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[Blog] Strategic Peer Partnerships: Catalysts for National Reforms

guest — Wed, 16 Apr 2025 06:11:24 +0000

[Blog] Strategic Peer Partnerships: Catalysts for National Reforms guest mer 16/04/2025 - 10:11

The first National Multiplication Training in Mauritius is a testament that higher education institutions can support the work of national regulators and actively champion national agendas and reforms through capacity building, peer learning and collaborative exchanges. A North-South, private-public partnership helped to achieve these outcomes.

As Mauritius positions itself to be a regional knowledge hub in Africa, improving the quality of international higher education and transnational education provision is paramount. But how best to achieve this? For Mauritius, a North-South private-public partnership provided part of the answer.

From 2023-2025, a collaboration between Middlesex University and Université des Mascareignes, both in Mauritius, with the University of Potsdam and FH Münster – University of Applied Sciences, both in Germany, empowered university staff to be agents of innovation and make a tangible impact on practice and policy with a particular focus on their institutions’ internal and external quality assurance and enhancement.

The collaboration was the first Dialogue on Innovative Higher Education Strategies (DIES) National Multiplication Training (NMT) for higher education in Mauritius, with the main goal being to support higher education managers in improving the procedures for quality assurance and internationalisation of the curricula in their institutions. The DIES programme is jointly coordinated by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the German Rectors‘ Conference (HRK) and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Organisers and funding bodies of NMT Mauritius 2024

Reform of the regulatory framework

The National Multiplication Training came at an opportune time, when Mauritius’ higher education institutions were at different stages of implementing reforms under the country’s Higher Education Act 2017.

Changes in the sector’s regulatory system ensured that the higher education programme provision offered in Mauritius not only met the requirements of its own statutory quality assurance bodies but was also benchmarked against regional and international standards, thereby fostering global academic mobility.

Stakeholders would be assured that higher education gained in Mauritius had international recognition whilst meeting regional labour market needs and socio-economic demands.

Regulation

When the 2017 Act was implemented in Mauritius in January 2020, two regulatory bodies, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and the Quality Assurance Authority (QAA) were established.

Each was tasked with overseeing distinct but complementary regulatory functions, with greater mandates than the Tertiary Education Commission, which they replaced.

The restructuring ensured that a fit-for-purpose framework was in place to manage anticipated developments in the higher education landscape, including internationalisation.

Challenges

These transformative changes brought their share of challenges for the country’s higher education institutions, prompting questions and introducing uncertainties among those tasked with their implementation.

For many institutions, this reform entailed redesigning internal procedures, introducing new tools, training faculty in understanding regulatory requirements and fostering a culture of internal quality improvement; all while balancing existing operational demands.

As a result, many higher education institutions are navigating a steep learning curve, as they adjust to the new expectations set by the regulatory bodies.

Prior to the enactment of the new legislation, public and private higher education institutions were regulated through different mechanisms under the former Tertiary Education Act 1988. The 2017 Act thus addressed the need for harmonising quality assurance and accountability across the growing higher education sector by establishing a unified regulatory framework.

It was amid these challenges that the first DIES NMT for higher education in Mauritius was set up in 2023, enabling the collaboration that supported higher education managers to meet the complexities of these reforms and to implement the changes required.

First NMT in Mauritius

Breaking new ground, the National Multiplication Training, or NMT, distinguished itself from other national quality assurance workshops conducted by the regulatory bodies.

This was the first time that a private and a public university came together in a consortium to support Mauritius’ higher education quality assurance transformation on a national scale. The training was done by local practitioners from the public and private higher education sectors for their peers.

As alumni of the 2020-21 DIES Training on Internal Quality Assurance in Higher Education, or TrainIQA, programme for the Southern African Development Community, or SADC, region, the authors of this commentary (Dr Sweta Rout-Hoolash, a senior lecturer in international education from Middlesex University Mauritius and Vimi Neeroo Lockmun-Bissessur, the head of quality assurance from Université des Mascareignes), formed a national training committee (also including Dr Shaheen Motala-Timol, the head of academic and quality enhancement, Middlesex University Mauritius).

The committee was further expanded to include Petra Pistor, an international quality assurance expert from the Wandelwerk, Centre for Quality Assurance and Enhancement at FH Münster – University of Applied Sciences.

The committee conceptualised a multiplication training for capacity building on ‘Effective implementation of quality management systems in HEIs with a focus on accreditation, audit, and an introduction to internationalisation’.

Through capacity building, the project addressed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, namely to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” as well as SDG 17 “Partnerships for the goals”, bringing together Mauritian and German public and private HE managers and practitioners.

The committee announced and publicised the training in January 2024 and selected twenty-two participants (twelve women and seven men, all Mauritian) based on predefined selection criteria.

Each represented a different role in their organisation. Ten higher education institutions took part, a mix of public and private, and a tertiary regulatory body. Following the DIES training course methodology, the training consisted of two interconnected in-person workshops of three to four days each, held in February and June 2024, with a break of four to five months between the workshops, for the participants to develop and implement projects relevant to their institutions.

Making innovative change sustainable

The workshop topics were selected by the participants to support the adaptation of reforms in their own institutions. The focus was on key areas such as development of a quality culture, review of audit and accreditation processes, and curriculum design to cater for an international student body.

To promote the sustainability of the National Multiplication Training, participants implemented a quality assurance project relevant to their institutions during the training, working in peer groups under the mentorship of an expert. Themes included student engagement in quality mechanisms; digital transformation; programme review, monitoring and audit.

The effectiveness of the training was evidenced from the end-of-training survey results: 94% of the participants agreed that “the experience of the trainers contributed to make the workshop an enriching one” and 100% agreed that the “workshop revealed new types of practical examples that could be used within the context of their own work”.

Moreover, the training committee was an all-female team, which was greatly appreciated by participants, exemplified through this comment from a participant at the closing survey, where it was stated that “the teamwork of the four ladies was brilliant. I sincerely learned a lot. The enthusiasm and dynamism of the leading four ladies was infectious and carried the workshop all along. The workshop was brilliantly carried out.”

Community of practice envisaged

To sustain a professional network, participants wanted to continue the dialogue with each other. A community of practice is intended to complement the recently established network for quality managers in Mauritius (the Higher Education Quality Assurance Society, or HEQAS), working independently to promote exchange across functional and disciplinary boundaries in the further implementation of the participants’ change projects.

As well as a growth in competencies among the participants, an institutional impact is expected from their change projects which will contribute to the implementation of the higher education reforms in Mauritius.

Higher Education leaders

The training attracted the interest of the national and regional media and, crucially, of higher education decision makers in Mauritius, including the former vice prime minister and minister of education, tertiary education, science and technology, who explicitly supported the initiative, along with heads of the HEC, QAA and other senior officials from the tertiary sector.

