Highlights Of Cabinet Meeting – Friday 21 April 2023

The Cabinet met today under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, the Hon. Pravind Kumar Jugnauth. The highlights of the deliberations are as follows:

1. Cabinet has agreed to the introduction of the Caudan Bridges, Port Louis (Authorised Construction) (Amendment) Bill into the National Assembly. The object of the Bill would be to amend the Caudan Bridges, Port Louis (Authorised Construction) Act to authorise Caudan Development Limited to operate a pedestrian swing bridge over the Caudan Bassin for the purpose of enabling the public to commute between the Caudan Waterfront and Les Salines area.
2. Cabinet has agreed to the introduction of the Education (Amendment) Bill into the National The Education (Amendment) Bill would provide for:
   • the setting up of the National Examinations Board for the organisation and conduct of examinations in designated subjects at secondary education level; and
   • the conferment upon the University of Mauritius of the power to award certificates in the secondary education sub-sector on the recommendations of the National Examinations Board.
3. Cabinet has agreed to the signing of a General Cooperation Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Mauritius and the Government of the Republic of South Africa. The General Cooperation Agreement would have the following main objectives:

• to seek ways and means of promoting and enhancing cooperation between both countries; and
• to facilitate contact between the civil and private sectors of both countries.

4. Cabinet has agreed to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Health and Wellness and the Narayana Hrudayalaya Limited, Bangalore, India, with a view to seeking assistance for the provision of health services not available locally in public health institutions, in particular, complicated paediatric surgical cases.
5. Cabinet has agreed to the Ministry of Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change signing a Project Document in the context of the “Review and Update of the National Implementation Plan for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants” (POPs). Pursuant to the decision taken at the first meeting of the Conference of Parties, whenever there are amendments to the Convention or to its annexes, a Party would need to review and update its National Implementation Plan and transmit same to the Secretariat of the Convention within two years of the entry into force of the amendment.

The National Implementation Plan project being envisaged would review and update the inventory of POPs and develop an Action Plan to support the management and control of identified POPs in Mauritius.

6. Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the appeal of Mr Dawood Rawat before La Cour de Cassation de Belgique against the judgment of Le Tribunal de Première Instance Francophone de Bruxelles dated 30 June 2021 dismissing Mr Rawat’s action for annulment of the Arbitral Award dated 06 April 2018. In a written judgment dated 06 April 2023, the Cour de Cassation de Belgique rejected the appeal of Mr Rawat with costs.
7. Cabinet has agreed to Mauritius starting formal discussions with the Irish Authorities with a view to developing a Labour Circular Mobility and Education Pathways between both The proposed areas of cooperation would be as follows:
   • facilitation of skills mobility and training/exchanges;
   • setting up of Higher Education and Vocational Training facilities and educational exchanges, in accordance with legal requirements in the host country; and
   • facilitation of courses, seminars, workshops and conferences.
8. Cabinet has taken note that the Ministry of Tourism, in collaboration with the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), would hold a workshop from 03 to 05 May 2023 in Mauritius, on nature-based tourism and lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The workshop would bring together senior government officials from IORA Member States, primarily from the Ministry of Tourism or related government agencies, who have direct oversight, involvement, and responsibility in implementing sustainable nature-based tourism policies. Resource persons who are tourism professionals, private tourism operators, conservationists or experts in the field of nature-based tourism as well as representatives from Dialogue Partners would also participate in the workshop.

9. Cabinet has taken note that Interkultur of Germany intends to hold the Africa and Asia Pacific Choir Games 2025 from 27 September to 05 October 2025 in Mauritius. The hosting of the Choir Games would promote Mauritius as a world-class cultural, leisure, and tourist destination.
10. Cabinet has taken note that the Ministry of Blue Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping would host the Maritime Security Awareness Workshop, in collaboration with the International Maritime Organization, in Mauritius from 02 to 04 May 2023. The aim of this Workshop would be to provide training to all stakeholders involved in safety of navigation and maritime security.
11. Cabinet has taken note that two meetings of the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA), namely the seventh meeting of the Compliance Committee and the tenth Meeting of Parties would be held in Mauritius from 28 June to 07 July 2023. Around 120 participants were expected to attend the meetings of the SIOFA which would be held in hybrid mode.
12. Cabinet has taken note of the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic prevailing in Mauritius. As at 19 April 2023, there were 70 active cases of COVID-19, out of which 17 were admitted at the New ENT Hospital.
13. Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the participation of the Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade in the 13th Session of the Mauritius-Seychelles Commission on Bilateral Cooperation held recently in Several issues were discussed including, Legal Affairs, Financial Services, Environment and Climate Change, Blue Economy, Fisheries, ICT, Arts and Culture, Handicraft, Tourism, Health, Circular Economy, Gender and Family Affairs, Ease of Doing Business, Enhancing Labour and Employment Cooperation, Staff Exchange Programmes, Pooled Procurement and Education.

The Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade also had meetings with the President of the Republic of Seychelles, the Minister for Fisheries and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism.

14. Cabinet has taken note of the recent bilateral online meeting between the Minister of Informational Technology, Communication and Innovation and Dr Cosmas Zavazava, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau of the International Telecommunication Union. The following issues were discussed:

• the Kigali Action Plan outcomes, including regional initiatives;
• the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Alliance;
• regulatory aspects for secure and resilient networks; and
• organisation of a separate International Telecommunication Union Conference for Small Island Developing States Countries.