Mauritians are the wealthiest people in Africa per capita, a study shows.
The Africa Wealth Report 2017 was produced by New World Wealth for Mauritian private and corporate bank AfrAsia and published Monday by The Namibian newspaper.
The April 2017 report defines wealth per capita as the average wealth of a person living in each country, excluding what the government lays claim to.
The study compiled data from last year.
The efficiency
“The researchers preferred to use wealth per capita rather than GDP per capita to determine wealth,” said the report.
For instance, GDP ignores the efficiency of the local banking sector and the local stock market at retaining wealth in a country, The Namibian quotes the study as saying.
Mauritians were found to be the wealthiest in Africa, with $25,700.
South Africans, the report shows, are Africa's second wealthiest people with an average wealth per person of $11,300 in 2016.
An average
Namibians were ranked third with an average wealth of per person at $10,800.
Botswana was fourth at $6,700 per person.
Mauritius, an Indian Ocean archipelago, is seen as a model of stability and economic prosperity in Africa.
Once dependent on sugar exports, the island has built a strong outsourcing and financial services sector, and an important tourism industry and now boasts one of Africa's highest per capita incomes.
Were expelled
Mauritius claims sovereignty over the Chagos islands, that lie around 1,000km to the north-east and are home to the US military base on Diego Garcia.
Mauritius argues that the archipelago was illegally detached from it before its independence.
Several hundred islanders were expelled to make way for the US base.