Organising committee with participants

The NMT project was further recognised at national level, when in 2024 Middlesex University Mauritius and Université des Mascareignes won the bronze award in the category of ‘Government departments, parastatals and registered associations’ at the National Productivity and Quality Excellence Award.

Keeping the momentum

How can this momentum now be leveraged, and what practical steps can be taken to further support Mauritius’ higher education reforms efforts?

Based on the experiences from the first National Multiplication Training in Mauritius, the training committee recommends the following.

• Support the transformation process through capacity building: Changes in higher education systems do not happen overnight. Responsibilities must be defined, and all stakeholders need to be convinced of the new processes. This makes continuous guidance and shared learning in these processes more important, which suggests the implementation of additional training in the areas of higher education management, quality management, and internationalisation.

• Dialogue from practice for practice: This National Multiplication Training has demonstrated the value of cross-functional and cross-disciplinary exchange among practitioners. Through networking and the provision of training by practitioners themselves, these benefits can be further leveraged for Mauritius’ higher education reforms process.

• International exchange: Mauritius aims to become a regional knowledge hub. In pursuit of this goal, international exchange in higher education and quality management (beyond the development of international study programmes) is important.

The involvement of colleagues from Germany provided a great source of exchange and inspiration during the National Multiplication Training. At the same time, the training was entirely the responsibility of national experts.

This is particularly important when it comes to implementing a reform and internationalisation concept that fits the national context in Mauritius.

This North-South private-public partnership, enabled through the National Multiplication Training funds, was a first, but not the last such collaboration, aimed at creating a culture of sharing to meet national higher education objectives and improve the quality of higher education institutions.

The first National Multiplication Training in Mauritius is a testament that higher education institutions can support the work of national regulators and actively champion national agendas through capacity building, peer learning and exchanges.

Dr Sweta Rout-Hoolash, PFHEA is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (United Kingdom), an alumna of DIES, a senior lecturer in international education at Middlesex University, Mauritius. She can be reached at s.rout-hoolash@mdx.ac.uk and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sweta-rout-hoolash

Vimi Lockmun-Bissessur (MSc (UK), BEng (UK), ACGI (UK)), is an Associate of the City and Guilds of London Institute (United Kingdom) and a DIES alumna. She is head of quality assurance at Université des Mascareignes, Mauritius. She can be reached on vlbissessur@udm.ac.mu or LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/vimi-lockmun-bissessur

Dr Shaheen Motala-Timol is the head of academic and quality enhancement at Middlesex University, Mauritius. She is available at s.timol@mdx.ac.mu or via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/shaheen-motala-timol

Dipl.-Foto-Des. Petra Pistor, M.A. (Germany) is an international quality assurance expert at the Wandelwerk, Centre for Quality Assurance and Enhancement at FH Münster – University of Applied Sciences. Her email is petra.pistor@fh-muenster.de and she can be contacted on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/petra-pistor

This commentary/opinion article was first published in the Africa edition of University World News. Here is a link to the article: https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20250319100406602

[Blog] Targeting Gaza's children

guest — Mon, 14 Apr 2025 09:50:39 +0000

[Blog] Targeting Gaza's children guest lun 14/04/2025 - 13:50

Since the murderous Israeli onslaught on Gaza as from October 2023, some 18,000 Palestinian children have been annihilated and several thousand others have been wounded. According to WHO, Gaza has the highest ratio of child amputees in the world. The UN estimates that, following the resumption of the Israeli aggression after the breach of the temporary truce, around a hundred children are killed or injured every day.

One could argue that the children are collateral victims of a ruthless war, fallen in indiscriminate bombings of residential buildings, buried under the rubble of their homes or incinerated in makeshift tents. However, testimonies from doctors, journalists and eyewitnesses reveal that, far from being accidental, many of the killings were deliberate and carried out in cold blood. In many cases, children have been intentionally targeted. For its documentary, "Kids under Fire", Al Jazeera interviewed 20 American doctors who have served as volunteers in Gaza. All of them have observed a horrifying pattern of gunshots from snipers and quadcopters. Dr Tammy Abughnaim, an American emergency physician from Chicago working at Al Shifa Hospital, testified the following: "More and more I started to see children with penetrating injuries like gunshot wounds. After five, six, seven, eight, I came to the conclusion that somebody is shooting children... At first I didn't want to believe that children were being shot at... nobody wants to believe that other humans are capable of annihilating children in that way."

The reality dawned upon her when she treated the wounds that could only be the work of "snipers, foot soldiers with rifles and quadcopters armed with guns". Her colleague, Dr Mark Perlmutter, orthopedic hand surgeon from North Carolina who worked as a volunteer in Nasser Hospital, added: "The target at the end of the scope is unmistakable. When that trigger gets pulled on that target, it is not by accident. At all. Ever."

Drop Site News relates the poignant story of ten-year-old Mira Al Darim. She lived in a makeshift tent in Khan Younis. On August 24, she woke up early as it was the birthday of her elder sister Rafat. "Wake up Mom," she told her mother. "We have to prepare a cake for Rafat." While her mother was waking up, she took a sandwich from the kitchen, if it could be called one, and started eating. As she opened her mouth, a bullet hit her in the head and blew up her skull. She fell down in a pool of blood, an innocent victim of a ruthless Israeli sniper, lurking in the rubble of Gaza and maliciously aiming at children. Imagine she was your child. Imagine seeing her skull blown up in front of your eyes. How would you feel? How devastated would you be? Indeed, there are no words to describe the excruciating pain of a parent in the face of such horrors.

Not only the living are targeted but even the unborn are prevented from seeing the light of day. On 2nd March, Israel cut off all supplies of food, fuel and medicine. Thousands of pregnant women began facing starvation, malnutrition and inability to procure life-saving medicines. The situation is further exacerbated with the systematic targeting of medical facilities and forced mass displacements. The result of all this has been an exponential increase of miscarriages, which have risen by a staggering 300%. A case in point is that of 27-year-old Lojain Abu Shanab, as related by Drop Site News. On 15th March, following the orders of the Israeli army, she had to flee her home. As no transportation was available, she had to flee on foot. After walking for about 3 kms, she felt severe pain and cramps which intensified until she had a miscarriage. "I didn't only lose my baby. I lost my dream too," she lamented. Women like her, many of whom had waited for years to become pregnant, just lost their fetuses in similar circumstances. According to UNFPA, some 60,000 pregnant women are suffering from acute malnutrition and their fetuses are hanging between life and death.

The unimaginably dire condition is illustrated by the case of Khaleda, pregnant since four months. She relates that she has nothing to eat except some bread and often she goes to sleep with an empty stomach. In such conditions, is there any hope of successfully giving birth to her expected child? This is the life to which Israel has condemned the women and children of Gaza in utter disregard of humanity and humanitarian law.

