It is an island of volcanic origin, 560 kilometers east of Mauritius. Its area is 109 square kilometers. The island was once the tenth district of Mauritius, it gained its autonomous status in 2002. The island’s residents (more than 41.000 people lived there in 2014) are Mauritian citizens, and most of them are of African descent.
The capital of the island is Port Mathurin located on the northern coast. The city serves as the administrative, judicial, and economic center of Rodrigues. It is also the island’s main port. The city is home to the island’s only bus station, as well as a nearly two-meter-tall statue of the Virgin Mary erected in the hills of Pointe Canon. The statue is a landmark of the capital and a gathering place for the island’s Catholics, as well as a tourist and historical site (the statue was unveiled in 1954).
