2010-1994=16 years.

But being the eternal optimist, and armed with my own theory of how global warming has affected cyclonic behaviour, I will predict that we will have a number of bad weather days with clouds and lots of rain but no damage, as cyclones form over us, to move on and descend on poor Madagascar, as well as the east coast of Africa from Durban to Beira.

What is my theory?

Cyclones are like Goldilocks, and like forming in water that is not too hot, and not too cold.

This perfect temperature has been moving slowly southwards as global warming heats the oceans. The optimum place for formation of cyclones has moved from somewhere near Diego Garcia (1000's of k's north east of us) in a south westerly direction towards us. More and more cyclones are being formed further and further south west. This bodes well for us as we may miss more and more. Bad news for the dudes in Madagascar and South Eastern Africa. The counter argument is that as the sea warms we will simply get more cyclones. I don't like this argument, it makes me uncomfortable!

What facts do I have to support this theory?

OK, the facts I have are unlikely to put me on any Nobel Prize Winner's list, but here they are:

Using Meteo France's past cyclone maps of cyclone tracks (see image above) I looked at all their maps, from the season starting in 2003, to the one that ended this year. That's only five maps. I then counted all the named cyclones that made it to the Mozambique Channel each season. Here are my results:

2003 3/10 (season starting 2003, 3 named cyclones out of 10)

2004 2/10

2005 1/6

2006 5 / 15

2007 4/14

2008 3/10

Not conclusive, but certainly not getting any less.

I then looked at the number of cyclones each year that formed below -10 degrees south (roughly where Diego-Garcia Island is).

Here are my results:

2003 5/10 (season starting 2003, named cyclones formed south of -10 degrees south)

2004 1/10

2005 3/6

2006 9/15

2007 9/15

2008 7/10 This shows that a growing percentage of cyclones are forming further south.

Now any weather man will tell you that you can't detect a weather trend over such a short period of time. So let's keep watching, and see if I am wrong.

For the latest cyclone bulletin, sat photo or storm tracks for this season, go to frontfin.com and click on weather links.

Are the Permanent Residence Rules on their way?

The Captain was has heard that the Board of Investment says that any investor who sets up a business that generates a turnover of over USD500 000 per annum will get permanent residence for 10 years.

This is nothing new. On the frontfin.com website, we have been saying something similar for a number of years. The only change is that it is US denominated and not Rs15 million (roughly equivalent to half a million USD).

What is new is that they are waiting for the start of Mauritian parliament next week to get this going.

What is also new is an indication of what happens after the 10 years 'permanent residence'. Here they say that the permit will lapse after ten years, after which the holder may stay in Mauritius indefinitely and seek citizenship. Nice!

What is disconcerting is that this may only apply to those with occupation permits based on turnover. What about the other categories of Occupation Permit, namely the Self Employed and the Professionals.

And what about the retirees?

Watch this space.

Can Mauritius ever be like Singapore?

My previous post showed Singapore once again top of the global log in ‘Ease of Doing Business’. While Mauritius did really well at 14^th place, how do we get better?

The obvious answer is to use Singapore as a role model.

I have been to Singapore a number of times, the first when I was five years old, looking for a school. The country was then part of Malaya. Every country in the region was trying to kick out their colonisers (the English) and my family were leaving Sarawak (also part of Malaya) due to political insecurity.

For the geographically challenged, Singapore is a pimple below the Malaysian Subcontinent. It is separated from mainland Malaysia by the Johore Strait, so it's a sort of island. Mauritius is a pimple three times the size of Singapore in the middle of the Indian Ocean, so it is definitely an island.

Both Singapore and Mauritius are challenged when it comes to natural resources. Singapore has none, while Mauritius has a sugar crop and tourist beaches. The sugar crop is at its maximum productive capacity, and there are only so many beaches, So long term, if Mauritius is to grow, it has to use something other than its natural resources.

Singapore was always been a trading post. It has an edge on Mauritius when it comes to being a commercial hub due to its proximity to Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, India as well as Korea and China. And a quick look at Changi’s magnificent airport or the sprawling harbour makes one realise that it would be folly to try to copy those, except in a small way.

