H.E. MR. BOLEEL
MINISTER AGRO- INDUSTRY

To begin with, we would like to know what is your actual Point of View on the Sugar Cane Industry as it is today.

The reform of the sugar cane industry is ongoing and the pace is accelerating. The bulk of these reforms will happen before 2011. Our objective is to change the industry so to enhance it’s competitiveness and to be sure it can be sustained on a long- term basis. It is strong in economic, social and political dimensions. One in three people rely directly or indirectly upon this sector, it remains a major player, making up 30% of export merchandise and 7 % of our Duty Free.

To keep ahead we must implement strategies. Now that the market is becoming a buyer’s market we must sub cluster; we must produce energy from “bagasse”, reduce dependency on import of petroleum products, manufacture ethanol from molasses, increase production of special sugars, and give an excellent brand name to products produced from sugar cane rum. In this way we can reconcile interests of all parties concerned; workers, planters or the corporate sector. It is our policy to ensure fair representation, especially with the new emerging of sub clusters of the sugar cane industry.

2008 will be the key year for us, as we will be on the threshold of a cumulative decrease in sugar prices by 36% then there will also be a new economic partnership agreement in respect to the different regions of the AC People. Mauritius is not only poised to become a center of excellence in terms of services being dispensed in the sugar cane industry, for example for consulting or training management to the region, but wants to head research and development in the sugar cane industry, from resources made available.

Since we are a brand name in the export of sugar, and considering new landscape in the sugar cane industry, from the Buyer’s, and from the Seller’s market… we have to adapt to make strategic answers and alliances, and ally ourselves with many European Unions, remembering that the cardinal principal remains the conciliation of social and economic powers.

Since sugar has a multicultural dimension: for example it is a good carbon dioxide cleanser, it is inevitable that diversification take place within the sugar cane industry and outside its periphery. This is why the sector needs to be sustained. For example, in difficult areas, like coastline areas, there is no alternative crop than sugar cane because of its little need for agro chemicals and its long and strong roots. If it is uprooted, there will be silting into the sea, its environmental dimension for sustainable development is of paramount importance otherwise it will impact negatively on the livelihood of Artesanal fishermen, on beautification and on the Tourism industry in a bad way. It is all about the synergy of the island.

In this regard of synergy we are defining policy on how best to reduce importation of food products and focusing on Self Sustainability. We have set our objectives and our minds on Self Sufficiency. For some it is easier said than done, but we can do it through cross border initiatives. As a member of SADEC and the Indian Ocean Commission, we can work with Madagascar and Mozambique in a regional attempt at Self Sufficiency. We can do this through construction of midlands irrigation, encouraging crop diversification, implementing crop growth on a rotational basis… The government is encouraging democratization and access to lands; we are encouraging sugar croppers to lease land and we also do land swapping. We are also instilling good agricultural practices and values into the minds of the farmers and promoting the clustering approach. Why? Because you can produce, but if you do not have access to market it defeats the purpose. With the number of tourists coming to Mauritius, we are pushing people towards food safety production, good agricultural practices and then we are asking hotels to create opportunities for small farmers by giving them access to their market and not import, create opportunities for the small producers. This will sustain the smaller farmers who cannot attain the larger scale markets and promote local agriculture.

Everything on the island before was a closed shop. Now we say ok, you can come here and set up your hotel, but you must give market access to small producers, this is the democratization of lands.

We say yes to market forces, yes to development, but no to a market society. We want all the players to play by the rules, integrate their community in their development for democratization, give aide from pre to post production. And keep a balance, don’t let the sector be tilted, increase fair trade. Or else only one group will make it, the others will get weeded out.

We cannot be oblivious to challenges faced. Turn challenges into opportunities Put people first. There is a constant rise in the price of petroleum products, so we must decrease dependency on petrol products, then there’s a drastic cut in the price of sugar cane, so we must support it to mitigate loss and keep from getting to a stage of environmental damage.