We cannot but ask: what kind of a world are we living in? Children, the priceless gifts of God, the supreme joys of our life, the raison d'être of our existence, the creatures we cherish with all our hearts, the embodiment of our hopes and future, the very symbol of innocence and vulnerability, are being butchered, murdered, bombed, massacred, their bodies converted into mere body parts often with heads missing, decapitated and decimated while the world is looking the other way. During World War 2, when 6 million Jews were exterminated, the world had a pretext. Hitler was carrying the genocide in secret. This genocide is being done openly, livestreamed on social media on a 24 hr basis, yet the world is not lifting a finger to stop it. Some countries are even abetting it by supplying arms and weaponry and sharing of intelligence. It is a shame on humanity. All these talks about human rights, international laws and UN conventions are futile and meaningless in the face of the open and avowed genocide being committed by Israel.

“Silence, on tue”. This is the answer of the world, especially the so-called civilized West.

Azize Bankur

[Blog] End of dollar era? China’s digital yuan is reshaping global trade & causing financial power shift

guest — Fri, 11 Apr 2025 14:56:12 +0000

[Blog] End of dollar era? China’s digital yuan is reshaping global trade & causing financial power shift guest ven 11/04/2025 - 18:56

We are reproducing below a blog published on the website of The Economic Times of India

By Dr Ganesh Valiachi & Dr Soundarya

Will the rest of the world, particularly the West, adapt to this new reality, or will they be left navigating a financial ecosystem where China dictates the rules? One thing is certain: the era of uncontested dollar dominance is coming to an end. The world must prepare for a future where digital currencies, led by China’s digital yuan, reshape global finance in ways we are only beginning to comprehend.

The global financial order is witnessing a seismic shift, and at its epicentre is China’s digital yuan. The recent launch of the digital RMB cross-border settlement system by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is more than just a technological breakthrough—it is a geopolitical maneuver with far-reaching implications for global trade, financial sovereignty, and the dominance of the US dollar.

A Disruptive Technological Edge

For decades, international transactions have relied on the SWIFT system, where dollar-dominated settlements often take 3-5 days to clear, involving multiple intermediary banks and high transaction costs.

China’s digital RMB, powered by blockchain technology, has completely upended this model. With settlement times reduced to just seven seconds and handling fees slashed by 98 per cent, the efficiency gains alone are compelling enough for emerging markets and strategic trade partners to make the switch.

The first successful real-time settlement between Hong Kong and Abu Dhabi using digital RMB has already demonstrated its disruptive potential. By bypassing SWIFT and eliminating reliance on correspondent banks, China has effectively engineered an alternative financial network—one that reduces the influence of US-dominated monetary systems and reshapes the global trade paradigm.

Redefining Financial Sovereignty

The ramifications of this development extend beyond mere efficiency. For years, the US has wielded its control over the SWIFT system as an instrument of economic coercion, particularly through sanctions.

The digital RMB offers an alternative, allowing countries under Western financial pressure—such as Iran and Russia—to conduct transactions without US oversight. This is already materializing: six ASEAN nations, including Malaysia and Singapore, have incorporated the RMB into their foreign exchange reserves, and Thailand has completed its first oil trade settled in digital yuan.
This marks a clear acceleration of the global de-dollarization trend. The cross-border RMB settlement volume in ASEAN exceeded 5.8 trillion yuan in 2024, a staggering 120 per cent increase from 2021. As China strengthens its digital payment network, the US dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency faces an existential challenge.

Strategic Integration

The digital yuan’s role extends beyond financial transactions; it is a foundational pillar of China’s broader economic expansion strategy. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), already a monumental undertaking spanning over 140 countries, now has a digital counterpart in the “Digital Silk Road.” By integrating the digital RMB with Beidou satellite navigation and quantum communication, China is creating a seamless trade infrastructure that enhances efficiency by 400 per cent.

This convergence of digital currency and physical trade infrastructure fundamentally alters the balance of economic power. European car manufacturers are already settling Arctic route freight costs in digital RMB, and Middle Eastern energy traders have reduced settlement costs by 75 per cent. If this momentum continues, the dollar-based financial order could soon become a relic of the past.

The Future of Global Finance

With over 87 per cent of the world’s countries now digitally integrated with the RMB settlement system, China has successfully built a financial architecture that challenges traditional banking norms. The total volume of cross-border digital RMB transactions has already surpassed $1.2 trillion, and this figure is set to grow exponentially as more nations join the digital currency bridge test.

Meanwhile, the US and Europe remain embroiled in regulatory debates over digital currency frameworks. The Federal Reserve’s hesitancy on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and the European Central Bank’s slow progress on the digital euro underscore the West’s lack of preparedness for this revolution. While Washington deliberates, Beijing executes.

The Road Ahead

The digital yuan’s rise is not merely a financial evolution—it is a recalibration of global power structures. For now, the question remains: Will the rest of the world, particularly the West, adapt to this new reality, or will they be left navigating a financial ecosystem where China dictates the rules? One thing is certain: the era of uncontested dollar dominance is coming to an end. The world must prepare for a future where digital currencies, led by China’s digital yuan, reshape global finance in ways we are only beginning to comprehend.

(Valiachi and Soundarya are faculty of Management at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology; Views expressed are personal).
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[Blog] On peut ne pas aimer Trump, mais il force le monde à voir la réalité en face

guest — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 10:15:27 +0000

[Blog] On peut ne pas aimer Trump, mais il force le monde à voir la réalité en face guest jeu 10/04/2025 - 14:15

Par Serge D. Astruc

Donald Trump est une figure controversée. Son langage, son style de gouvernance et sa vision du monde dérangent, et je ne partage pas la plupart de ses idées ni de ses méthodes. Pourtant, force est de reconnaître qu’il a obligé le monde à affronter des vérités longtemps ignorées. Il ne s’agit pas ici de défendre l’homme, mais de considérer les raisons derrière certaines de ses décisions. On peut ne pas l’aimer, mais il a mis le doigt sur des déséquilibres profonds que beaucoup préféraient taire. C’est pourquoi ce sujet mérite d’être examiné avec lucidité.

Trump n’a pas seulement coupé des aides ou bousculé ses alliés. Il a voulu envoyer un message clair : les États-Unis ne peuvent plus supporter seuls le poids financier du monde, surtout quand d'autres se contentent de peu et se permettent encore de critiquer.

Prenons un exemple : combien de temps pouvait-on attendre des États-Unis qu’ils continuent de subventionner près de la moitié des pauvres de la planète ? Pendant des années, l’Agence américaine pour le développement international (USAID) a versé plus de 42 milliards de dollars par an, représentant 42 % de l’aide humanitaire mondiale. Lorsque Trump a réduit ce budget de 83 %, selon l’Agence France Presse, de nombreux pays ont été pris de court. Le monde entier s’est alors rendu compte qu’il dépendait d’un seul pays.

