1.Following the judgment of the Supreme Court in the case of Mr S. Tengur v/s the Minister of Education and Scientific Research and the State of Mauritius, Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of a meeting held on Thursday 14 November, under the chairmanship of the Acting Prime Minister and which was attended by Government officials. Consultations will be held between representatives of Government and the BEC this afternoon, and Government will hold a press conference on the matter tomorrow.
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2.Cabinet has taken note of the positive outcome of discussions held with the “Front Commun de la Fonction Publique” and the “Front Commun des Syndicats des Infirmiers”.
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3.Cabinet has taken note of remedial measures being taken to ease traffic flow in the regions of Belle Rose and St. Jean following the opening of supermarkets there.
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4.Following a survey carried out by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Land Transport and Shipping, Cabinet has decided that the Mauritius Institute Building should, with the approval of the Hon Speaker, be refurbished and rehabilitated to house the National Assembly.
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5.Cabinet has taken note that the Mauritius Football Association was not conducting elections in accordance with the provisions of the Sports Act and the Agreement already reached between the Ministry of Youth and Sports and MFA following the recommendations of the “Comité des Sages” and has decided that the MFA should be requested, in writing, to abide by the provisions of the legislation and to respect fully the provisions of the Agreement. The Electoral Commissioner will be requested to supervise the elections. A copy of that letter will be sent to FIFA and CAF.
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6.Cabinet has agreed to the grant of a special package of tax incentives in order to facilitate the implementation of spinning plant projects in the context of the provisions of the AGOA.
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7.Cabinet has taken note that 25A of land situated on the left side of the lighthouse at Albion has been allocated to Infosys Ltd. The land adjoining the lighthouse will be rehabilitated and landscaped for public resort.
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8.Cabinet has taken note of the lobbying mission to be undertaken by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Technology & Natural Resources in connection with the challenge of Australia and Brazil to the Sugar Regime at the WTO. Cabinet has further noted with concern that Mauritius has not been invited by Australia at a meeting of selected African countries to discuss the issue. The concern of Government has been conveyed to the Australian authorities.
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9.Cabinet has reviewed the coming into operation of flights of Emirates Airlines and Air Mauritius between Mauritius and Dubai and has noted that the Acting Prime Minister will meet the Chairman and the Managing Director of Air Mauritius next week to discuss the matter.
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10.Cabinet has taken note of the report of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Cooperation on Mauritian farmers in Zimbabwe.
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11.Cabinet has taken note of the report of the Minister of Arts and Culture on the measures taken to address the situation at MASA.
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12.Cabinet has taken note that the EU has agreed to renew the Protocol on Fishing Agreement for a further period of one year and that the services of a consultant would be enlisted to advise on negotiations with the EU on the matter.
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13.Cabinet has taken note that about 10 tons of canned food had been dumped in a wasteland at Roche Bois and has further noted that the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life has issued a communiqué advising the public that they should refrain from collecting and consuming that food. The Police has opened an enquiry and action will be taken against the perpetrators of this act.
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14.With a view to better monitoring and controlling the activities of companies providing security services/property protection, Cabinet has agreed to the new criteria for the grant of such licences under the Police Act.
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15.Cabinet has agreed to the introduction into the National Assembly of the Wastewater Management Authority (Amendment) Bill which provides for an extension of the period within which the Wastewater Management Authority shall make a definitive offer of employment to public officers who were posted to the Authority prior to the coming into operation of the Wastewater Management Authority Act.
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16.Cabinet has agreed to the section of the Personnel Management Manual dealing with bonding being amended to provide for the retention of officers who have been sponsored for training, in the same Ministry/Department where they were posted prior to proceeding on training.
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17.Cabinet has agreed to Mauritius becoming a Member State of the International Institute for Intercultural Dialogue and Peace which aims at promoting reciprocal knowledge, interaction and cultural exchanges among countries of the Indian Ocean Region and countries of origin of the present population.
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18.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the “Journées Mauriciennes”, organized by BOI, in collaboration with the Mauritius Freeport Authority, the Financial Services Promotion Agency and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority, from 22 to 24 October in Paris with a view to attracting foreign direct investment from Europe in the priority sectors of the economy.
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19.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the bilateral air services talks held on 5 and 6 November 2002 between the Government of Mauritius and the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
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20.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the missions of:-
(i) the Minister of Environment to New Delhi from 23 October to 1 November, where he participated in the eighth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP8) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change;
(ii) the Minister of Arts and Culture to Seychelles from 26 October to 1 November, where he attended the 17th Edition of the “Festival Kreol” and participated in the meeting of the Ministers of Culture of the Indian Ocean;
(iii) the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice & Human Rights to Algiers from 29 to 30 October, where he participated in the United Nations Regional Ministerial Conference on the promotion of the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime and its Protocols; and
(iv) the Minister of Youth and Sports to Seychelles on 8 November, where he attended the Ministerial Meeting of the 'Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Ocean Indien’.
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21.Cabinet has taken note of the National Action Plan for the implementation of the recommendations of Consultant Addison on asbestos. The Plan will be made public.
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22.Cabinet has taken note of the reconstitution of:-
(a) the Termination of Contracts Service Board under the chairmanship of Mr P. Bissessur; and
(b) the National Heritage Trust Fund Board.
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23.Cabinet has taken note that Eid-Ul-Fitr will be celebrated at national level on 14 December 2002 at Prof. Basdeo Bissoondoyal Esplanade, Port Louis.
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24.Cabinet has agreed to the Task Force on Pensions Reforms examining the recommendations of a study mission to Australia, South Korea and Hong Kong in the context of the modernization of our pension system.
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25.Cabinet has taken note that the Central Statistics Office will conduct a Continuous Multi-Purpose Household Survey from January to December 2003 with a view to collecting statistical information on the social and economic characteristics of the population, which will be used in the computation of various social indicators.
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