You must feel immense pressure from investors coming for tourism projects and to buy land from farmers.

Yes, but let me give you an example. What is the main asset of a planter?

His land. If his yield is low and there is a project building up near to him, he can liberate himself by converting his land to non- agricultural activities, other economic activities. He can sell, join in on the venture, or even he himself construct bungalows. 20% of tourists coming to Mauritius stay in the informal sector, staying in houses, or bungalows. You must support this sector. Create opportunities for the little people, with say a leisure craft and they want to take out tourists, or bungalows to accommodate younger tourists. Create opportunities.

Is it easy to convince people to stay with the agricultural sector and not sell their lands or work for tourism?

Yes, our success has been based on credibility and reliability and upon the quality of product. True the price of sugar cane has gone down, but we have taken all necessary measures to mitigate the losses, by adding constant value to the product. More than 65.000 hectares of land will be under sugar cane sector, one in three people depend on sugar cane directly or indirectly. This is why we stress the multicultural aspect of the sector.

What about the fisheries sector?

The fisheries sector has a growth rate of 13%. We are doing our level best to give wide feasibility to it. Today Mauritius is the First importer of Tuna to the UK, and the fourth in the world. Based again on three elements predictability, reliability and quality. I just returned from Sudan where I lead a delegation, and as representative of government, I push for a correct reallocation of quota, for countries like Mauritius, who have got the absorptive capacity to produce fish on large scales.

There is a master plan on marine aquaculture, and we are encouraging the set up of marine aquaculture. The possibility of export is tremendous. We are currently exporting 500 tons of Tuna to the US and Switzerland alone, our potential is enormous. Our establishment responds to EU norms and standards, we are revamping our sector to make sure we continue to upgrade to international norms and standards so as to capture more market in the EU. Then, as a member of AGWA, the possibilities of exportation to US are enormous.

In this sector, not only, much revenue is being generated, but it is a 24- hour sector. Many jobs are constantly being created, to the point that we must import laborers from abroad. In this new emerging sector Land Based Oceanic Industry is the other predominant area. There is a conveyor belt, from the Antarctic, a pristine current over 500 years old surging under Mauritius, which we can use for medicinal products, bottled water, beer…the source is pumped from 1000 meters, in contrast to for example Japan, which has a source they pump for these purposes as well, but from 800 meters. The head on winners to come out of this production will be the water, the salt and the natural medicines we will be able to prepare. Eventually we can also use this water as a cooling system, a supply to the hotels as an alternative to electricity, easing import of petrol products. When looking at aquaculture, at the numbers in terms of export, then at the number of Trollers and boats in the port, at our potential and future possibilities, and the incentives of the Free Port, we have got an enormous potential and people are tapping into this potential and the panoply of services available.

Do you believe this infiltration of fishermen and raised levels of fishing may affect the ecologic aspect of Mauritius?

We want to encourage fishermen to go off lagoon, beyond the reef, to let the lagoon replenish, we strongly believe in responsible fisheries activities. It is not easy to control the EEZ (exclusive economic zone), but together with the EU and members of the Indian Ocean Commission we have set up a joint effort to exercise proper control and monitoring, to limit illegal, unregulated, unreported fishing activities. We demand all registered fishing boats have transponders, so as to track illegal activities. This is not an easy task, but we are mapping our exclusive economic zone, there is much research going on to review our existing facilities and how to best to respond to the needs of our sector, with the objective in mind of bringing a commercial dimension to our activities. There is the consistency of bringing everyone on the burner to ensure a wide participatory approach. This is the philosophy of government, to put people first.

We would like to know what would be your final message to potential investors of Mauritius.

Mauritius is a country which is a world in miniature, an image of peaceful coexistence. It is the diversity of our people, which, allows us to be innovative and creative. Our endeavor is to attract foreign direct investment, empower people and raise the standard of living. Our objective is to constantly reconcile social and economic factors and put development at the pinnacle of all activities.