Mauritius is ranked first in Africa and forms part of Tier 1 countries globally with a 100 percent score as per the results of the fifth edition of the Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) announced on 12 September 2024. The GCI assesses national efforts across five pillars, representing country-level Cybersecurity commitments, namely legal, technical, organisational, capacity development and cooperation.  A total of 194 countries were evaluated on 20 indicators for the period of 2023-2024.

Mauritius has continuously been improving on its score from 88% in 2018 to 96.89% in 2020.

Now, in 2024, the Small Island State has scored 100 percent in the five pillars and is ranked among the Tier 1 countries in the world (those countries who got a score of 95-100%), and is positioned first in Africa.  Out of 194, 47 countries form part of the 1st Tier, with 12 countries scoring 100 percent, including Mauritius.

In a media statement, today, the Minister of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation, Honourable Deepak Balgobin, while expressing his pride after the release of the country’s rankings, qualified the performance of Mauritius as exceptional and the best one yet, attained over the past nine years.

Minister Balgobin likewise recalled the Government's vision, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, to transform Mauritius into a Cyber Hub and further promote Cybersecurity to ensure that the country positions itself as a safe destination in terms of cyber resilience. According to him, several projects and concrete measures have been implemented that have vastly contributed to the global recognition of Mauritius in the field of Cybersecurity.

In the same vein, he elaborated on some of his Ministry’s achievements during the past five years with the support of CERT-MU, which include the introduction of the following: Maucors – an online system to report cybercrimes; Cybersecurity and Cybercrime Act 2021; Maushield system for information sharing on cyberattacks; National Cybersecurity Strategy 2023-2026; and, MauHNET – the Mauritius Honeynet project.  The Small Island State is also the first country in Africa and in the Southern Hemisphere to receive the SIM3 Certification.

Minister Balgobin moreover acknowledged international alliances which have helped Mauritius become a Cybersecurity Hub in Africa and which comprise partnerships with the ITU, SADC, the Council of Europe, Africa CERT, and the African Union. 

Mauritius has, in addition, supported several countries in the region such as Seychelles, Zambia, Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique in the setting up of their respective CERTs, in carrying out audits and trainings in the field of cybersecurity as well as executing cyber drills, he pointed out.

For him, all these initiatives have contributed in maintaining Mauritius on the topmost position in Africa during these past nine years, and for the first time, to be ranked amongst the 12 countries globally to have scored 100 percent on the ITU’s GCI.

Source: GIS