We have a Freeport, and Mauritius took a very hard look at Singapore’s legislation when it set this up in 1993. The positive effect the Freeport has had on Mauritius is that it improved our light industrial infrastructure and makes it easy for new small added value operations to benefit from the enabling business environment and our fist-full of export friendly treaties. We are very far from being an attractive air transit location, and I don’t believe we should try to copy Singapore here. There is just too much sea to cross.

So what is left?

Shopping:

Singapore is famous for its shopping, and Mauritius set itself a target of becoming a duty free island, a shopper’s paradise, some years back. Import duties have come down, and shopping centres have gone up. So we are getting there. We don’t have much of a domestic consumer base compared to Singapore. They have 4,84 million people (compared to Mauritius with 1,3m) with an annual per person spending power of $47 940 (10^th in the World) compared to Mauritius at $12 480 (85^th). Simply put, that is four times as many people with four times as much money.

So our target should be to have a shopping paradise about one sixteenth the size of that on Orchard Road. Not so far to go.

Banking:

The financial services sector of Singapore has been the envy of many countries, big and small. They have had enabling legislation and their sector has thrived. Expatriates once dominated this sector and to an extent are still prevalent, but the quality of home grown banker or stock broker is now world class.

Singapore is very business friendly when it comes to banking. I am afraid Mauritius has a long way to go here, with some of the most demanding due diligence requirements in the world that stifle efficiency and destroy transactions.

This is a Must Fix.

This leads me to the next area where we can do better:

Bureaucracy

Singaporean government officials are some of the most highly qualified, and well paid in the world. They fight for their jobs and are measured on performance. Unfortunately, in Mauritius, too many jobs go to friends or are given out as political favours.

There are many very competent hard working individuals in government and it is always a pleasure dealing with them, but behind these hard working few, are the many who could do more.

Ok, so where is Mauritius better?

Unless you like living in an apartment in a city, with the air conditioner running 24/7, Mauritius is a nicer place to live. There is more space, nicer beaches, less city. It is warm but not unbearably so. As a tourist destination or place to retire, we have got Singapore licked.

I think there are more business opportunities in Mauritius because we have further to go in terms of development. Our population is well educated but not as crazily stressed about education as Singapore, where schools operate two shifts per day. Where children never get a chance to play. (I should write a song!)

India and China

Our biggest hope for growth and development comes from India and China.

After India and Nepal, Mauritius has the highest percentage of Hindu population (around 50%). Mauritius is in many ways a home from home for Indians wishing to do business here. This plus the fact that Mauritius is the biggest foreign direct investor into India (44% as of June 2009) gives India a very important role in the future of Mauritius. Singapore is the second biggest investor into India at 9%. Just this statistic on its own gives a hint at how Mauritius can develop, and also shows how important the double taxation avoidance treaty between India and Mauritius is - for both countries.

And then we come to a huge pot of gold at the end of the Mauritian rainbow: China.

President Hu Jintao visited Mauritius in February this year. He is a busy guy, so to come to a country with a population equivalent to 0.1% of his country says something. Here is the difference: Mauritius 1,3m - China 1 338,6m

It also shows that all we need is a tiny piece of the Chinese action to make a huge difference to Mauritius.

Mauritius has apportioned a zone to the north of Port Louis for Chinese development, and I watch the development there grow each day on my way to the office. The natural resources of Africa, and to a lesser extent, Madagascar, are obviously the ultimate objective of the Chinese, and with Mauritius the leader in political and business friendliness in the region, including Africa, I can see our role evolving as a result of these forces. I suspect we will see a push into our services sector coming from Hong Kong and Singapore. It may already be happening for all I know.

Most Important things for Mauritius to do:

• Improve Telecoms especially internet
• Improve road infrastructure
• Reduce financial sector over-regulation

That’s not such a big job.

We are working on our roads – after a long rest.

Fibre optical cables are being laid all the time. Technicians are getting better (I hope and trust).

