PM calls for stronger collaboration between the Private and Public sector

The Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Mr Pravind Jugnauth, called for a stronger collaboration between the Private sector and the Public sector so as to achieve a new era of development.

He was speaking at the launching of the Corporate Identity and New Strategic Organisation of Business Mauritius at the Mauritius Chamber of Commerce and Industry Building in Ebène on 13 February 2017.

Prime Minister Jugnauth lauded the role of Business Mauritius which has emanated following the merging of two private sector institutions, namely the Joint Economic Council and the Mauritius Employers’ Federation.  According to him, both institutions have left an inedible imprint on the economic history of our country, owing to their contribution into shaping the appropriate landscape for the development of the economy and country as a whole, in addition to building a strong foundation for structured public/private sector dialogue.

He recalled one of the core strengths of our development process, which is that of a strong private sector institution that works closely with government on a number of national issues which he said, is an asset that we have to preserve and build on.

In this context, he enumerated various fronts upon which the private and public sector are strongly committed in helping to shape and implement national policies in the perspective of an inclusive and sustainable development, which he said is very positive and encouraging for the country.

Such a spirit of cooperation, he stressed, remains crucial for the years ahead as Mauritius will have to face increasingly tough challenges to achieve its development goals and to realise the vision that we have set out, especially with the resurgence of protectionism, one of the most imminent risks that Mauritius will have to face in the very near future. 

On this score, he pointed out that Mauritius has to remain vigilant and must not fall to the temptations of protectionist pressures but instead be doubly concerned about the rise of protectionism as it impacts on our trade and may also hold back our industrialisation process.     

Prime Minister Jugnauth also expressed concerns regarding the trade and industrialisation policies, as well as our labour market and macroeconomic policies which will be driven by the need for our country to be globally competitive across all sectors, including the domestic-oriented industries.

Another area where Government and Business Mauritius are working together is that of the ease of doing business so as to help Mauritius climb to a higher ranking, he added. He also dwelt on the seamless processing of applications, which he said would become a reality this year, with the presentation of the Business Facilitation Bill in the National Assembly in April that will set the necessary regulatory amendments to make our country more business friendly and give a boost to investment both domestic and foreign.

He concluded by reiterating that he will ensure a greater policy coherence among the various ministries and departments so as to have faster and more effective implementation of some of our key projects while encouraging more dialogue among the various stakeholders towards a modern Mauritius.