The Prime Minister, Mr. Pravind Jugnauth, spoke at the ground breaking ceremony of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) in Jamnagar, Gujarat on Tuesday 19 April 2022.
In the presence of the Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, and the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, he shared the government’s vision to promote alternative medicine in Mauritius.
The Minister of AYUSH and Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, and Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat, were also present at the function. The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina, the Prime Minister of Bhutan, His Excellency Lotay Tshering, and the Prime Minister of Nepal, His Excellency Sher Bahadur Deuba, addressed the ceremony via video conference.
The Prime Minister announced the construction of an AYUSH Center of Excellence in Cote d’Or, which will include a state-of-the-art traditional treatment hospital. This project is supported by the Indian government.
Mr. Pravind Jugnauth is currently on an official visit to India at the invitation of the Indian Prime Minister. His participation in the WHO GCTM groundbreaking ceremony is an important part of this trip.
In his speech in Jamnagar, Mr. Pravind Jugnauth expressed his appreciation to the Prime Minister and the Government of India for their choice to associate Mauritius with the pioneering project of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. This institution will be the WHO’s centre of excellence in traditional medicine. It is the result of an unprecedented collaboration between WHO and India.
In the same breath, the Prime Minister praised the WHO Director General for his vision to harness the potential of traditional medicine with the advent of the Global Centre for Traditional Medicine.
“Traditional medicine is becoming increasingly important in the world of modern science. Some 40% of licensed pharmaceuticals are made from natural substances, highlighting the importance of preserving biodiversity. (…) The potential for sustained development of Ayurveda is immense. To this end, Mauritius is committed to working with WHO and peer countries such as India,” said the Prime Minister.
He recalled the origins and evolution of Ayurvedic practices and treatments in Mauritius which date back to the arrival of the first Indian immigrants to the island. Ayurveda was officially recognized in the late 1980s when the Ayurveda and Other Traditional Medicine Act was passed in 1989. Mauritius became one of the few countries outside India where Ayurvedic treatments are duly regulated.
During the visit of Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to Mauritius in March 2015, an MOU was signed between Mauritius and India to strengthen cooperation in the fields of traditional medicine and homeopathy, including the establishment of an AYUSH Chair.
There are currently six clinics dedicated to Ayurvedic services in the public health service. There are also private providers and NGOs that provide this care to the public. With the new AYUSH hospital in Cote d’Or, the alternative treatment offering will be completely transformed.
India has made the AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) system one of the major focuses of its health policy. The Ministry of AYUSH has been formed to oversee the practice, capacity building, education and research in the alternative medicine fields.