Financial regulation must change - away from appeasing high tax countries and towards greater business orientation. Less repetitive due dilligence, information sharing and wasteful reporting and more transactional efficiency.

Or the heart will stop beating.

Ease of Doing Business: Mauritius 14th in the World

I am so proud.

I noticed a buzz of activity yesterday in our neighbour's offices. TV cameras, rows of coffee cups, smartly dressed execs. I wondered what was going on. Our neighbour is the World Bank and they were releasing the results of their latest annual Doing Business Survey.

A total of 183 countries were surveyed. Did we do well? DID WE DO WELL???

Let me show you how well we did!

Ease of Doing Business - 14th (in the world)
Starting a Business - 10th (10th!!!) (In the world)
Trading Across Borders - 19th

For our South African readers, here's how you did:

Ease of Doing Business - 34th
Starting a Business - 67th
Trading Across Borders - 148th Wow...how about that? Time you opened an office in Mauritius, non?

Those better than Mauritius at Ease of Doing Business (the summary statistic) are, in ascending order:

Finland (16), Japan (15), Iceland (14) - this is the only 'small country' better than Mauritius, by the way - Saudi Arabia (13) but try buying a beer there, Thailand (12), Georgia (11), Norway (10), Australia (9), Canada (8), Ireland (7), Denmark (6), UK (5), US (4), Hong Kong (3), New Zealand (2)...and the winner is Singapore (1).

Out of interest I went to Wikipedia and pulled the maximum tax rates for Corporate and Individual Taxes for this same illustrious group and the countries.

Guess what?

Lowest maximum corporate tax rates go to:

Singapore (17%), Hong Kong (16.5%), Georgia (15%), Mauritius (15%), Ireland (12.5%)

Lowest maximum personal tax rates go to:

Hong Kong (15%), Mauritius (15%) and Singapore, Georgia and Saudi Arabia at 20%.

No country taxes less than Mauritius if you add both the corporate and individual maximums.

Why have I used maximum rates? The simple answer is that most countries have differential tax rates and it is not easy to compare one to another any other way. It is possible to be taxed less than 15% in Mauritius, for example, but that requires some planning. The same applies to every country in the world to some extent.

Oh and by the way, South Africa's maximum tax rate for Corporates is 28% and for Individuals, it is 40%.

If you would like to have a look at the World Bank 'Doing Business 2010 Report'
go to

http://www.doingbusiness.org/economyrankings/

I am so proud!

Tamarina and Villas Valriche

Our annual three day golf tournament against eight South Africans ended on Sunday.

This year it was held at Tamarina and Golf du Chateau (Villas Valriche) Golf courses, with us staying in two Tamarina Villas kindly donated for this purpose by the owners.

Apart from being a great week and a good result for the Mauritian Cane Rats against the South African Warthogs, it was also a chance to take stock of two IRS developments...Tamarina Golf, Spa and Beach Resort and Villas Valriche.

Tamarina:

Tamarina is an Integrated Resort Scheme that is set on the West Coast of Mauritius near the towns of Tamarin and Black River. The Villas are very comfortable. We stayed in a four bedroom unit overlooking a ravine with the Black River Gorge in the distance. Tamarin Trees and a Mirador (old wooden hunting tower) framed our view, over the sparkling rim flow pool.

We would watch the clouds dump their rain in the gorge and then wait for it to hit us. But it usually petered out. Tamarina has a very low rainfall and is protected from the wind, and the golf course looks like your typical bush veld course in South Africa.

The greens were true and the fairways manicured and well maintained and a lot of fun to play.

Club House staff were attentive, efficient, and friendly. They went to a lot of trouble to make our round and our stay as pleasant as possible. Thanks to O'Brian Barber for welcoming us and organising things.

One evening we went down to the Beach Club, where you can sit perched over the beach on your lounger or in the pool and enjoy the waves breaking below. We had a lot of fun kicking a rugby ball on the beach or simply standing in the sea, sipping a beer and enjoying the evening.

My only niggles were that the hot water took a long time to get to the showers, even though the hot water circulation system was switched on, and that it is a long drive around for cars to the Beach Club. Golf Carts have their own more direct route.

