11/08/1998

The President
Hon. Ministers
Distinguished Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen

I have the honour and privilege on behalf of the Government of Mauritius and on my own behalf to extend to the United Nations and to the Government of Portugal our warmest congratulations for convening the first WORLD CONFERENCE Of Ministers responsible for youth.

I would also wish to associate myself with other speakers to thank His Excellency the President and the People of Portugal for hosting the World Youth Forum, World Youth Ministers Meeting and the World Youth Festival.

Mr. President, we are meeting here on the eve of the next millennium to address the subject of Youth of the World and to chart out a New World Order.

Youth Empowerment

Young people believe they can make the World a better place to live in. They want to use their potential to shape a future that holds more promise than the present. They have shown eagerness to participate actively in every sphere of human endeavour in the pursuit of the objectives of youth empowerment. This empowerment will give young people the maximum opportunity to contribute to economic, social and cultural advancement of societies and nations.

The rationale behind empowering young people is to create institutions which would provide a solid economic and social base, a sound legal and administrative framework and a stable political environment based on equality, peace and democracy.

The Mauritian Government, therefore, feels that the issues laid before this august Assembly are of paramount importance and solicits the full attention of the international community.

Mr. President, the question of youth should be analysed in the light of new challenges, opportunities, and realities brought about by the interrelated phenomena of globalization and the emergence of a new order in the field of information and communication technologies.

Mauritius has a relatively young population, about 20% are in the age group of 14-25. This is due mainly to improvement in the health, economic and social conditions and a sharp fall in infant mortality rate.

As a result of free and widespread facilities in Education, illiteracy among the young people is almost inexistent. Moreover, side by side with this high literacy rate, there is a need to give the young people appropriate training in order to enable them to make their full contribution to a knowledge intensive development of the country. Greater emphasis is therefore now being laid on the provision of technical and vocational education to enable the young people to meet the challenges of the future. With the sustained development of the country, increasing wealth and high literacy rates, attitudes, behaviour, ways of thinking and life styles of young people are undergoing drastic changes.

Our policy therefore is to ensure effective and meaningful participation of youth in decision making.

National Youth Council & National Youth Policy

In this context the Government has set up a National Youth Council witch will not only provide a network to all youth organizations and agencies concerned with youth development, but also provide a supreme platform for the implementations of their programs and projects . This apex organization would also link government to the cause of young people and mobilize resources to support their objectives.

Another step has been the initiation of a Consultative Process with all Stakeholders including University students and grass root youth organizations to formulate a National Youth Policy in collaboration with the technical assistance of Commonwealth Youth Program and the (UNDP).

Action Plan

Furthermore an Action Plan which outlines the general strategies has been framed in order to respond to the ever changing needs, demands and aspirations of youth.

Human Resource Development

Mauritius will continue to develop policies to build a Nation of Young Achievers. Measures have also been taken to improve access to information and communication technology and to provide young people with the skills to enable them to enter this High Tech Era. Hence all Educational Institutions are provided with Information Technology facilities.

Vocational Schools, in rural and urban areas, are catering for Primary School drop-outs. An Apprenticeship dual system, where more emphasis is being laid on on-the-job training is being set up with the assistance of German Authorities.

We strongly believe that the transition from school to the world of work is a crucial phase in the life of a young person and should be dealt with as one of the priority issues. The Government is therefore setting up a Labour Market System to assist youth in planning their career and providing them with relevant information and training to meet the challenges of the world of work.

Training

A very important component of the policy of government and my Ministry is TRAINING.

Training of young people is more than ever essential, specially in the Post GATT era, so that they should be able to cope with the daunting challenges of international competitiveness and the ever increasing threats on our environment.

Moreover action is geared towards providing Leadership Training to leaders of youth organizations and students, Training of Peer counsellors and Peer Educators in Education, Information and Communication techniques are regular features of my Ministry. The skilled leaders are harnessing the energy of their peers and contribute to minimize the risks of unwanted pregnancies, child prostitution, juvenile delinquency, STD's, HIV/AIDS which are threatening the lives of adolescents.

Government is also implementing an intensive Adolescent Reproductive Health & Sexuality Program in collaboration with UNFPA. This project has been incorporated in the policy of the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Substance Abuse and Drug Addiction

Mr. President,
Drug problem is a modern man-made scourge which is affecting all countries of the world. We fully endorse the statement made by the Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan, in which he stressed the fact that drug dealers and drug traffickers undo the good work done by the civil society and take advantage of free markets and technological advances.

