and manufacturing. a growth of 8. 7 % was recorded in 2022, in line with initial bom projections but much higher than projections made by international organisations. the tourism sector performed remarkably well in 2022, posting an exceptional growth of around 200 per cent, after two consecutive years of contraction, with positive spillover effects onto other sectors of the economy. in 2022, 997, 290 tourists visited mauritius, representing 72 per cent of the 2019 level. tourism earnings worked out to around rs64. 8 billion, well above the 2019 level. prospects for the tourism sector remain strong. for the first five months of 2023, tourist arrivals reached 514, 258 while tourism earnings aggregated rs28. 9 billion during the period january to april 2023, higher by 72 per cent compared to the same period of 2022. improved air connectivity and efforts to promote the attractiveness of mauritius as a tourist destination will provide further impetus to the sector. for 2023, statistics mauritius projects around 1. 3 million tourists to visit the island. 2 / 6 bis - central bankers'speeches the recovery in economic activity continues to positively influence the domestic labour market. the unemployment rate maintained its downward trajectory to 6. 8 per cent in 2022q4. labour market conditions are expected to improve further as the domestic economy sustains its growth momentum. the current account, deficit as a ratio to gdp, was estimated at 12. 2 per cent in 2022, down from 13. 1 per cent in 2021. the improvement largely reflected a better performance of the services account, in particular, in the second half of 2022. the current account deficit is projected to narrow further to 8. 3 per cent of gdp in 2023 on account of continued healthy performance of the tourism sector as well as a larger surplus on the income account which is expected to benefit from higher interest rates in the us and europe. the mauritius ifc continues to attract robust financial flows as global cross - border investment activities remain buoyant despite challenging global conditions brought about by the lingering russia - ukraine war, higher interest rates and the recent banking crisis. with respect to non - gbc financial flows, the country recorded all - time high gross foreign direct investment ( fdi ) flows of rs27. 7 billion in 2022, led by the real estate sector. looking ahead, mauritius is projected to keep on attracting significant gross fdi into this sector as well as other sectors of activities. inflation recent price dynamics have indicated an

viewpoint of central banks, the problem is to prevent financial instability and to maintain confidence in the financial system. today, i should like to take this opportunity to share with you the viewpoint of the central bank and some thoughts on our role in encouraging investment in housing while taking into account the risks that such investment may pose to financial stability. hopefully, i will be able to contribute towards a deeper awareness and understanding of these risks and other issues linked to housing financing. at least two factors make this a highly topical subject. first, the 2008 global financial crisis has shed the spotlight directly on the housing market, prompting many questions to be raised about practices in housing finance. these questions have challenged traditional assumptions that lending for housing purposes is generally a safe and low - risk activity, and highlighted potential dangers that central banks and banks need to be concerned about. secondly, the current accommodative stance of monetary policy coupled with the increased competition in bis central bankers ’ speeches the housing market calls for greater vigilance by banks in monitoring risks linked with housing loans. in mauritius, credit for housing purposes has always constituted a large share of total credit to households. currently, advances granted by banks for housing purposes account for around 62 per cent of total household credit. as a percentage of gdp, housing loans have increased from 7. 1 per cent at end - march 2008 to 12. 1 per cent in the first quarter of 2013. latest data show that investment in residential building posted a robust growth rate of 26. 9 per cent in the first quarter of 2013, and it is expected that growth in this segment will hover around 10 per cent in 2013. at the end of the first quarter, the volume of residential building permits increased to 1, 724 compared to 1, 367 a year earlier. comparatively, according to the housing survey conducted by statistics mauritius in 2011, the housing stock grew by 19. 9 % from 297, 700 to 356, 900 housing units over the past decade, with the number of private households increasing by 14. 5 % from 297, 900 in 2000 to 341, 000 in 2011. while growth in the housing market is expected to be sustained, there is increasing evidence that the rise of investment property has also been important. housing loans remain relatively sound. however, while house financing is a profitable business for most banks, competition has intensified considerably. today banks compete aggressively for borrowers by offering highly competitive home loan packages to meet different needs of borrowers. banks need to be aware of