Or, même la première puissance mondiale ne peut résoudre seule les problèmes de tous. Il est temps que chaque pays prenne sa part de responsabilité, financièrement, politiquement, et moralement. Le comble c'est que la majorité de ces pays qui reçoivent de l'aide n'aime pas l'Amérique !

Et cela ne concerne pas que l’aide. Sur le plan de la sécurité mondiale, le déséquilibre est tout aussi frappant. Les États-Unis injectent environ 675 milliards de dollars par an dans l’OTAN, garantissant la protection de l’Europe. En 2024, l’Allemagne n’a contribué qu’à hauteur de 90,8 milliards d’euros et la France, 47,2 milliards. Deux pays parmi les plus riches d’Europe, qui s’en remettent encore à Washington pour leur sécurité. Ce déséquilibre dure depuis trop longtemps. Si l’Europe veut se tenir debout, elle doit investir dans sa propre défense, au-delà des discours.

L’économie mondiale repose aussi sur une forme de dépendance. En 2023, les États-Unis ont importé 775 milliards de dollars de plus qu’ils n’ont exporté. Des pays comme la Chine, l’Allemagne, le Japon et d’autres économies reposent sur les consommateurs américains pour faire tourner leurs industries. Pourtant, ces mêmes pays restent peu présents en matière d’aide humanitaire, de défense, ou de gouvernance mondiale. Une telle dépendance est risquée : si l’économie américaine ralentit, c’est le monde entier qui en paiera le prix. Il est temps que chaque pays renforce sa propre économie, crée ses emplois et vise une plus grande autonomie.
Il est facile de critiquer Trump. Mais peut-être faudrait-il prendre un instant pour réfléchir. Ce qu’il a fait, c’est réveiller le monde. Il a dit : l’Amérique ne peut plus être à la fois le banquier et le protecteur de la planète. Il a placé son pays et ses citoyens en priorité. Certains y verront de l’égoïsme, mais c’est aussi un rappel que chaque nation doit prendre soin des siens avant de prétendre sauver les autres. Voilà une forme de leadership que beaucoup devraient méditer.

Et pendant ce temps, quelle ironie de voir Maurice compter sur les fonds américains issus du bail de Diego Garcia pour faire tourner son économie…

[Blog] A call to the 192 state members of the UN (minus USA) about President Trump's policies

Dr Michael Atchia — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 16:52:20 +0000

[Blog] A call to the 192 state members of the UN (minus USA) about President Trump's policies Dr Michael Atchia lun 07/04/2025 - 20:52

By Dr Michael Atchia

(Past Programme Director, United Nations)

Trump’s trade policies. This is a call to all 192 states of the planet to defend and preserve free trade and to pressurise the USA to end this trade/manufacture and visa war now.

Here is the proposed tool of action to counteract the destruction of global free trade through the new tariffs and restrictions, as well as unthought-out revenge on some states by President D. Trump since his arrival at the office of President of the USA:

That simple solution is for all states of the world (192 of us) to continue to import and export, free trade and the exchange of expertise and licences, as usual — minus the USA.

This isolation of the USA may hurt some countries such as neighbours Canada and Mexico. The 192 countries have, together, all the resources, manufacturing, trade systems, navigation and money exchange systems, and above all, the huge markets of China, India, Brazil, the African and the Arab states, the rest of Asia etc., to continue practically unaffected the present system of world trade and indeed to develop it!

This solution, if implemented, will surely — but unfortunately — hurt the USA, its businesses, industries, and its people.

States could meet, for example, at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and set up this exclusion of the USA from all import and export, from all world trade, which could be set up and become effective within 2 to 3 months — let’s say, tentatively, as from the 1st of July 2025.

But human civilisation cannot be indifferent and do nothing while this destruction of one of the pillars of our way of life and exchange (free trade) is happening.

Let us remind ourselves again as to what free trade is:

Natural resources: Each of the 193 states has a variety and quantity of natural resources which they use or export to countries who require them, such as crude oil and gas to Japan. Apart from fossil fuels and gas, minerals, agricultural and forest products — including electricity and freshwater, fish, seafood, cattle and sheep, etc.

Manufactured goods: Depending on the expertise in each country and its entrepreneurs, manufactured goods are exchanged on a wide scale between all countries — some countries specialising in sets of equipment and goods, others such as China, the European Union, Japan, South Korea manufacturing and exporting a huge variety of goods such as steel, paper, textiles & clothing, vehicles, food, pharmaceutical and medical products, etc.

China is at present the largest exporter in the world with over USD 3.1 trillion (20% of world trade), followed by the European Union (USD 2.3 trillion), and then the USA (USD 1.22 trillion). The USA is the third-largest trading nation for goods and services. Currently, the U.S. has trade relations with more than 200 countries, territories, and regional associations around the globe.

All states must now support and indeed put pressure on the USA to continue trading, shall we say, normally as one of the 193 states of the planet — not under this global market turmoil which Trump’s mostly unverified tariffs have plunged the world into. Or face, as from the 1st of July, the isolation of the USA!

PS: Animal war:

In a personal capacity, I will stand up and defend the penguins and seal populations of the two remote Antarctic outposts of Heard and McDonald Islands against Donald Duck’s new tariffs!

9th April 2025

[Blog] Vous avez dit responsables ?

guest — Mon, 31 Mar 2025 04:39:42 +0000

[Blog] Vous avez dit responsables ? guest lun 31/03/2025 - 08:39

Le monde des affaires s’est réuni sur deux jours, les 24 et 25 mars, pour parler de développement responsable. C’est une initiative louable car le monde d’aujourd’hui requiert qu’on fasse des affaires de manière responsable.

Personne n’a oublié la tragédie de Bhopal, les fuites d’huile dans le golfe du Mexique, les Ponzi Schemes à la Madoff ou encore les affaires de fraude et de corruption dans les grandes entreprises.

Sur le plan local, réfléchir sur l’avenir et surtout à la manière dont on conduit les affaires est rafraîchissant. Mais au-delà des discours, on peut se poser beaucoup de questions sur les actes de certaines grosses entreprises engagées dans cette démarche.

Dans une interview à TéléPlus, le Gouverneur de la banque de Maurice et ancien ministre des Finances, le Dr Rama Sithanen, a rappelé l’évidence : Maurice a besoin de produire davantage d’énergie verte ainsi que des aliments afin de réduire notre facture d’importation. Sous ces deux seuls items, le pays, en proie à un manque de devises, a assisté à une hémorragie de Rs 69,01 milliards (pétrole) et Rs 57,58 milliards (aliments), d’après les chiffres officiels en 2024.

À l’opposé, l’une des plus grosses banques du pays, selon Echo Austral, investit une somme colossale dans les plateformes pétrolières au Nigéria. Bien sûr, dans un État de libre entreprise balisé par l’économie du marché, toute entreprise privée est libre d’investir où bon lui semble, mais imaginons ces mêmes milliards investis de manière « responsable » dans l’économie verte locale. Quel impact positif sur la création d’emploi et la balance des paiements !

