Rodrigues
Rodrigues (French: Île Rodrigues [il ʁɔdʁiɡ]; Creole: Rodrig) is a 108 km2 (42 sq mi) autonomous outer island of the Republic of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, about 560 km (350 mi) east of Mauritius. It is part of the Mascarene Islands, which include Mauritius and Réunion. Like Agaléga, Rodrigues is a constituent island of the Republic of Mauritius, under the Constitution of Mauritius and still remains, as explicitly defined by the same Constitution, part of the Sovereignty of Mauritius, together with the following islands: "Agalega, Tromelin, Cargados Carajos (Saint Brandon), Chagos Archipelago ... Diego Garcia and other islands included in the State of Mauritius".
Rodrigues
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Autonomous outer island | |
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Flag Coat of arms | |
| Motto(s): | |
| Anthem: "Motherland" | |
Location of Rodrigues in the Indian Ocean. | |
| Coordinates: 19°43′S 63°25′E | |
| Country | Mauritius |
| Capital | Port Mathurin |
| Government | |
| • Body | Regional Assembly |
| • Chief Commissioner | Johnson Roussety |
| • Chief Executive | Jean Claude Pierre-Louis |
| • Minister for Rodrigues | Pravind Jugnauth |
| Area | |
| • Total | 108 km2 (42 sq mi) |
| Population (2014) | |
| • Total | 41,669 |
| • Density | 386/km2 (1,000/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Rodriguan |
| Languages | |
| • Vernacular languages |
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| Time zone | UTC+4 (MUT) |
| ISO 3166 code | MU-RO |
| Calling code | +230 |
| Currency | Mauritian rupee (MUR) |
| Date format | dd/mm/yyyy (AD) |
| Drives on | left |
| Internet TLD | .mu |
Rodrigues is of volcanic origin and is surrounded by coral reef, and some tiny uninhabited islands lie just off its coast. The island used to be the tenth District of Mauritius; it gained autonomous status on 10 December 2002, and is governed by the Rodrigues Regional Assembly. The capital of the island is Port Mathurin. The islands of Rodrigues, Agaléga and Saint Brandon form part of the larger territory of the Republic of Mauritius.
Its inhabitants are Mauritian citizens. As of 2014, the island's population was about 41,669, according to Statistics Mauritius. Most of the inhabitants are of African descent. Its economy is based mainly on fishing, farming, handicraft and a developing tourism sector.