Villas Valriche

Villas Valriche is perched over the Peter Matkovitch designed course of Golf Du Chateau, on the South Coast. We have played the course many times and love it. The greens are perfect and the fairways manicured. The prevailing South Easterly can make the course challenging and anyone with a par on 17 should be happy if not surprised.



Villas Valriche IRS units are currently under construction.

The Villas are arranged around the high ground behind the golf course with stunning sea views. The south coast is indisputably the prettiest part of Mauritius and there are miles and miles of public beaches with closely mown grass running down to the coral sands. Two five start resorts offer privelaged access to owners allowing for the enjoyment of the best of both worlds, self-catering independence, with five star pampering if desired.

The golf team under golf director Steven Shearer is friendly, professional and attentive. Their eye for detail is a pleasure. The resident golf pro, Garrick Barnard, is an inspiration and has a wonderful effect on my game while he is watching. It is a pity I seem to forget everything the next time I play. The practice facilities are fantastic.

There is one completed Villa overlooking the Tee Box on the Second Hole, and the design is not that different from the Tamarina Look. Shingled roofs with Bali Accents. Nice big windows to take in the views

I am told that a beach house will be available to owners but personally, I would like to explore all the coves and beaches nearby. I am sure I could find one just for me. I also like the fact that I can use two hotels, their pools, restaurants, spas and beaches, if I feel like it.

Surfers (Wind, Kite and Board) will be happy to be based at either location. It is less than half an hour from both Villas Valriche and Tamarina to Le Morne. This is the principal kite and wind surfing spot in Mauritius and attracts serious participants from around the world. Board surfers are looked after at nearby One - Eye, where a wave is present most of the time. Tamarin Bay is also surfable with a southerly or westerly wind. There is another beach near Valriche that attracts surfers but the name escapes me. I do know that it has a sign that says Swimmers Will Be Drowned if they use this beach.

Which do I prefer? I can't say.

Valriche is not finished yet, and with prices ranging from $1.2m upwards, they look like a good deal. High points for me at Valriche are the awsome views, established Championship golf course plus a good quality Mashie Course, shared by two excellent hotels. And I love the beautiful coastline.

Tamarina is finished and resales are upwards of $1.6m to $2.5m. It is very close to supermarkets, shops, some restuarants and Big Willy's - the local hang out. No sea views unfortunately, but access to a brilliant beach and I love the Beach House.

Mauritius Cuisine (Sept 1993)

The following is an excerpt from a newsletter sent to friends and family in September 1993 and forms part of our 16th Year in Mauritius Anniversary Celebration. As usual, there has been a greater emphasis on a light hearted reflection of our life in Mauritius than an accurate portrayal of the culinary truth.

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La Cuisine Bongo

J and I have adapted very well to island style food. This can be grouped into three categories: Chinese, Indian and Creole. It is everything we like.

What follows are uncensored excerpts from J's cook book collection. It is important to note that these cook books have all been translated from another language. This strikes the novice cook when she turns to the first chapter titled “Alimentary Products.”

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Quotations from cookbooks follow...exactly as written (except for comments within parenthesis).

The Monkey Curry (read this with any accent you think appropriate)

Nothing is better than our like, and as we are supposed to have monkey ancestors it follows that the meat we should appreciate mostly should be monkey's. It is much better to use the monkey that has been killed at hunting (rather than the one that died in the monkey breeding scheme - see 10 May 2008 posting - Monkey Business). Tie and hang animal by the legs, cut the skin round neck and wrists and pull off fur. Take out bowels and wash thoroughly. (Wash the cook, the monkey or the bowels?). Take out all the bones with a very sharp knife then cut the meat into slices of 2 cm cube. (?).

I skip over the details of Fritters of Venison Brain, and turn to Stew of Flying Fox Bat:

Take six fox bats (tough critters to catch, or find at the deli), discard wings, skin and heads. Remove interior organs and guts (not much left after all this, a bit like eating a guava after you have peeled it and removed the pips). Wash well and cut into pieces.