Parlant d’économie verte, après la tragédie de Saint-Domingue, entre autres, ou l’exploitation maximale du littoral pour se faire un maximum d’argent a fini par avoir l’effet contraire : faire fuir les touristes tout en hypothéquant l’environnement ; Maurice doit bien se garder de ces développements immobiliers où l’on fait fi de l’écosystème, entre autres des mangroves, afin de créer des plages encore plus blanches et lisses.

À se demander en passant, à la lumière de l’étude « State of the Economy of Mauritius and the road ahead » (Décembre 2024) si les hôtels de certains conglomérats qui ont obtenu des milliards de prêts de la fameuse MIC durant la COVID, seraient disposés à rembourser leurs dettes au taux du jour, sachant qu’ils s'enorgueillissent de profits mirobolants. Tant mieux pour eux et pour l’économie qu’ils fassent de gros profits, mais encore faut-il, au nom de la responsabilité d’entreprise, qu’ils jouent le jeu et ne thésaurisent pas les rentrées de Forex dont le pays a grand besoin pour assurer tout au moins la stabilité économique.

Bref, saluons encore une fois l’initiative des pontes du secteur privé, mais espérons que chacun saisit les enjeux et « means business » lorsqu’il s’agit de mener les affaires de manière vraiment responsable, dans l’intérêt du pays comme de leurs intérêts bien compris.

Patriote

[Blog] Pour une Intelligence Artificielle éthique et bienveillante

Defi Quotidien — Fri, 28 Mar 2025 07:41:34 +0000

[Blog] Pour une Intelligence Artificielle éthique et bienveillante Defi Quotidien ven 28/03/2025 - 11:41

Selon Michael Haenlein et Andreas Kaplan, reconnus internationalement pour leurs travaux sur la transformation digitale, l’IA se définit comme « la capacité d’un système à interpréter correctement des données externes, à apprendre à partir de ces données, et à utiliser ces apprentissages pour accomplir des objectifs et des tâches spécifiques grâce à une adaptation flexible ». Cependant, comme le souligne Stuart Russell, expert de renommée mondiale en IA, il n’existe pas de ligne de démarcation claire pour dire : « Ce logiciel est de l’IA, et cet autre ne l’est pas ». Aujourd’hui, pour reprendre les termes du philosophe américain John Searle, nous utilisons une IA faible, c’est-à-dire limitée à l’exécution de tâches spécifiques, alors qu’une IA forte, dotée d’une conscience et capable d’agir seule, demeure au stade de la théorie et de la recherche.

L’IA fascine nos sociétés car elle représente un véritable moteur de transformation, suscitant des espoirs considérables pour le progrès de l’humanité. Mais il serait illusoire et mal avisé de ne voir que le revers positif de la médaille, car l’IA présente également des dérives et des dangers majeurs.

C’est dans cette perspective qu’en février dernier, faisant suite aux sommets de Bletchley Park en novembre 2023 et de Séoul en mai 2024, la France a accueilli le Sommet pour l’action sur l’Intelligence Artificielle (IA), afin de garantir, à l’échelle internationale, « un développement responsable et éthique de l’IA, plaçant la confiance au cœur de son essor », face aux risques et dangers multiples qu’elle présente.
À l’issue de ce sommet, 58 pays, dont la France, la Chine et l’Inde, ainsi que l’Union européenne et la Commission de l’Union africaine, ont signé la « Déclaration sur une intelligence artificielle durable et inclusive pour la population et la planète ». Cette déclaration est axée sur trois principes, dans le respect des cadres nationaux et internationaux : la science, les solutions et les normes.

Les États-Unis et le Royaume-Uni ont, quant à eux, choisi de ne pas signer cette déclaration. Ainsi, lors de son intervention au sommet, le vice-président des États-Unis, J. D. Vance, a notamment souligné la nécessité de maintenir l’IA à l’abri des biais idéologiques et de la censure, et a mis en garde contre les réglementations excessives qui pourraient entraver le potentiel transformateur de l’industrie de l’IA. D’ailleurs, le président des États-Unis, Donald Trump, a signé, le 23 janvier 2025, l’ordre exécutif 14179, intitulé « Supprimer les obstacles au leadership américain dans l’intelligence artificielle », dont l’objectif est d’abroger toute politique restrictive existante en matière d’IA et de renforcer le leadership mondial des États-Unis dans cette industrie.

Malgré l’initiative louable que représente le Sommet pour l’action sur l’IA, nombreux sont ceux qui estiment que la déclaration issue de ce sommet n’est qu’un ensemble d’effets d’annonce et de bonnes intentions, sans aucun engagement concret en faveur d’un véritable cadre réglementaire face aux dangers réels de l’intelligence artificielle. Cette critique prend d’autant plus de poids que les vidéos générées par l’IA, reprenant le visage et la voix du président français Emmanuel Macron, et publiées sur le compte Instagram de ce dernier en marge du sommet, démontrent clairement que l’IA est un outil à double tranchant.

Certes, l’IA présente un potentiel immense de transformation pour le progrès de l’humanité. Elle permet, entre autres, d’automatiser des tâches répétitives jusqu’ici réalisées par l’être humain, de faciliter l’accès et la diffusion des connaissances et du savoir, d’accélérer les processus de recherche, de développement et d’innovation, ainsi que de booster la productivité et la compétitivité des entreprises et des économies qui la maîtrisent. La convergence entre l’IA, l’Internet des objets et l’informatique quantique ouvrira indéniablement de nouvelles possibilités et opportunités pour l’humanité. Néanmoins, l’IA, à travers ses capacités actuelles et futures, peut aussi représenter des dangers majeurs pour le bon fonctionnement et la sérénité de nos sociétés, et menacer les libertés fondamentales des individus.

Sans un développement et une utilisation consciente, responsable et encadrée, l’IA pourrait entraîner la suppression ou la transformation massive d’emplois, alors même que le travail constitue un facteur clé d’intégration sociale. Elle pourrait, en outre, accentuer la marginalisation des individus, mais aussi celle des nations les moins aptes à maîtriser les enjeux liés à l’IA, aggraver la fracture numérique, renforcer la toute-puissance des entreprises et des individus contrôlant les outils d’IA les plus utilisés dans le monde, et générer une dépendance croissante des populations vis-à-vis de l’IA, avec pour conséquence une baisse des fonctions cognitives humaines (affaiblissement de la pensée critique, de la créativité, de la mémoire), la destruction des liens sociaux, l’isolement de certaines catégories de personnes, ainsi qu’une augmentation des troubles médicaux liés à cet isolement (par exemple : dépression et maladie d’Alzheimer).

