Rodrigues, Agaléga, St Brandon and the Chagos: the islands of the Republic

A republic of islands

The island of Mauritius (about 1,865 km²) is only the best-known part of a state scattered across the Indian Ocean. With its outer islands, the Republic has about 2,040 km² of land, but its exclusive economic zone covers nearly 2 million km². According to the 2022 census, the Republic has 1,235,260 residents: 1,191,280 on the island of Mauritius, 43,650 on Rodrigues and 330 on Agaléga.

Rodrigues, the autonomous island

More than 500 km east of Mauritius, Rodrigues covers about 109 km², with Port Mathurin as its capital. It was uninhabited when the Huguenot François Leguat and his companions settled there for about two years from 1691. French settlement began in the mid-18th century; British troops landed in 1809, and the 1814 Treaty of Paris confirmed British sovereignty.

Rodrigues has a strong identity, with its own Creole and traditions. Sega tambour of Rodrigues Island has been on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2017. On 21 November 2001 the National Assembly unanimously passed the Rodrigues Regional Assembly Act: since 2002 the island has had administrative autonomy within the Republic.

Agaléga, the coconut island

Agaléga lies about 1,000 km north of Mauritius. It consists of two islands, North Island and South Island, separated by a narrow channel, with a total area of about 70 km². Copra and coconut oil are produced there; the main villages are Vingt-Cinq in the north and Sainte-Rita in the south. Since 1983 Agaléga has been managed by the Outer Islands Development Corporation, under the Prime Minister's Office.

St Brandon (Cargados Carajos)

About 350 km north-north-east of Mauritius, St Brandon is a group of shoals, reefs and islets, the main one being Raphael Island. It is best known for fishing and is also managed by the Outer Islands Development Corporation.

The Chagos: a question still open

In 1965, before independence, the United Kingdom separated the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius to create the British Indian Ocean Territory. A British-US military base has operated on Diego Garcia since the early 1970s, and the Chagossian population was displaced.

On 25 February 2019 the International Court of Justice, at the request of the UN General Assembly, found that the decolonisation of Mauritius had not been lawfully completed and that the United Kingdom should end its administration of the archipelago as rapidly as possible.

On 22 May 2025 London and Port Louis signed a treaty recognising Mauritian sovereignty over the Chagos. It provides for the UK to keep its rights over Diego Garcia for an initial 99-year period, which can be extended, sets up a £40 million fund for Chagossians and opens the way to resettlement on islands other than Diego Garcia.

Status in October 2026: the treaty has not entered into force. The UK bill needed to implement it was not passed before the end of the parliamentary session in spring 2026. According to the House of Commons Library, UK ratification is on hold pending a UK-US agreement on the future of the base, after Washington said in September 2026 that it did not currently support the deal. Talks between the three countries have resumed. The situation may change, so check the latest news before quoting a final status.

Chagossian culture lives on notably through Sega tambour Chagos, placed on UNESCO's Urgent Safeguarding List in 2019.