Patrick Koucheravy: “United States and Mauritius share growing interest in African markets”

Mauritius and United States have much in common when it comes to their economic philosophy, according to Patrick Koucheravy. In his opinion, the focus of both countries on Africa can act as a catalyst to boost their business exchanges.  

BUSINESSMAG. There is little or no trace of Mauritian businesses present in USA, despite the two countries having signed a number of trade agreements. How do you explain this fact?

It’s true that there are not a lot of Mauritian companies in the U.S. right now, but they do exist and have had some success. Recruiter.com, which just opened its first office in Mauritius, was founded by a Mauritian in Connecticut. Advance Steel World, makers of telecommunications equipment, constructs its products in Michigan. I think it is important to recognise the challenges faced here.

First, the distance between the two countries is vast, so it is likely that an expansion into Europe or Africa seems much simpler. Secondly, because of its history and geography, Mauritius maintains strong links with its traditional partners in Europe and Africa and, as a consequence, the U.S. probably doesn’t seem like an obvious choice for immediate expansion of a firm.  These concerns are understandable, but only at first glance. Technology eliminates distances and, what’s more, the U.S. actively participates in Africa – you could say that the U.S. and Mauritius have in common a growing interest in African markets.  More fundamentally, Mauritius is one the most open economies in Africa and the country has much in common with the U.S. regarding its economic philosophy.

BUSINESSMAG. What can/should be done to encourage Mauritian businesses to trade with the U.S. and why should they choose the American market first of all?

The U.S. embassy is always working to inform the business community of opportunities offered by the United States. That’s the reason we organise training – workshops, for example – or conferences like InvestUSA, held in 2013. The embassy, specifically our economic and commercial team, is always available to respond to questions about doing business in the U.S. If a solution is not obvious, we will work together to find it.

As a large country and the biggest economy in the world, the U.S. presents a multitude of diverse markets to the expanding entrepreneur or firm. The big cities and their economic specialties are well-known, like New York and the banking sector, for example, or Silicon Valley and software deve-lopment, but there is also a cluster of banking institutions in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the technology sector is very strong around our capital city, Washington, DC.

The U.S. offers diversity without equal to the entrepreneur or the company that wishes to expand. In addition, the labour markets, fiscal incentives, and tax rates vary a bit from one state to another, so if you want to move into the American market, you can find an ideal solution after studying all the possibilities...

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