Par ailleurs, l’IA soulève de sérieuses préoccupations en matière de libertés fondamentales, notamment en raison des données personnelles qu’elle collecte. Elle pourrait contribuer à asservir les individus face à un État autoritaire, à travers par exemple des dispositifs de crédit social. La fuite ou la mauvaise utilisation des données personnelles peut aussi altérer le libre arbitre et les actions des individus. Des données personnelles ont ainsi déjà été exploitées pour influencer des votes électoraux ou discréditer des personnalités politiques.

L’utilisation des outils d’intelligence artificielle pour créer des deepfakes et manipuler les pensées et les comportements humains est particulièrement préoccupante. Aujourd’hui, n’importe quelle personne mal intentionnée peut générer des contenus hyperréalistes, à moindre coût, dans le but de nuire à autrui, voire de détruire une personne. Ainsi, par exemple, les deepfakes sont de plus en plus utilisés par des escrocs pour tromper les seniors sur les réseaux sociaux. Ces techniques servent également à diffuser de faux messages relatifs à la santé et à promouvoir indirectement des remèdes qui peuvent s’avérer dangereux pour la santé de ceux qui s’y laissent prendre, sans oublier les faux contenus intimes qui prolifèrent. L’ampleur que prennent les deepfakes représente désormais une véritable menace pour les démocraties. Ils sont utilisés pour manipuler l’opinion publique, semer la confusion lors des campagnes électorales, ou encore alimenter la désinformation à grande échelle.

Et que dire de ces entreprises, entrepreneurs et chercheurs qui semblent obnubilés par le transhumanisme, c’est-à-dire la volonté d’utiliser la biotechnologie, les neurosciences et l’intelligence artificielle pour créer des super-humains et, éventuellement, dépasser la finitude de l’homme, ouvrant ainsi la boîte de Pandore que tout esprit éclairé redoute ?

L’IA n’est ni bonne ni mauvaise en soi. Comme le dit si bien Hobbes, « l’homme est un loup pour l’homme », et l’Histoire, tout comme le monde actuel, regorge d’événements qui nous rappellent les dérives et les atrocités dont l’être humain est capable. L’avenir de l’IA et son impact dépendront donc de ce que nous, humains, choisirons d’en faire. Voulons-nous d’une IA qui déstructure les liens sociaux et isole l’individu ? Voulons-nous d’une IA dotée d’une intelligence supérieure à celle de l’homme, voire consciente ? Voulons-nous d’une IA réservée à une élite, permettant à quelques-uns de dominer les autres ? Ou alors, souhaitons-nous une IA véritablement au service de l’humanité ?

Face aux dérives potentielles de l’IA, le choix ne peut qu’être clair pour tout être humain et tout décideur politique clairvoyant, capable de transcender les seules dimensions économiques et matérialistes. En effet, les frustrations exprimées par les peuples à travers le monde démontrent clairement que nous évoluons dans une société qui ne répond pas, ou ne répond plus, au désir de liberté, d’épanouissement et de progrès des êtres humains, malgré l’évolution exponentielle des technologies au cours des cinquante dernières années.

Comme le dit si bien l’ancien Premier ministre français Dominique de Villepin, nous vivons dans un monde où les peurs de disparaître, d’être méprisé, d’être bafoué ou de perdre son statut sont exacerbées et cristallisées par certains pour satisfaire leurs intérêts personnels. La montée du populisme dans de nombreux pays est le reflet de ces peurs, de cette crise identitaire dont souffrent de plus en plus les peuples, alors même que l’humanité n’a jamais été aussi avancée ni aussi capable de résoudre ses propres problèmes.

Le sociologue français Dominique Wolton estime que l’essor des technologies de communication et des réseaux n’a fait qu’accentuer « l’incommunication » et la crise identitaire. Un développement et une utilisation sauvage de l’IA ne feront qu’aggraver cette crise identitaire et ces peurs, mettant en péril la paix et la cohésion de l’humanité.

Les nations de notre monde doivent donc agir de concert pour adopter un cadre éthique et juridique international garantissant que l’IA demeure au service de l’homme, c’est-à-dire un outil d’accompagnement dans sa quête d’épanouissement, et qu’elle ne se transforme pas en un instrument de domination ou de destruction.

Même s’il l’ignore souvent, l’être humain est avant tout un être profondément social et spirituel, bien avant d’être un agent économique. Privé de ses dimensions sociale et spirituelle, et transformé en une simple machine perfectionnée par l’IA au service des impératifs économiques et matérialistes, l’homme ne serait plus qu’un être artificiel sans repères, voué à son autodestruction.

[Blog] Mauritius needs long-term plans, essential for its security

Dr Michael Atchia — Tue, 25 Mar 2025 02:37:01 +0000

[Blog] Mauritius needs long-term plans, essential for its security Dr Michael Atchia mar 25/03/2025 - 06:37

Action is needed as from now 2025 up to 2029 and, if need be, extended for full completion up to 2035 (during this and the next 5-year mandate).

We produce only 30% of the food we eat. We import 70% including all rice and flour, poor Mauritius!

We produce only 17.6% of energy we use from renewables (from sun, wind, hydro, biomass). We massively use the non-renewable resources, charcoal and petrol, which we import, the price of which will continue to rise until they suddenly become unavailable on the world market to little Mauritius. The present situation makes Mauritius dependent on exporters and makes the population vulnerable for the supply of the key product of food and energy.

This is a call to our new, responsible, and proactive government to launch serious long-term plans and actions for Mauritius food, energy and water security, all essential for life! Specifically, this is an appeal to the PM and VPM, to the Minister in charge of energy (Hon P. Assisvaden) and the one in charge of agriculture and food security (Hon A. Boolell). Already we are implementing several small projects such as saving energy, producing your own food, etc.

1. Energy security must be achieved through the vast replacement of petrol vehicles by electric ones, the electric metro covering the entire island and a major shift to renewables (sun, wind, hydro, biomass) for electricity production. (At present, see Le Défi Quotidien of 4.2.25: 82.4% énergies fossiles (importée : charbon et pétrole) contre seulement 17.6% renouvelable). The main equipment needed to produce electricity from the sun are solar panels, 100% of which we at present import. Studies have revealed that our situation with regards to wind and to sunshine is excellent, making it certain to achieve up to 100% renewables in a few years. There is also the huge benefit that, once installed and working, energy from sun and wind is free!!!
As well as infrastructural changes, making it possible for people to work, study, take recreation, etc., close to where they live, hence for all to go to school or to work on foot or at best by cycle.

The future of harvesting solar energy. Solar energy harvesting technology is increasingly utilized as an alternative to electricity generated by fossil fuel. While various methods of solar energy harvesting exist, they all fundamentally use the sun to perform work in a specifically desired way, thus eliminating the need for fossil fuel use altogether. The combined results of renewable energy production from sun, wind, hydro and biomass is the only future for the world and of course for us. We cannot miss that bus! Take the example of Denmark, which on some months satisfied 100% of all its energy requirements from wind and sun, with so much excess that energy is exported to Germany!

