ISSUE No. 10: November

2013

E-NEWSLETTER

MINISTRY OF TERTIARY EDUCATION,

SCIENCE, RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

1 Editorial i

2 International Student of the Month 1

3 Visit of H.E. Dr. Pallam Raju, Misnister of

Human Resource Development of India 2

4 MoU between MRC and IIT, Delhi 3

5 MoU between TEC and the Association of

Indian Universities 4

6 MoU with Mauritius Post Limited 4

7 Best Mauritian Scientist Award 2013 5

8 National Science Week at Triolet 5

9 Open Day for Fisher Groups 6

10 Launching of free online and face-to-face

course on Emerging trends and

Technology in virtual classroom at OU

7

11 Graduation, Award Ceremonies and

Courtesy Call 7

EDITORIAL TEAM

Mr. Nehrroy Seechurn

Ms. Shaina Woodun

EDITORIAL

His Excellency Dr. M. M. Pallam Raju, Minister of Human

Resource Development of India, visits Mauritius in the

context of the signing of a MoU with IIT, Delhi.

MoU between MRC and IIT, Delhi – A unique collaboration

towards the creation of an IIT Institute in Mauritius.

The 2nd Best Mauritian Scientist Award was held to reward

the best research work by a local scientist – Professor

Theeshan Bahorun takes the prize!

Who is the ‘International Student of the month’? Find out

more in this edition!

Editorial Team

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INTERNATIONAL STUDENT OF THE MONTH

Name: Moksadur Rahman

Zodiac Sign: Lion

Country of Origin: Bangladesh

Studies Enrolled: British Computer Society IT

Moksadur Rahman

A. How did you come to know about Mauritius?

By Internet. It was apparent that Mauritius was a

good destination for pursuing my studies.

B. Why did you choose Mauritius when you had

the choice of studying in your own country and

enjoy the comfort of living with your parents

and seeing your friends? The most attractive

asset in my opinion was the standard of

education – I could opt for a course with a UK

awarding body.

C. And your first impressions about the island?

The people are very friendly and positive. I got a

part-time job in a shopping mall, and I could bring

my wife to Mauritius.

D. Your idea of perfect happiness? Being able to

pursue my dreams.

E. Which historical figure do you most identify

with? No one in particular.

F. What is your favourite food? Rice and meat.

G. How important is it to be liked? I think it is THE

most important thing, to feel loved.

H. If you were stranded on a desert island, what

three items would you take with you?

1. My wife

2. My mobile phone

3. A speed boat

I. If you could change one thing about yourself,

what would it be? I would like to be a better

planner.

J. What is your most irritating habit? I tend to get

angry very quickly.

K. Last question: Your motto? Be honest; Be law-

abiding!

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Visit of His Excellency, Dr. Pallam Raju, Minister

of Human Resource Development of the

Republic of India

His Excellency Dr. M.M. Pallam Raju, Minister of

Human Resource Development of the Republic of

India visited Mauritius from 19 to 20 November.

The ministerial delegation comprised:

Mr. Amit Khare, Joint Secretary

Prof. R Shevgaonkar, Director, IIT Delhi,

Prof. S. Koul, Deputy Director (Strategy &

Planning), IIT Delhi,

Prof Ved Prakash, Chairman of University Grants

Commission, and

Mr. Anil Kumar Singhal, Personal Secretary to

the Minister.

A tree planting ceremony was held at the Rajiv

Gandhi Science Centre to mark the visit of H.E. Dr

Pallam Raju.

The Minister paid a courtesy call to the

Honourable Prime Minister of the Republic of

Mauritius, Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Dr. the

Hon. V. Bunwaree, Minister of Education and

Human Resource, and Dr. the Hon. Rajeshwar

Jeetah, Minister of Tertiary Education, Science,

Research and Technology. A Wreath-Laying

ceremony was held at the SSR Memorial Park at

Belle-Rive, in the presence of some 1,000 guests.

The Ministers had a working session and it was

agreed that there would be further collaboration

for the setting up of a faculty of Ocean Studies,

for courses on petroleum engineering, cyber

security and cyber systems programmes.

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Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding

between MRC and IIT, Delhi

An MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) was

signed on 19 November in the presence of H.E Dr.

Pallam Raju, Minister of Human Resource

Development of the Republic of Mauritius and

Dr. the Hon. Rajesh Jeetah, Minister of Tertiary

Education, Science, Research and Technology.

The MoU was signed between the Mauritius

Research Council and the Indian Institute of

Technology, Delhi with a view to setting up an IIT

in Mauritius.

The project will span over ten years, with the first

five years dedicated to the setting up of an IIT

Research Academy. By the 6th year, the IIT will

become operational as a full-fledged academic

institution. The IIT will promote scientific

excellence and foster scientific development and

research in Mauritius.

The delegation from IIT, Delhi consisted of Prof.

Shevgaonkar, Director of IIT Delhi and Prof. Koul,

Deputy Director.

It is to be noted that Mauritius is the first country

to benefit from the setting up of an IIT institution.

