Expectations and challenges

Since Friday last, it is official. The Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mr. Pravind Jugnauth will present the 2016/2017 Budget on Friday 29 July,2016. This upcoming Budget speech has several dimensions of special significance. None other than Mr. Pravind Jugnauth himself has revealed to the media, the philosophy that he has adopted in preparing the 2016/2017 Budget. He has insisted, while talking at a press conference held on Friday 15th July, 2016, on fiscal discipline and financial prudence. Could he do otherwise in a context where public debt has reached 65% of GDP at the end of March, 2016? As rightly underlined by our colleague Shaffick Hamuth in a comprehensive article that is published in today’s issue of News on Sunday, “government has the daunting task to bring the public debt level to 50% in 2018”.

HIGH RISK EXERCISE

This is indeed a high risk exercise as in real terms the government will reduce its investments while encouraging more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to flow in the country and thus stimulate growth. The Minister of Finance made a very honest confession, though it seems alarming. He bluntly told the media that investment from the private sector is less and that government finds itself in a dilemma. “More expenditure from the part the government will increase both the budget deficit and the public debt”, said the Finance Minister. Mr. Pravind Jugnauth proposes to address these issues by an efficient allocating of funds and resources and by prioritizing infrastructural projects. On the other hand, the Minister of Finance faces major challenges, namely that of increasing economic growth so as to create jobs. Other difficult tasks await the Minister of Finance in four key sectors of the economy, more precisely financial, tourism, manufacturing and sugar. The Finance Minister admits that Brexit could have an impact on the Mauritian economy. The Finance Minister also explained that the Budget 2016/2017 will not only address short term issues but also long term ones like ageing population and the mismatch regarding demands of the market as far as jobs is concerned as pitted against available competencies.

“ More expenditure from the part the government will increase both the budget deficit and the public debt”, said the Finance Minister. "

RECONCILING ECONOMIC EXIGENCIES WITH SOCIAL IMPERATIVES

Mr. Pravind Jugnauth seems to have well understood the need to reconcile economic exigencies with social imperatives. One of the reasons that led to the victory of the Lepep Alliance at the December 2014 general elections is that they promised the population that they would implement measures that would reduce the social divide. One of these measures was the increase of basic pensions. The Lepep Alliance kept its promise but the rising cost of living coupled with unemployment and jobs loss has furthered the social divide. When the former Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party Dr. Navin Ramgoolam tells a gathering at Vallée Pitot (on Friday 15 July,2016) that : “ Au moins kan mo ti la, ou la cuisine tip pe rouler” (At least when I was the Prime Minister, you could manage your kitchen), it has a considerable impact on the minds of those who have to struggle to make both ends meet. With their meager salary or pension, these persons live on the edge. The same persons are scandalized when they hear that in a year and a half, our ministers have been on 184 missions abroad. In reply to a parliamentary question from opposition whip Mr. Rajesh Bhagwan, the Minister of Finance has admitted that there are some “excesses” regarding the overseas trips and that ministers have been asked to prepare a proper annual travel plan and that the clearance of their per diems and other allowances are being monitored by his Ministry. True it is that the presentation of the Budget 2016/2017 will be an opportunity to set political direction with fiscal policy - essentially to put fiscal bucks behind policy bangs but it should be at the same time provide an occasion for the population to perceive the priorities of the new Government from the relative weights of expenditure.

ELECTORAL REFORM ON THE CARDS

The Leader of the Opposition and of the MMM Mr. Paul Bérenger was the one to re-launch the debate on the need to bring about a “good electoral reform that would not constitute a threat to anyone”. He was speaking at the national celebrations of Eid-Ul-Fitr at the Sunee Razvi Academy on July 6, 2016. The Prime Minister Sir Anerood Jugnauth found the first opportunity to reply back to Mr. Bérenger. The Prime Minister, who was on an official trip to Rodrigues, told the media that he is fully aware of the type of electoral reform which Mr. Bérenger is expecting. The latter termed Sir Anerood Jugnauth’s comments as being a “stupid thing”. On Tuesday, Mr. Bérenger made yet another attempt to know more about government’s plans on the electoral reforms. He put a Private Notice Question on the proposed changes in the electoral system in Rodrigues and on when the Ministerial Committee chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism and External Communications, is expected to publish the recommendations thereof on the introduction of a dose of proportional representation in the National Assembly. As usual, Sir Anerood Jugnauth did not totally unveil government’s plan on this issue but he did give a few indications on the criteria on which the electoral reforms would be based. They are as follows: stability; fairness, inclusiveness to ensure representation of all components of the Mauritian rainbow nation; gender representation; and transparency and accountability. Electoral reform was one of the rare issues on which the MSM and the MMM agreed to disagree when they shared political power from 2000 to 2005. That led to the publication of two reports, that of Mr. Ivan Collendavelloo and the one was penned by the then Attorney General Mr. Emmanuel Leung Shing. In fact, electoral reform is an issue that divides politicians but also reunites them, usually in a bid to “koze kozer” (hold informal talks). Each time, they end up in each other’s arms. This time too, things could evolve in the same direction. The MMM has yet another issue on which it disagrees: the number of members to sit on the broadcasting committee of the National Assembly. The MMM is urging for an additional seat but the Muvman Liberater has strongly opposed this, arguing that it has the same number of MPs. So, ultimately an ultimatum has been sent to the estranged secretary general of the Mouvement Patriotique, Mr. Joe Lesjongard. He has been given five days to decide whether he will “retourne la caze mama” (come back to mum’s house) or he will find greener pastures elsewhere, probably where there are lots of sunshine. As an end joke, it is worth mentioning that Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) Mr. Thierry Henry was found in the company of peaceful demonstrators on the lack of infrastructural development in Tamarin.