1.Cabinet has taken note that His Excellency Amadou Toumani Touré, President of the Republic of Mali will be the chief guest at the Biennial Meeting of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa to be held in Mauritius in December 2003. He is expected to arrive in Mauritius on 2 December and leave on 4 December 2003.
_______________________________
2. Cabinet has agreed to the setting up of a Gender Focal Points (GFPs) Mechanism in each Ministry. The GFPs will inter alia act as liaison officers between the respective Ministries and the Ministry of Women`s Rights, Child Development and Family Welfare and assist in the implementation of policies and programmes relating to gender. The GFPs will report to the National Gender Focal Points Committee to be chaired by the Minister of Women's Rights, Child Development and Family Welfare.
_______________________________
3.Cabinet has agreed to cash donations of US$10,000 and US$5,000 being made to the Government of Pakistan and the Government of Sudan respectively, following vast damages caused by heavy rains and floods in these countries.
_______________________________
4.Cabinet has taken note of the outcome of the first round of negotiations between Mauritius and the Islamic Republic of Iran for the conclusion of a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement and that the second round of negotiations will be held in Teheran at a later stage.
_______________________________
5. Cabinet has taken note of the proposed twining of the Black River District Council with the District Council of Anse Boileau, Seychelles.
_______________________________
6.Cabinet has taken note of the proposed reconstitution of the Termination of Contracts of Service Board (TCSB) under the chairmanship of Mr Paramhunse Bissessur.
_______________________________
7.Cabinet has taken note of the programme of activities to be organized by the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life in the context of the World AIDS Day. An official ceremony followed by a cultural programme will be held at the Mahebourg Waterfront on 30 November 2003. Further, amongst other activities, a billboard campaign will be organised by the National AIDS Unit and the PILS to address issues of stigmatization and discrimination against HIV/AIDS patients.
_______________________________
8.Cabinet has taken note of the programme of activities to be organised by the Ministry of Arts and Culture, in collaboration with the Islamic Cultural Centre and the Urdu Speaking Union for the celebration of Eid-Ul-Fitr at national level on Sunday 7 December 2003 at Domaine Les Pailles. The opening ceremony will be performed by the President of the Republic and the programme of activities will include tasting of Muslim cuisine, application and display of mehendi, demonstration of calligraphy and a recital by a Ghazal troupe led by Mr Alman Alvi from Pakistan.
_______________________________