#BBB NEWS| Mauritius Elects First Female President

Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, age 56, was elected as the first female President of Mauritius. She is a leading international scientist who previously directed the Mauritius-headquartered Centre for Phytotherapy Research (CEPHYR), an organization that authorizes the research for plants used in cosmetics, nutrition, and therapy. Photo Credit: Guardian

This Thursday the Parliament of Mauritius, which received independence from Britain in 1968, voted Gurib-Fakim's into the Presidential Office.

Ameenah Gurib-Fakim is the first woman to hold such position in this country.

Her appointment came after former President Kailash Purryag, who was selected by the island's previous Labour Party government, stepped down after having served as Mauritius's President since July of 2012.

Prime Minister Sir Anerood Jugnauth told reporters, “I have always believed in the equality of men and women."

Many officials from the opposition Party came out in support of her, despite the political divide in Mauritius's Parliament.