1.Given the importance of the use of biotechnology in our agricultural sector, Cabinet has agreed, in principle, to a feasibility study being carried out for the setting up and the management of a National Biotechnology Institute which would also serve as a major regional facilitating centre in the agricultural sector.
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2.Cabinet has agreed to the construction of a swimming pool of Olympic Standard at Port Mathurin, Rodrigues.
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3.Cabinet has agreed to the Minister of Tourism making regulations under the Pleasure Crafts Act 1993 with a view to enabling the Competency Tests Board to conduct competency tests for skippers and providing for a Code of Conduct for pleasure craft operators along the lines of the International Convention for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea.
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4.Cabinet has agreed to the implementation of the recommendations of the Task Force set up to look into the causes and extent of degradation of Offshore Islets of Mauritius, which inter alia include :
(i) the creation of an Islets National Park;
(ii) the launching of a national sensitization campaign on the value of islets and the need to preserve them ; and
(iii) the control of access to the islets by the National Coast Guard.
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5.Cabinet has taken note of the proposed visit of a Consultant from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) from 7 to 21 August 2001, to make recommendations on the ratification of two Core Conventions on non-discrimination, i.e., Convention No. 100 relating to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value, and Convention No. 111 which pertains to the promotion, by methods appropriate to national conditions and practice, of equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupations.
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6.Cabinet has taken note of the launching of a National Campaign by the Ministry of Women’s Rights, Child Development and Family Welfare, in collaboration with UNICEF and other NGOs, against the commercial sexual exploitation of children in Mauritius and Rodrigues.
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7.Cabinet has taken note of the composition of the Regional Health Advisory Board in Rodrigues for the year 2001-2002 under the chairmanship of Mr. Alex Perrine.
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8.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of missions of :-
(a) the Prime Minister to Cairo, Egypt, from 22 to 23 May 2001 where he attended the Sixth Summit of the COMESA Authority and met traders and entrepreneurs of the Business Community of Egypt to discuss possibilities of investment in Mauritius;
(b) the Minister of Tourism to France and London from 15 to 19 May 2001 in the context of a new approach to re-position Mauritius as a high quality tourist destination;
( c ) the Minister of Health and Quality of Life to Geneva, from 10 to 27 May, 2001, where he participated in the 54th Meeting of World Health Assembly and in London where he had meetings with the General Medical Council, the Health Development Agency and Prof. M. Yacoob; and
(d) the Minister of Information Technology & Telecommunications to France and England, from 14 to 20 May 2001, where he took stock of developments in the ICT Sector and how those could be adapted in the Mauritian context.
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