Multi-criteria planning for agricultural development, a full employment strategy for Mauritius

These are compounded by high unemployment rates and rapid growth of population. This research uses Mauritius as a case study to test the hypothesis that these problems can be ameliorated through an agricultural development strategy involving both import substitution and export diversification. The island has a quantifiable monocrop economy based on sugar and a severe unemployment and balance of payments problem. A linear programming model is used to analyze simultaneously employment, foreign exchange and land utilization, and to test the feasibility of import substitution and export diversification. The model identifies different agricultural production, import, and export activities; and the objective is to maximize the agricultural balance of payments within land and labor constraints while maintaining a specified level of domestic consumption. Specifically, the population and unemployment situation are examined as they have evolved to the present day and the future dimensions of the problems are forecast. The consequences of the foreign exchange situation as determined by the exports of sugar and tea and imports of food are examined and the future prospects for Mauritius" international trade are explored.