Galantine of Wild Boar

(ANC can adapt this to Galantine of Wild Boer). Take one wild boar head. The boar's head must be shaved first (watch out ET). Then delicately detach the skin and reserve. Debone the head, wash meat, brains, tongue, etc. (don't think too much about the etc). Mince it all up with pork fat and stuff it back into the skin. Sew it up, boil for four hours, cool, drain and emigrate (I think that should have been refrigerate).

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Commentary:

One of the most important things about tuning into our new culture was developing an interest and taste in the cuisine of the community.

What is Mauritian cuisine? This question is nearly as hard as answering the similar question 'What is South African cuisine?”.

The obvious point is that both cuisines are combinations of a number of cultures. In Mauritius the dominant influences on our cuisine are Indian, Chinese, a bit of French, and, until recently, a shortage of protein and an absence of refrigeration. The weird recipes above are mostly from very old cookbooks. Although I must confess I had Fried Wasp Grub with Bombay Onions just the other day!

Truly!

.

South African Bashing

The following article was translated by me from l'express of 5 August 2009.

Foreigners in Mauritius
Raju Jaddoo stands against South African Bashing

A board of inquiry on the illegal real estate purchases by foreigners met yesterday. The Director of BOI, Raju Jaddoo believes that South Africans should not be targeted.

"We must stop this obsession, this systematic attack against South Africans! It's South African bashing! It's cowardly!" said Raju Jaddoo, Managing Director of the Board of Investment (BOI). L'express was contacted at the first meeting of a High-Powered Committee, to investigate the illegal purchase of real estate by foreigners.

Reliable sources have said that Raju Jaddoo did not express the depths of his thinking at the meeting yesterday. In addition to Raju Jaddoo, this committee consists of the President of the Commission for the democratization of the economy, Cader Sayed Hossen, a representative of the Office of the Prime Minister, a representative of the prosecutor, a representative of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and representatives of Ministry of Land and Finance.

According to our information, a decision was taken a few days ago to expand the mandate of this committee to also examine the social impact of immigration of all aliens. They are seen to be creating enclaves in the country, specifically on the coast north, south and west of the island.

"Mauritius has to be an open country"

However, these people live in Mauritius through the open-door policy advocated by the same government. Does it now seem that the easy entry of foreigners to Mauritius to live and work is having an undesirable effect? The establishment of this committee is a little discomforting for the Board of Investment (BOI) as the role of this department is to attract and encourage foreign investment. And the Director General of the BOI has not sought to hide his feelings yesterday.

South Africans, he says, are not "the majority" amongst the foreigners living in Mauritius.

But he refuses to give us the official figures of the number of foreigners living in Mauritius since the decision to open up the country, referring to the Passport and Immigration Office. He adds that "Mauritius is an open country. How many Mauritians live abroad?" If very little has transpired in this first meeting, it is nevertheless clear that another factor, in addition to possible tax and legal sanctions against the promoters, was the social aspect of this "political opening" . Does this mean that the policy will be reviewed? Hard to say. But this confusion may affect the work of the BOI. Foreigners can buy property only under the Integrated Resorts Scheme (IRS) and Real Estate Scheme (RES).

They may however live in Mauritius on three conditions: if they buy IRS or RES villas, if they invest some money into a company, or if they find a job which gives them a salary of over Rs 30 000.

The latter criterion is problematic. The threshold wage - Rs 30 000 - is so low that job offers that are given to foreigners are relatively easy to obtain.

And since there is no restriction on the sectors in which foreigners can work, they often encroach onto the turf of Mauritians. They are also creating enclaves and do not want to mingle with Mauritians.

What does the Government expect to do after it has blithely opened its doors? Stay tuned.

Original written in French by Deepa BHOOKHUN.

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Commentary:

My earlier article about 'Too Many South Africans in Mauritius?' was a reflection of these points of view that I had heard around Port Louis and other places. There have been other articles that I have chosen not to publish, as they are better left unread.

What should South Africans living in Mauritius do about this campaign? Learn French would be a good start! At least you can then read what they say about you.

My best advice would be to keep your head down, and be nice.