2. Food security through self-sufficiency (now standing at 70% imports and only 30% locally produced)
At a time when entire sections of the planet are suffering from the extremes of climate change (roasting under extreme heat, freezing cold, intense hurricanes, floods and droughts, sea-level rise, etc.), under such a planetary emergency, each country, big or small, must play its part in combating climate change.

The new government has stated very early its intention to do so. At present this remains a declaration of intention, with only a few actions started, such as the produce your own food project, Plan d’Urgence pour les Planteurs, etc. Apart from self-sufficiency in energy, achieving food security is an essential aim. Without it, if and when some basic products become rare, unavailable on the world market, cargo costs too high, our population could starve like the people of Gaza. The plan, of course, will include changes in diet to consume what we can produce and stock.

3. Water is life. Fresh water from nature (i.e., the rain cycle) is essential for all humans, animals and plants. We need to improve and efficiently manage water resources and water distribution and use. Water from nature in the form of rain, via rivers and reservoirs, via underground water, individually harvested by each family, via modern technologies such as cloud-seeding and seawater evaporation using massive solar and wind power. Already we are planning for reducing waste of water in distribution by a vast programme to replace leaking pipes.

Budget implications: A substantial sum of money will ideally be put in every year’s budget from now (2025-26 budget) to 2035, to achieve these long-term goals. For this budget, we propose Rs 300 million for the energy security goal under the Ministry of Energy and Public Utilities; Rs 200 million under the Ministry of Agroindustry for food security through self-sufficiency; and Rs 100 million for fresh water management under the Ministry of Environment or that of National Infrastructure, since achieving that security will likely include building new reservoirs and new technical solutions.

Knowing our combativity and initiative, we surely will gradually achieve this self-sufficiency in basics (rice and flour, grains and chicken & meat or replacement crops, energy, and fresh water, without forgetting medical supplies, and basic equipment, either locally manufactured or imported from reliable suppliers and transportation regionally and nationally, within our region and the rest of the planet. As well as communications with each other, with and from government, with our Indian Ocean and African neighbours and with the rest of the world.

Dr Michael Atchia

(Ex Programme Director, UNEP; Ex President, Mauritius Academy of Science & Technology; D.Sc. University of Salford, Manchester, UK; co-author of Environmental Management, John Wiley, 1995)
mklatchia@intnet.mu

22nd March 2025

[Blog] Gaza: A call to all 192 STATES of the planet, including Mauritius, to pressurize Israel to end this genocide, NOW

Dr Michael Atchia — Tue, 25 Mar 2025 02:11:19 +0000

[Blog] Gaza: A call to all 192 STATES of the planet, including Mauritius, to pressurize Israel to end this genocide, NOW Dr Michael Atchia mar 25/03/2025 - 06:11

Destruction of humanity through wars, genocides, epidemics, famines, natural catastrophes, technology, nuclear bombs, and soon through climate change and global warming if our planet’s reaction fails to control these.

God help us! We cannot, as humans, be indifferent and do nothing while this genocide is happening.
50,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2021, including over 20,000 women and children.

The government of Israel today continues its attempted genocide against the Palestinians. This is A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, FOR WHICH Israel, its PM NETANYAHU, and Government WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE—by making people move as soon as they settle, bombing and destroying all schools, hospitals, and recently the one fertility clinic, and by starving the 2-million-strong population. And today, they have arranged to frighten all inhabitants of GAZA with the destruction of their means of life and death if they do not move elsewhere, as per Trump’s plan.

The Arab states of Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and others, the European Union, the USA, India, and China, with the full backing of the UNITED NATIONS, CAN NOW IMPOSE the second phase of the peace plan: release ALL Israeli hostages, release ALL Palestinian POLITICAL PRISONERS, START THE RETREAT of Israel from Gaza, so then the RECONSTRUCTION CAN BEGIN! People can stop being assassinated and start rebuilding their habitats and lives.

If you had to forecast which leader of any of the 194 countries of the world could be the new 21st-century HITLER, would you have thought of the Jewish leader of Israel?

Brazil’s president, Lula da Silva, speaking at the 37th African Union Summit, compared Israel’s actions in the war against Hamas to the Holocaust, in which Nazis killed six million Jews. “What is happening in the Gaza Strip with the Palestinian people has no parallel in other historical moments,” but “it did exist when Hitler decided to kill the Jews.” The UN Security Council, the ICJ, the EU, Egypt, and other Arab states voiced their concern about a possible coming genocide of the people of Gaza by Israel. After almost 50,000 deaths, nothing is being done. Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders pursue their elimination policy.

Hitler gave as a reason the need for more space for his people (Lebensraum). Israel specifically wants the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza—if necessary, by first destroying all housing infrastructure, hospitals, schools, water, and food supplies, and on 13th March 2025, THE ONLY FERTILITY CLINIC IN GAZA, thereby starting the elimination of the people of Gaza—men, women, and children.

With the first phase of the agreement between HAMAS and ISRAEL at this historical moment in mid-January 2025, we saw a possible end to an attempted genocide and, hopefully, the start of the rebuilding of a nation.
Then, last week, bombardment and further clear genocidal acts against the Palestinians started again. By Israel, with American arms, American money, and the blessing of their President DT.

LET US REMIND OURSELVES AGAIN AS TO WHAT A GENOCIDE IS. An absolute crime against humanity. It is the deliberate and systematic destruction, completely or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group. It is inhuman, immoral, illegal, and completely unacceptable. It involves violence against people simply because of their differences.

•   1945: After Nazi Germans exterminated more than five million Jews during WWII, from 1941 to 1945, the Jewish people settled in Palestine and built a strong, new state of Israel.

•   1993: After the Hutus massacred 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda in 1993, the Tutsis rebuilt Rwanda as one of the cleanest and best-run African states.

•   2025: After the attempted genocide by Israel of the Palestinian people in Gaza, from 1948 till now, but mainly during the last 15 months when Israel destroyed most schools, most hospitals, most housing, most roads, most production systems, and attempted to starve the population, Gaza/Palestine can now reconstruct and rebuild their homeland.

Now we witness the end of the continued non-recognition of Palestine by Israel. The ‘imprisonment’ of the Palestinian people till today, denied return to their land, denied the two-state solution—one being an independent Palestine. A process of independence for Palestine, Gaza, and the West Bank. A difficult process that needs the support of all states of the REGION AND OF THE WORLD. A process that Hamas can help by dissolving itself under its present armed forces constitution and reforming itself as, for example, the PPP (Palestine Political Party), devoted entirely to rebuilding Palestine and its efficient governance.

We mourn the 50,000 Palestinians, including 20,000 WOMEN and CHILDREN killed in the last 24 months, also more than 100,000 people injured, and the more than 12,000 missing. We also mourn the toll on Israelis killed, numbering 1,200. And we are grateful for the release of hostages held by Hamas, as well as political prisoners from Israeli jails, which started on 19th January and is to be followed for the next six weeks. We witness the 10,000+ Palestinians going on foot, donkey carriages, lorries, vans, and cars back to their villages or towns to see their houses—in 80% of cases, destroyed and reduced to rubble by Israeli bombs and missiles. A sad tragedy of human wickedness.

