1.Cabinet has agreed, in principle, to a project for the construction of Office complexes at Les Pailles which will provide accommodation and other facilities to Ministries/Departments currently located in Port Louis, as well as to other public and private sector organisations including offshore companies. This project will aim at decentralising activities away from the Capital. The project also makes provision for apartments , hotels and restaurant and recreational facilities.
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2.Cabinet has taken note of the effects of cyclone Connie on the sugar cane crop as well as the outcome of a survey carried out by the MSIRI, FSC and SIF in drought stricken areas, and has agreed to a package of incentives to the planters to enable them to rehabilitate their fields this year.
The package would amount to Rs33,500 per hectare per planter.
As regards millers, a loan at 3% interest up to a maximum of Rs30,000 per hectare will be granted through the Development Bank of Mauritius.
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3.Following the proclamation of the Fisheries and Marine Resources Act 1998 which has rendered the use of cast net illegal, Government has decided to compensate all the cast net licensees of Mauritius and Rodrigues.
There are 173 cast net fishermen involved in cast net fishing and each of them will receive a compensation of Rs30,00 for relinquishing their cast net licences, their cast nets and for giving up net fishing.
The total compensation payable by Government will amount to Rs5.2 million.
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4.Government has taken note of the measures proposed by the Ministerial Committee chaired by the Minister of Local Government to address the problems of hawkers and illegal hawking. One of these measures is the creation of dedicated hawking zones in different parts of the Island.
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5.Cabinet has taken note of the implementation of the Gian Nath Computer Scheme by the Ministry of Telecommunications & Information Technology jointly with the Ministry of Social Security, National Solidarity and Senior Citizens Welfare. This Scheme has been designed in the context of the National Information Technology Plan to promote awareness and propagate the IT Culture at National level, reaching out to children, students and the public in general.
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6.Cabinet has decided to implement in accordance with OAU decisions, certain sanctions against the Anjouanese Separatist Leaders in order to force them to sign the Antananarivo Agreement as requested by the OAU. These measures include travel restrictions and the freezing of bank accounts of all Anjouanese Separatist Leaders and Members of their families.
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7.Cabinet has agreed to the Government of Mauritius signing the optional protocol to the Convention on the rights of the child. This optional protocol aims at raising the minimum age for recruitment of children into armed conflicts to 18 years. Such a measure will ensure better protection for children from being used in combat.
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8.Cabinet has agreed to the proclamation of the National Productivity and Competitiveness Council (NPCC) Act and the composition of the Council under the Chairmanship of Mr. Jose Poncini, G.O.S.K.
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9.Cabinet has been apprised of the increasing number of requests for direct vehicular access to the motorway. With a view to maintaining security on the motorway Cabinet has agreed that direct vehicular access to the motorway will be granted only in exceptional cases where socio-economic interests of the areas are concerned. As a general rule, owners of land bordering the motorway will be invited to join a secondary road leading to a roundabout on the motorway.
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10.Cabinet has agreed to our representative in the United Nations signing the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in international trade.
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11.Cabinet has been apprised of the outcome of the meetings of Special Session of the ACP Council of Ministers held on 1 and 2 February, 2000, and the Fourth ACP-EU Ministerial Negotiating Conference held on 2 and 3 February 2000. The Mauritius delegation to these meetings was led by the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Trade.
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12.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the Special Ministerial Consultations on sugar which were held prior to the 4th ACP/EU Ministerial Negotiating Meeting on the Successor Agreement to Lome IV.
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13.Cabinet has taken note of the reconstitution of the Board of Trustees of the Trade Union Trust Fund for period 1999/2000 under the Chairmanship of Mr. Radhakrishna Sadien, President State Employees Federation.
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14.Cabinet has taken note of the reconstitution of the National Pensions Board under the Chairmanship of Mr. Ramduth Basenoo.