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Amazing Mauritius
“No matter how insignificant the thing you have to do, do it as well as you can, give as much of your care and attention as you would give to the thing you regard as most important. For it will be judged.” Mahatma Gandhi.
Rama Sithanen’s 2006-2007 budget conjures up images of clean sweeps, good will, muscular policy-making and success. In matters of handling finance, he belongs to world-class economic planners like India Finance minister Palaniappan Chidambaram and planning czar Montek Singh Aluwala. Like an experienced pilot, he can fly solo over water on a hazy night through the most dangerous air corridor. There is a lot of dirt to dish and he is going to dish it out. Minister by day, web surfer by night, like Mbeki, he is taking Mauritius in a new direction, away from isolation and towards global integration.
The classic ways of cutting a budget deficit are raising taxes and reducing spending. Sithanen has the ability to fundamentally reshape the economy of the country. We must treat his budget with the seriousness it deserves. The opposition has its feet on a slippery deck and, like a cooking pot, it is going hot and cold quickly. Everybody, democratically chosen to represent the people, must play his role fully; otherwise, sooner or later, he might be dismissed as a bag of mixed nuts.
Sithanen, a principled visionary, is looking for answers to very immediate problems, one of which is poverty. More employment opportunities will be created, the poor child will get his bread, the low socio-economic groups will be aided to make both ends meet and the dreams of the youth will be realised. In a nutshell, as said Stanley Fisher, formerly of the IMF, “There are ways to spend money intelligently on the poor that have very good results for the economy.” To move from poverty to plenty, Sithanen is pushing forward disciplined, reformist policies, to combat unemployment and economic malaise.
We must learn to cooperate politically and embrace a positive vision of what our nation can become. Remember that we cannot wait for piles of cash to fall from the sky. We have to fold up our sleeves and work for it, like Sir Anerood Jugnauth. “Nobody owes us a living,” once said our prime minister, Dr. Ramgoolam.
Our good fortune lies in the fact that, although we are in a very small island, we are surrounded by a great ocean, today’s challenge and tomorrow’s hope. Ministers Boolell and Duval are blessed by the ocean, one with the booming seafood hub, and the other with the Marina project. With his natural charisma and European brand of confidence, Boolell may lead the seafood hub to a skyrocketing dimension and add another hue to the nation’s rainbow.
Bureaucratic stagnancy</B>
The pragmatist, action-minded, mild-tempered Duval is the right man in the right place to take tourism to breath-taking heights. What ethanol is to Boolell, marina is to Duval. Bureaucratic stagnancy must not disrupt the aura of these two projects. The scenario is too plausible as together we shall be embarking in a new era.
The beauty of globalisation is that every corner of the world can learn from the other. Asians are embracing marina culture, from yachts to scuba diving. Wealthy Asians are having a rising interest in the maritime lifestyle. A host of marinas are popping up like mushrooms in Asia, including China. Golf no longer occupies the first place, is no longer exclusive; yachting has shot up instead. Man has always been attracted by the shooting effects of water. Water is life, water is sport, water is escapism.
In 2007, Oneois Marina Club is opening in Singapore, part of a $2.5 billion development blending residential, resort, boutique and marina amenities. Owners will be invited to buy a home complete with a yacht berth like at the Yoyal Phuket Marina, which opened in December. Five other marinas are being planned in the island and boats from the Mediterranean are fast approaching.
Mauritius has a worldwide reputation for the beauty of its beaches, the hospitality of its people, the safety of tourists and the comfort of hotels. Compensations are great for jetlag or expensive journeying. What tourists are looking for is value for money. We do not need Chinese memoirs of a geisha actress Ziyi Zhang or Indian Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai or Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova, not even Isabelle Antoo, Miss Mauritius, to advertise our island. The island and its people, the well-established hotel sector with a world-class service and the caring government as a facilitator have been doing a good job. The urgency is for fine-tuning.
Analysts say that India is as little as five years behind China. The question is – how many years are we going to take to catch up with China, the rising economic giant? However small we might be, we have to start thinking big. So you think, so you are, goes the saying.
If marinas are set up not only in Grand-Bay but in other coastal regions like Belle-Mare, Mahebourg, Albion, to name but a few, it will change the very outlook of the economic status of the island. The tourist villages should go where the marinas are to create lively environment blossoming with shopping facilities and art-related activities. Hyper supermarkets must shed place for huge shopping malls with vivid tropical settings. Thinking of PME boutiques at the airport is so dwarfish. Minister Jeetah must push forward and strike harder.
Learn to look and look to learn. Look at China and the never-ending list of luxury stores opening there. Giorgio Armani alone has plans for 30 new stores. We should start rubbing shoulders with Mont-Blanc, Bulgari, Dolce, etc, not the Ralph Lauren from bloom to doom style episode, of course.
High calibre tourists are looking for quality things. Russians are spending 13% of their household budgets in clothes and shoes – more than double that of Japanese and British. Research shows that Chinese are on their way to displacing the Japanese as the world’s highest spending buyers of luxury products by 2014: Asian women are sophisticated consumers.
The bees will go where the flowers are. Together we are committed to reshape the destiny of the island. We shall either swim together or be drowned together. Together we shall work, keeping aside hassles. We shall make of Mauritius a centre for learning, haven of peace, centre for the promotion of health and a dominating food store for the region. Then only will the world stand up and say, “Amazing Mauritius!”
<B>Pramila KHADUN</B>
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