When EU Agriculture commissioner Franz Fischler submits his proposals on the European sugar regime reforms tomorrow to the College of commissioners, he might be (unknowingly) writing one of the last chapters of the history of our centuries-old sugar industry. If lobbying is about buying time, we are not doing more than postponing the problem for a few more years. Adjustment should instead be the utmost priority.

Can we think beyond sugar? Are we ready to accept the fact that, despite all the guarantees of the Sugar Protocol, the sugar economy has outlived its time? Mauritius has thrived on a predictable and secured trading environment. Sooner rather than later, there will be no such thing as guaranteed markets and prices of indefinite duration.

Good diplomacy is important for the safeguard of our immediate interests but a well thought-out adjustment is critical to our survival. The entrepreneurial and inventive spirit of the nation is being put to the test. But first, policymakers will have to show leadership.

In the mid-90s, the government of the day took a very bold decision to replace the public sector-owned tea cultivation by sugarcane. The economic rational was plain: sugar exports had a protected quota and price regime, whilst the tea industry was being supported by government subsidies.

Admittedly, the situation facing us today is much more complex and the stakes are much higher. Nevertheless, an “opt-out of sugar” scenario, however unrealistic it may sound now, should not be underrated if export prices are to be cut to such an extent as suggested by Fischler (between 30 to 37 %) in his “leaked document”. The country has to explore other forms of remunerative non-sugar agriculture. The latest white paper on agricultural diversification is not audacious and wide-ranging enough to envisage an “opt-out” scenario. Much more strategic thinking is needed to deliver a plan that will really take Mauritian agriculture to a new plateau.

Mauritius does have some key assets to re-engineer its farming. The sugar industry has nurtured a long tradition of world-class research. The time has come for research institutions to come to the rescue of the economy with new farming practices and crops.

This is not to say that diplomacy is pointless. Mauritius should continue to be in the forefront of the lobbying effort. But the focus should be on finding ways to support the adjustment effort. The revival of the Doha Development Round is vital in that respect. Mauritius should see to it that talks are back on track as we stand to gain substantially in terms of technical assistance, capacity building and technology transfer. The recent G-90 meeting has a key responsibility to put an end to the standoff of World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations.

In other words, Mauritius should deploy more diplomatic resources in Geneva than in Brussels. There is more to a lobby strategy than buying time. Mauritius will reap higher dividends if it makes a more meaningful contribution to reforming the WTO. To help deliver a multilateral trading system that works for the benefit of small developing economies like ours will probably be the greatest achievement of our diplomacy.