Now, of course, the UN agencies and all nations in the area (Egypt, Doha, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and others) as well as those outside, are starting a huge help movement to feed the Gaza people (reduced to starvation by Israel in its genocide attempt) and start the reconstruction of habitats, schools, hospitals, production and commercial structures, roads, and communications, etc. In fact, to rebuild all.

All states must now support and indeed put pressure on Israel and Hamas FOR A CEASEFIRE NOW and fully implement the ceasefire and agreement. Then the rebuilding of Gaza can start in earnest.

Dr. Michael Atchia
(Past Programme Director, United Nations)
mklatchia@intnet.mu
25th March 2025

[Blog] Remembering my friend, Siram Sakaram

guest — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 17:31:54 +0000

[Blog] Remembering my friend, Siram Sakaram guest jeu 13/03/2025 - 21:31

I usually write on topics of public interest but this article is a personal one. At 6 pm on 5th March I returned from my daily stroll at Trou- aux-Cerfs where I go to breathe the fresh air, admire nature and chat with people whom I happen to know. My wife told me to sit down and relax. I immediately apprehended that something untoward was coming. Then she broke the heart-piercing news: Siram was no more.

I was completely devastated. Our friendship dates back to the days when we were doing our HSC classes at Bhujoharry College. Like our classmates, we were the first cohort of adolescents of post-independence Mauritius. We all had dreams and aspirations for our newly independent country and for ourselves. Our conversations usually revolved around themes like “mauritianism”, the need for a post-colonial Mauritian culture and the sense of belonging to a budding nation.

Those were the "années de braise". A revolution was brewing in Mauritius. A bunch of young intellectuals, fresh from universities, inflamed our imagination with ideas and speeches on concepts heretofore unknown and unspoken: anti-communalism, patriotism, oneness as a nation, human brotherhood, struggle against social injustice and inequality, meritocracy and the building of a just society. With their long hair, “pattes d'éléphants” and flowery shirts, they toured the island, mobilized the masses and disseminated their leftist ideas and ideology.

While for most of our friends, these ideas were a source of inspiration and we were in sympathy with the developing political movement, we, however followed it from

afar. Siram, on the other hand, threw himself head and soul in the emerging political maelstrom. He related to me his first encounter with the historical leader of MMM. It was in 1971. He was returning from tuition when, still in his shorts, he barged into a meeting that was being held in the municipal hall of Quatre Bornes. The discussions hovered around the eventual participation of MMM in the forthcoming bye-election at Triolet. The name that was being floated for candidature was that of another fiery leader, Dev Virahsawmy. Siram, who was sitting at the back, rose up and proposed the name of Paul Bérenger. He stated that this would give a strong signal in favour of “mauritianism” which was a cardinal principle of the party. At the end of the meeting, Bérenger, as always with his legendary moustache and leather jacket, beckoned Siram and told him to wait. "Jeune homme, come with me". He took him in his car and brought him home. There he gave him a bunch of books on Marx, Rosa Luxembourg, Frantz Fanon, Samir Amin and other revolutionary thinkers. He told him to read them and return him without fail.

Another anecdote that he used to relate to me was about the emblem of MMM which was in peril at some point of time. That was in 1993 or so. There was an important schism in the party when the MMM was kicked out of government and some heavy weights decided to stay with the ruling party. They formed the RMM and attempted to appropriate the quasi-sacred symbol of the MMM. A case was even lodged in court. Like all sincere members, Siram was gripped with the fear of losing it. He spent the night perusing the constitution of the party and finally came up with a solution. Early in the morning he phoned Paul Bérenger and informed him that as per the constitution of the party, it is the assembly of delegates which has the prerogative to decide on matters relating to emblem. As a result, an assembly of delegates was hastily called and the majority voted to keep the existing emblem. This, and other occasions where Siram had been helpful to the party, endeared him to the leader. This was not without consequences as jealousy was created that finally led to his alienation from the party.

All these anecdotes he related to me later in life because after our studies our paths diverged. Like many other classmates, I joined the public service whereas others joined the teaching profession and others still carved out a career in different fields.

Siram became a teacher in a prestigious institution and in parallel pursued his political career as a prominent member of MMM. He rose up to become the Mayor of Quatre Bornes (and he would say, "once a mayor always a mayor", thus echoing the words of our GP teacher, Oomashankar Hawoldar who had also occupied the post once). He was one of the youngest candidates to be fielded by his Party in 1983 when he lost by a narrow margin. In 1996 and 2000, he was returned as a successful candidate representing constituency number 16. As a member of the legislative assembly, he made his mark. If I am not mistaken, he was among the first one to raise the subject of ocean economy and the first one to speak on the necessity of having a second university in Mauritius.

After my retirement I began to write some articles for the local press. This was the thread that helped to reunite us. He contacted me and we began to meet regularly to converse around a glass of coffee or a lunch. Later we were joined by Trilock Dwarka with whom we shared (and I still do) a strong bond of friendship as we had sat on the same bench at college. For long hours we would reminisce about the past, share, memories, discuss about the political and economic situation, make jokes etc. Siram was always a jovial man and possessed a good sense of humour. I remember one day in the past I met him accidentally and learning that I was not yet married, he said “Eyta to pa encore maryer . Taler to pou bizin met solde la". He was also proud of his two sons, both of whom are top professionals in their respective fields.

The last time we met, the three of us, was shortly after the general elections. We met to celebrate the thumping victory of the Alliance for Change. Siram was more than jubilant because right from the beginning, starting with the meeting at Mare D'Albert, he had predicted a 60/0. His experience in the field enabled him to appropriately gauge the mood of the people.

Furthermore, he had invested himself thoroughly in the campaign at Number 18 where he accompanied the 3 candidates, especially Arvind Boolell, and supported them in every nook and corner of the constituency. That was his last battle. Coincidentally, it was at this last meeting of ours in a coffee house at Curepipe that he informed us of his health problems. One night he felt suffocated and had to be rushed to hospital. The doctors diagnosed a cardiac complication and they put him on the waiting list for operation. We were flabbergasted because we knew that he was leading a healthy ilifestyle. He went for long walks with his dog every morning, went to swim regularly at Flic en Flac and had a strong preference for bio-products. It was him who used to advise us on types of food to eat to maintain our health.

His operation having been carried out successfully, we looked forward to meet again as usual. On 3rd March, he called me from the hospital. He told me that he would be discharged in a day or two and we could meet at his place. He added "continuer ecrire. To ena 1 bon coup de plume". Little did I realize that these were the last words that I would hear from him.

I feel an immense sense of loss.