A five-day training on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and Waste Management, an initiative of the Ministry of Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change in collaboration with the British High Commission Mauritius concluded, yesterday, in Port Louis. Some fifteen participants also received their certificates of participation.
Two experts from the United Kingdom (UK), namely, the Project Director at Local Partnerships, Mr Niranjan Patel and the Deputy Head of International at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, Her Majesty’s Treasury and Cabinet Office, Mr Javier Encinasare facilitated the training.
In a statement to the Government Information Service, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mrs Sewah Doorgakant, indicated that the workshop has been organised following the mission of the Prime Minister, Mr Pravind Kumar Jugnauth to Glasgow UK, for the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties whereby technical assistance was sought from the UK Government to support the efforts of Mauritius in sustainable waste management.
“Under the Solid Waste Management Division, we have five transfer stations and one main landfill which have so far been managed through conventional modes”, she said while highlighting that the current management system is neither environmentally nor economically sustainable. Given the current economic conditions, the PPP model has been retained for implementation projects, she stated.
The resource person, Mr Niranjan Patel, dwelt on the objective of the training which is to share expertise on waste management. The training, he observed will help to bring best practices on waste management applied in the UK, as Mauritius develops its waste management system from a straightforward landfill solution to a more complex high-efficiency recycling and resource recovery system.
Mr Javier Encinas, pointed out that this training has covered topics including policy development, programme structuring and project delivery and attracting private finance regarding infrastructural projects. “We hope that the tools, expertise and the guidance shared with the participants will be helpful for them to develop their own infrastructural policies and programmes”, he added. He looks forward for more Government to Government programme in the future.
Present at the workshop, the Director of the Solid Waste Management Division of the Ministry, Mr Bhaguthsing Beerachee, stated that waste management is always a challenging subject and the training will help in capacity building and implementing PPP projects.
A Lead Analyst at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and Development, Mrs Waseefah Elahee-Doomun, who participated in the workshop, emphasised that it has provided insights on the UK experience as regards the implementation aspects of PPP projects and strategies to adopt for future successful implementation. The Ministry of Finance is encouraging more Ministries to embark on PPP types of project implementation, she said.
For his part, the Assistant Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Mr Devendranath Joymungul, indicated that the training has come at an opportune time as most projects are nowadays being implemented under public private partnership. It is very important for officers especially administrators to ensure that projects are done in conformity with policies and good governance, he added.
