Purpose Real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for Mauritius has averaged more than 5 per cent since 1970 and GDP per capita has increased more than tenfold between 1970 and 2012, from less than $500 to more than $9,000. It has often been reported that human capital, along with other growth enablers, has played an important role in this development. The purpose of this paper is to study this nexus. Design/methodology/approach A human capital augmented Cobb-Douglas production function is used, where output is also a function of capital and labour. One of the innovations of the present paper is the use of a composite index to proxy human capital. The authors investigate the impact of human capital on economic growth in a dynamic vector error correction modelling (VECM) framework. Findings The general results here show that stock, labour and human capital are all significant growth determinants, with human capital having a long-run output elasticity of 0.36. The VECM results generally validated the long-run output elasticity, although a relatively lower elasticity of 0.1 is obtained. Both sets of results tend to point to the fact that human capital has significantly contributed to economic growth in Mauritius. Research limitations/implications The current paper paves the way for future work, which can build on the composite HCI developed here and aggregate it with relevant variables representing tertiary education and training, to better analyze and further understand the role of human capital on economic growth in Mauritius. Originality/value Here, the authors posit that human capital is an aggregate of health, education and nutrition, and the authors use a composite index along with other contributing factors to study its impact on economic growth, within a VECM framework.

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Food control systems are being established or revamped in many countries because of problems occurring along the food chain and the obligations of governments towards the World Trade Organization. The main components of an ideal food control system are food legislation, administration, enforcement and supporting bodies like analytical services and consumer organizations. Mauritius introduced modern legal instruments in 1998 in an attempt to reinvigorate food control. This article describes the components of the Mauritian Food Control System (MFCS). An appraisal of these components is then made. The methodology comprised a literature review and in-depth interviews with key informants and stakeholders of the local food control system. Although much progress was made with the introduction of new food legislation in 1998, other components of the local system like enforcement and various supporting bodies did not receive appropriate support. Other countries could use the lessons drawn from the Mauritian experience while setting up or upgrading their food control systems.

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