Marjaana Sall: “We want to support the high income aspirations of the government”

Though Mauritius is an upper middle income country, as a small island developing state it still has certain vulnerabilities and will have to improve its connectivity, observes Marjaana Sall, the ambassador of the European Union to Mauritius, Comoros and the Seychelles.

The European Union (EU) and Mauritius have good longstanding relations. The former, she says, has provided more than 300 million euros during the past seven years to the island in terms of bilateral aid, mainly in the form of budget support. EU cooperates in the area of trade and shares an interim Economic Partnership Agreement. The EU stands ready to assist the government in achieving its vision to evolve to a high income country.

Even though Mauritius has attained the upper middle income economy status, the EU continues to provide grant funds to the country. It is actually the biggest provider of grants in Mauritius. The EU acknowledges and recognises that Mauritius has certain vulnerabilities as a small island developing state. For the next funding cycle (the 11^th European development Fund (EDF). Therefore, 9.9 million euros in the form of bilateral grants will be allocated to two sectors, namely: tertiary education and research and innovation. “These sectors can add value and help Mauritius to make the leap to the high income economy status.“

This Wednesday’s issue of Business Magazine comes with the April-May Automoto supplement focusing on crossovers, city cars and the new Nissan Navara.