Only last week the Prime Minister of Mauritius took the decision to reinforce the police department to combat illicit drug trafficking. Mauritius is collaborating with international agencies in this crusade against the drug dealers responsible for the proliferation of this social evil.

Mr. President,
It is sincerely hoped that this Conference would work out a mechanism to establish a close partnership with all countries, to share our experiences, and draw our strength from the United Nations World Program of Action For Youth and then provide a better and conducive environment for the development of future generation.

Mr. President, Cooperation and partnership relations will be further strengthened and consolidated with United Nations Agencies and NGO's. Bilateral collaboration with 'Commission de [a Jeunesse et des Sports de I'Océan Indien' (CJSOI), "Conference des Ministres de la Jeunesse et des Sports des Pays d'Expression Française" (CONFEJES), the Commonwealth Youth Program and the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme will be reinforced and maintained. On the African continent links have been established with the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Organization for African Unity (OAU) and Pan African Youth Movement.

In this perspective, Youth Exchange Programs could be consolidated and strengthened to bring together young people of the world.

Adolescent and the Girl Child

Mr. President,
Even though in Mauritius girls are encouraged on the same level with boys to participate in and learn about the social, economic and political functioning of society, it is still believe that discrimination exists in certain sectors. Government is developing policies and programs to fully integrate women in its action, to promote gender equality in Society.

Human Rights

Mr. President, the protection -of human rights and fundamental freedom are well entrenched in our constitution in accordance with the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These ideals have been the pillars of our democratic Government for the last thirty years of our independence.

Throughout these years, while upholding the principle of human rights and fundamental freedom we have managed to upgrade the standard of living of our people; thereby enlarging the scope and enhancing the quality of life for the enjoyment of one and all.

Monsieur le Président,
Permettez moi de saisir cette occasion pour reaffirmer L'appartenance de mon pays, La Republique de Maurice, à la grande famille Francophone

C'est pourquoi, Monsieur le Président, mon pays attache une si grande importance aux projets emanant de cette Communauté.

Je voudrai à ce stade préciser que La Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de L'Océan Indien, dont j'assume la présidence depuis décembre de I'année derniére, a initié une coopération regionale, structurée selon des objectifs communs .Elle est renforcée par des ré6unions sportives de haut niveau et des échanges de jeunes .

La Commission, tout en encourageant de telles actions, favorise aussi un programme de Referentiel de formation à l'intention des cadres de Jeunesse de la région sud-sud.

La sagesse nous dicte de préparer nos jeunes d'aujourd'hui afin qu'ils puissent affronter le monde de demain avec courage et sérénité. Nos Sociétés modernes, Monsieur Le Président, évoluent très vite.

Les systèmes de gestions des resources deviennent très complexes avec L'automatisation et l'informatisation qui gagnent toutes nos entreprises. Ainsi notre devoir fondamental est d'anticiper les difficultés et les dangers qui guettent nos jeunes afin de prévenir des dérapages.

Grâce à la coopération internationale et à la fois régionale nous avons pu proposer à nos jeunes divers projets dans le but de les aider.

Aussi, à travers La Conférence des Ministres de la Jeunesse et des Sports des Pays D'Expression Françaises, (La CONFEJES), nous avons initié des actions telles que:-le programme FIJ (Fond Insertion pour la Jeunesse) qui préconise une stratégie de promotion des petites et moyennes entreprises;

Un programme d'insertion sociale des jeunes (filles et garçons) A travers la création des ateliers de fabrication de matériel sportif;

Un programme de sensibilisation et de prevention contre la Drogue, le SIDA et la Prostitution à travers la Bande Dessinée

Pour ne citer que quelques unes parmi tant d'autres qui touchent les domaines de la formation, de sensibilisation, de prevention et d'intégration.

Notre souci majeur, Monsieur le Président, est de doter les Jeunes d'outils nécessaires pour qu'ils puissent dégager d'autres stratégies en fonction de leur besoin, une logique de notre société en constante évolution.

Mr. President,
It is our hope that fruitful recommendations will emerge from this Conference and will provide the framework for a New World Order for the youth community in the 3rd millennium.

I wish to reiterate our warmest thanks to the President and the people of Portugal for the excellent hospitality extended to us during our stay in this beautiful country.

Thank You.