Government's priority is to revive the economy, reduce debt and increase investment following the disastrous state of the economy, said the Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, today, during a press conference held at the New Treasury Building in Port Louis.
He was flanked by the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Paul Raymond Bérenger; the Minister of Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change, Mr Rajesh Anand Bhagwan; the Minister of Tourism, Mr Christian Harold Richard Duval; and the Minister of Social Integration, Social Security and National Solidarity, Mr Ashok Kumar Subron. Several other Ministers and Junior Ministers were also present.
Dr Ramgoolam gave an overview of the economic situation of the country and pointed out that despite the difficult situation, Government has adopted a targeting approach for the payment of the 14th Month Bonus to employees in the public and private sectors deriving a monthly basic salary of up to Rs 50,000 as well as an award of a monthly salary compensation of 3.7 percent of the National Minimum Wage. He also said that financial support will be provided to SMEs, Export-Oriented Enterprises and enterprises facing financial difficulties for the payment of the 14th Month Bonus and of the salary compensation. He recalled that decision has been taken to reduce the price of Mogas (essence) and Gas oil (diesel) by Rs 5 per litre as from today.
Speaking about the Gross Domestic Product, he indicated that for 2023, it was less than Rs 22 billion and less than Rs 36 billion in 2024. The lack of reliable data has prompted the International Monetary Fund to observe that there is a need to safeguard statistical independence in Mauritius, he deplored. He added that statistics on growth and deficit have been distorted recalling that revenue statistics have been increased to Rs 16,7 billion while expenses statistics have been decreased by Rs 5 billion. As regards the Rupee, he indicated that it continues to depreciate and has lost 46% of its value.
The Head of Government highlighted that public debt has increased significantly adding that parastatal bodies such as the Metro Express Ltd (MEL), the State Trading Corporation, Air Mauritius, the Wastewater Management Authority, the Central Electricity Board, the Central Water Authority, and the National Pensions Fund, amongst others, have billions of debts to repay. Moreover, investments have decreased over the years and scandals at the Silver Bank and the Mauritius Investment Corporation Ltd (MIC) have resulted in an economic crime, he underpinned.
To tackle this situation, Dr Ramgoolam stated that a Fiscal Responsibility Act is needed which will limit debts and establish new spending limits. He emphasised the urgency to have a plan to relaunch the economy otherwise institutions like Moody's can downgrade Mauritius to a "junk" status whereby the country will not have access to loans from other countries.
Speaking about the Chagos issue, the Prime Minister said that he recently had discussions with the Director General, Africa, the Americas and Overseas Territories at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Ms Harriet Mathews. He expressed dissatisfaction with the negotiations that the previous Prime Minister had with the United Kingdom as regards Chagos.
For his part, Mr Bérenger said that the economic situation is far worse than what was presented by the Head of Government in Parliament last Tuesday. He mentioned MEL with a debt of Rs 17 billion and the issues at the MIC. He insisted that measures to redress the economy and reduce Government debt are much needed. He also spoke of the need for a Fiscal Responsibility Act and an Independent Fiscal Commission. Furthermore, he pointed out that Government will appeal to friendly countries such as India, USA, UK, China and other partners to revive the economy.
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As for Minister Subron, he recalled that the 14th Month Bonus will be paid to beneficiaries of basic pensions and CSG retirement benefit as well as public service pensioners in December 2024. Payment will be effected from 16 to 24 December 2024 at Post Offices and in banks as from 17 December, he indicated. Pensioners will also get an additional Rs 1,000 as from January 2025 which will increase their pension to Rs 15,000, he added.
