Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth addressed the Transforming Education in Africa summit on Tuesday 20 September 2022 at the African Union office in New York.
The high-level discussions at the summit focus on innovative and scalable solutions to enhance learning in Africa. These include digitisation and data management.
Pravind Jugnauth explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the world to re-prioritise and rethink education systems.
Citing the Mauritian example, the Head of Government explained that the COVID-19 (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act of 2020 has provided the framework for a more sustained use of e-learning in Mauritius.
During the pandemic, children from families on the social register were provided with free touch tablets and broadband access. Other families who are in a less precarious situation were able to benefit from financing at a preferential interest rate of 3%.
Mr Pravind Jugnauth added that the Early Digital Learning Programme encourages the use of new technologies in learning. This programme, which currently covers students in Grades 1 to 4, will be extended to Grade 5.
The Prime Minister maintains that the government will continue to invest in the modernisation of the education system in Mauritius. He announced that after primary schools, it will be the turn of secondary schools to be connected to broadband Internet.
The government is looking into the establishment of the Institute of Technical Education and Technology, a new institution that aims to encourage young people to opt for specialised technical courses, which are currently in great demand.
The digitisation of textbooks is underway and this will help to better adapt learning for children with special needs.
