The Cabinet met today under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, the Hon. Pravind Kumar Jugnauth. The highlights of the deliberations are as follows:

1. Cabinet has taken note of the situation pertaining to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the measures taken to contain the pandemic, namely:

(a) the number of positive cases as at 17 April 2020 was 324 and the  number of persons successfully treated to-date was 108;

(b)  currently there were some 325 patients in the Treatment Centres;

(c)  all patients attending the Flu Clinics in the Regional Hospitals were being tested for COVID-19.  A separate facility would be set up in each Regional Hospital to accommodate a Flu Clinic;

(d) the procurement of medical items was being effected from China, Amsterdam and Hong Kong;

(e) the Government of India has donated medical supplies (500,000 tablets of hydroxychloroquine) which were delivered by a special Air India flight on 15 April 2020;

(f) Jack Ma’s Foundation has also donated medical items to Mauritius which arrived on 15 April 2020 by a special Ethiopian Airlines flight;

(g) the Government of China was also donating medical supplies to Mauritius;

(h) the UNDP was assisting Mauritius in the setting up of an Electronic Laboratory Information Management System for COVID-19 patients at the Central Health Laboratory; and

(i) the EU would donate an amount of Rs11 Million to the COVID-19 Solidarity Fund.

2. Cabinet has taken note that the Curfew Order in Rodrigues and Agalega lapsed on 15 April 2020 and sanitary and non-sanitary precautions were being taken to ensure that there is no importation of COVID-19 on both islands.

3. Cabinet has agreed to the extension of:

(a) the Wage Assistance Scheme to cover the month of April 2020.  The aim of the Wage Assistance Scheme is to provide financial support to employees of the private sector who became technically unemployed during the COVID-19 lockdown/curfew period. An employer would be debarred from the Scheme if he has benefitted from funds under the Scheme and has not paid his employees for the months of March and April 2020 or he has laid off even one employee during the lockdown/curfew period; and

(b) the Self-Employed Assistance Scheme to cover the period 16 April to 30 April 2020.  The Scheme gives financial support to the informal sector.

Note: Cabinet decisions are available on the internet. The address is http://pmo.govmu.org

Government Information Service

Prime Minister’s Office

Port Louis

17 April 2020