“Today, the cooperation between the two countries has gone beyond traditional relations that are language and culture and now include new fields of economic and commercial cooperation.” This passage from a speech by the Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, during the visit of PM Navin Ramgoolam to his country means a lot for Mauritius. It means that the visit by Mauritian authorities to India has been fruitful. India has promised it will support Mauritius in the sectors of Information and Comunication Technologies (ICT), the seafood hub and health, and many others.

Navin Ramgoolam and his delegation from the public and private sectors came back yesterday with their suitcases full of commitments from India and hope for Mauritians. Mother India has indeed granted a Rs 3 billion credit line to Mauritius to help finance projects in energy production and marine traffic. Rs 750 million will be granted to Mauritius as a gift. India has committed to assist Mauritius in a hydrographic study of its ports, islands and exclusive economic zone (EEZ). This should take place in January 2006.

The seafood hub is also expected to be one of the economic pillars for Mauritius in the future. With this in mind, the Mauritian delegation went to Cochin, one of the most important sites for seafood processing in India. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the Mauritius Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) and the Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI). This should help to favour the trade between operators of both countries in industrial fishing. The agreement also includes transfer of capital and expertise as well as training in fish farming.

Two-way traffic

This partnership could be used in two ways. Mauritius hopes that the seafood hub can help it avoid the crisis ahead with the threats upon the sugar and textile sectors. The activities related to the seafood hub – industrial fishing, fish farming, storing, processing, canning and export of fresh and frozen fish and other seafood – already employ 3,000 people. If India used Mauritius as a platform for transfer and industrial processing, this could help export more within the region, but also to Europe and even the United States. But India is also interested in importing seafood from Mauritius and processing it in India, as their industrial capacity is far from being fully exploited.

The ICT sector is also seen as one of the “saviours” of the economy and India has always been considered as a “mentor” for Mauritius in that sector. “The project (to become a cyberisland) has not yet been realised as we thought it would. It has not taken off to become a pole of growth while propagating IT culture. We believe India is in the only country which can help us achieve this goal,” declared the prime minister. He pointed out the lack of skilled staff in the sector and asked for support from India to train Mauritians.

The state of Andra Pradesh has thus promised to help Mauritius to become a knowledge hub. The chief minister of the state, Rajasekhara Reddy, expressed his intention of sending a delegation of officials to Mauritius to discuss cooperation. He also proposed to send human resources from his state to Mauritius to help the development of the sector. “If Mauritius offers good employment opportunities, they will go and seek jobs there,” explained Rajasekhara Reddy.

Health is another aspect of cooperation between Mauritius and India. The Apollo Hospital of New Delhi and the British American Insurance (BAI) will jointly construct a high-tech hospital in Mauritius. This will cost about Rs 600 million. According to the memorandum of understanding, the project will also include an institute of medical research and a nursing school.

Trade agreement

During the visit, the minister of Finance, Rama Sithanen, and the minister of Foreign Affairs, Madan Dulloo, supported by the private sector, highlighted the “qualities” of the Mauritian destination for investment. They promoted Mauritius as a safe, credible and profitable destination, a stepping stone to opportunities in Africa. The Board of Investment (BOI) set up a new method to target Indian operators.

A new trade agreement is also being worked upon by Mauritius and India. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (CECPA) includes trade in goods and services, investment and economic cooperation. Mauritius and India have agreed in principle during the visit. This new agreement will certainly help even closer cooperation.