1.Cabinet has agreed that the relevant sections of the Constitution relating to the office, functions and powers of the Director of Public Prosecutions will be reviewed and amended. In carrying out this review, Government will be guided by what prevails in other Commonwealth countries, particularly Canada, India and Australia.
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2. Cabinet has reviewed the situation in the Textile Sector and has taken note -
(a) of the creation of a Special Refund Scheme for the Textile Sector in line with the recommendation made by the Textile Emergency Support Team (TEST), for removing the ceiling of refund by the IVTB to textile enterprises which have been assessed under the TEST;
(b) of the setting up of a Pre-operational Training Incentives Scheme by the IVTB with a view to extending the incentives under the prevailing Levy Grant Scheme to companies which are in the process of being set up and which are not presently eligible for grant refund on account of their non-contribution to the training levy; and
(c) that at the request of the Minister of Labour and Industrial Relations, the Chairman of the Summit Textile Group in Hong Kong will come to Mauritius in mid-December to discuss the Group's decision to cease its operation in Mauritius. In the meantime, the Company has stayed action on the issue of any Notice of Termination of Employment to the employees.
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3.Following the Government/Private Sector Meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on 27 October 2003, Government has agreed to the setting up of a High Powered Committee to examine the proposal of the Private Sector to make Mauritius a Fisheries Sea Food Regional Hub. The Committee will be co-chaired by the Director-General, Ministry of Economic Development, Financial Services and Corporate Affairs and the Director, Joint Economic Council, with representatives of the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Technology and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Local Government and Rodrigues, the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life, the Ministry of Fisheries, the Ministry of Economic Development, Financial Services and Corporate Affairs, the Mauritius Ports Authority and the Private Sector. The issue of licence fees payable by foreign fishing vessels to operate in our Economic Exclusive Zone will also be considered by the High Powered Committee.
With regard to the Private Sector's recommendations for the development of an Environment Industry, Cabinet has agreed that as a first step, the Ministry of Environment will produce a report by mid-January 2004 after consultations with the Private Sector, Academia and other stakeholders.
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4. Cabinet has taken note of the Report of the Task Force on the review of the operation of the National Women's Council and has agreed to the implementation of its recommendations. In this context, the National Women's Council Act, 1985 will be replaced by a new legislation which will be more responsive to the needs of women.
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5. Cabinet has taken note of the activities being organised by the Ministry of Women's Rights, Child Development and Family Welfare to celebrate the Universal Children's Day on 20 November 2003.The programme will comprise among others the distribution of a basic kit to 120 registered Day Care Centres to encourage them to sustain their efforts and promote better quality care and services for the enhancement of early childhood development.
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6.Cabinet has taken note of the status of the implementation of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and has agreed to the setting up of an Inter-Ministerial Committee chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance to consider policy issues and performance targets relating to the MTEF.
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7.Cabinet has agreed to the setting up of a High Powered Committee under the chairmanship of the Director-General, Ministry of Economic Development, Financial Services and Corporate Affairs to advise Government on the setting up of additional bagasse-coal plants by potential Independent Power Producers (IPPs) of the Sugar Industry to meet additional power demand as from 2006.
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8.Cabinet has reviewed the preparation for the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Meeting to be held in Mauritius in August 2004, and has taken note that the Ministry of Environment was finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Nations Environment Programme, under which an amount of US$60,000 will be provided by the latter as support to the preparatory process for the International Meeting. Further, the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) which has been designated as the Interim Coordination Mechanism for the Atlantic/Indian Ocean/Mediterranean/South China Seas(AIMS) for SIDS will organize a workshop in mid-January 2004 to finalize the AIMS group regional position. Moreover, the construction of the Conference Centre at Pailles is progressing according to schedule.
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9.(a) Cabinet has reviewed the situation in Comoros and has taken note that President Mbeki has, on behalf of the African Union, called a Ministerial Meeting in Moroni on 21 and 22 November 2003 with a view to finding a solution to the difficult political situation. Mauritius will be represented at the Meeting by the Minister of Economic Development, Financial Services and Corporate Affairs;
(b) Cabinet has also reviewed the situation regarding the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) and taken note of the decision of Mr Wilfrid Bertile to resign as Secretary-General of the IOC. The "Comité des Sages" will submit its recommendations regarding the procedures for the appointment of a new Secretary-General at the Ministerial Meeting of the IOC which will be held in Comoros, in February 2004. Meanwhile, every effort will be made to ensure a smooth transition from the present Secretary-General to the next one.
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10. Cabinet has reviewed the situation in Zimbabwe and has taken note that after the recent consultations which the Prime Minister and the Mauritian Officials has with Dr Nathan Shamuyarira , Spokeperson for the ZANU-PF and Mr Ed Mnangagwa, Speaker of the Zimbabwean Parliament respectively, Professor Nkube, Secretary General of the Movement for Democratic Change will be in Mauritius at the invitation of Government, at the end of November 2003 for further consultations.
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11.Cabinet has agreed to regulations being made under the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Act, to provide, inter alia, for a harmonised system for the registration of foreign and local consultants and contractors.
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12.Cabinet has agreed to the ratification of the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention, 1983. The main Articles of the Convention focus on the formulation of a national policy on the vocational rehabilitation of disabled persons and the promotion of employment opportunities for disabled persons in the open labour market.
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13. Cabinet has agreed to the signing and ratification of the Protocol of the Court of Justice of the African Union. The protocol was adopted by the 2nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in July 2003 in Maputo, Mozambique.
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14. Cabinet has taken note of the Proclamation of Section 99 (Consequential Amendments) of the Environment Protection Act 2002 with effect from 1 December 2003.
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15. Cabinet has taken note of the holding of a National Oil Spill Contingency Plan drill from 22 to 23 November 2003 which will be conducted by three overseas experts in collaboration with the International Maritime Organisation. The exercise will also be attended by the National Oil Spill Coordinators from Madagascar, Seychelles and Comoros.
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16. Cabinet has taken note of the proposed reconstitution of the Board of Trustees of the Trade Union Trust Fund for a period of one year.
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17.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the mission of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Cooperation to New York where he attended the Follow-up Meeting to the Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development on 29 and 30 October 2003, and the commitment of the major donor countries to raise their Overseas Development Assistance(ODA) to 0.7% of GNP within a short time span.
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18. Cabinet has taken note of that the Commonwealth of Learning and the Commonweath Secretariat in collaboration with the Tertiary Education Commission will hold the African Consortium Meeting of the Commonwealth of Learning - sponsored Masters Programme in Business/Public Administration in Mauritius from 2 to 4 December 2003 during which the programme for the African Region will be launched.
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19. Cabinet has taken note of the reconstitution of the Board of Mauritius College of the Air for period 2003-2004 under the chairmanship of Mr Ananda Y. Rajoo.
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20. Cabinet has taken note of the proposed reconstitution of the Mental Health Commission for a period of two years as from November 2003, under the chairmanship of Dr C. Bauljeewon.
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21.Cabinet has taken note of the new organisational structure of the IVTB in the context of its new corporate plan.
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