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Memorandum of Understanding between the

Tertiary Education Commission and the

Association of Indian Universities

The Association of Indian Universities and the

Tertiary Education Commission signed an MoU

on 19 November 2013, for the recognition of

Qualifications awarded in Mauritius and India.

The agreement provides for –

a) the facilitation of mutual recognition of higher

education qualifications awarded to students in

Mauritius and in India by their respective higher

education awarding bodies; and

b) Both parties committing themselves to

collaborate on mutual recognition of higher

education qualifications according to the rules

and procedures of their respective countries,

amongst others.

The Association of Indian Universities is an

association of major universities of India based in

Delhi, to evaluate the courses, syllabi, standard

and credits of foreign Universities and to equate

them in relation to various courses offered by

Indian Universities.

The AIU is mainly concerned with the recognition

of Degrees/Diplomas awarded by the accredited

Universities in India and abroad for the purpose

of admission to higher courses at Indian

Universities. The AIU is also an implementing

agency for the agreements signed under the

Cultural Exchange Programme executed between

India and other countries in the field of

education, insofar as it relates to the recognition

of foreign qualifications (except for medicine and

allied courses).

A similar agreement has been signed with

Tanzania and will also be signed with other

countries.

Memorandum of Understanding with Mauritius

Post Limited

The Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science,

Research and Technology signed an MoU with

the Mauritius Post Ltd. on 21 November at the

Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre. The MoU provides

for the dissemination of information on tertiary

education and promotion of science and

technology.

The Mauritius Post Ltd. Is an ideal partner as its

vast communication network can potentially be

used for outreach activities by the Ministry as

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well as its affiliated bodies. The main

collaborating partner will be the Rajiv Gandhi

Science Centre, which has been carrying out

awareness programmes such as National Science

Weeks, Caravane de la Science, Science Fun Days

and Science Competitions.

The MOU also provides for the Ministry to assist

Mauritius Post Ltd for provision of training

courses to its staff through the publicly funded

tertiary education institutions.

Best Mauritian Scientist Award 2013

The Award ceremony for the 2nd Edition of the

Best Mauritian Scientist was held in the

Cybertower 1 Conference room at Ebene on

25 November.

The Best Mauritian Scientist Award is meant to

recognise and reward the work of the best

scientist in any form of science, including Natural

and Social Sciences. The beneficiary of the first

award is Prof. D. Jhurry. The Jury Panel for this

year`s exercise consisted of local as well as

international eminent intellectuals. Prof. Al

Tabaa, from the University of Cambridge, was

part of the Panel.

2013’s winner is Professor Theeshan Bahorun,

who has conducted ground-breaking research

work in the field of Applied Biochemistry. He

received a cash prize of Rs200,000, a Trophy, a

Recognition Certificate and support to a

maximum of Rs50,000 for a short term

attachment in a University abroad for a research

or study tour.

National Science Week at Triolet

Indeed, it has been a very fruitful year for RGSC

which organised various science weeks around

the island and Rodrigues – the latest being at

Triolet on 28 November - with a view to

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increasingly attract and engage the public

towards science.

The event essentially portrays the practical

importance of Science and Technology in various

sectors of the Mauritian economy. An exhibition

was mounted by RGSC for science

popularisation. A series of sensitising talks by

various stakeholders was conducted by resource

persons from specialised institutions.

Developing synergies between fishers and

researchers to facilitate emergence of

seaweed industry – Open Day

An open day to develop synergies between

fishers and researchers to facilitate the

development of a seaweed industry in Mauritius

and Rodrigues was held on 4th November in

Reduit.

The Open Day aims at creating awareness among

fisher groups and coastal communities on the

ongoing Mauritius Research Council (MRC)

funded seaweed value-addition projects being

undertaken by the Agricultural Research and

Extension Unit (AREU) and the University of

Mauritius (UOM).

At the launching of the Open Day, the Minister of

Tertiary Education, Science, Research and

Technology, Dr Rajeshwar Jeetah, spoke of the

2.3 million km2 of exclusive economic zone of

Mauritius and urged participants to seize the

opportunity provided by institutions like the MRC

to engage in the Ocean State Economy, which the

Government is striving to expand. He called on

fishers and researchers to work together, sharing

their respective knowledge, expertise and

experiences to forge the way ahead for a

seaweed industry in Mauritius.

To date fifty fishers are involved in the project for

the development of a seaweed industry in

Mauritius and Rodrigues.

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Launching of Free Online and face to face

course on emerging trends and technology

in virtual classroom

The course Emerging Trends and Technologies in

the Virtual Classroom is a professional

development program offered to the educators

of Mauritius and it features a free online course

made available by the University of California

Irvine on the Coursera platform, a world leader in

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). MOOCs

are free online courses available to an unlimited

number of participants at one same time.

For that project, the Open University of Mauritius

received the support of the U.S. Embassy,

Microsoft Indian Ocean, and ICT Centre for

Excellence in Rodrigues.

The project was launched on 7 Nov by Dr the

Honourable Rajesh Jeetah, Minister of Tertiary

Education, Science, Research and Technology,

and Her Excellency Shari Villarosa, Ambassador

of U.S.A. in Mauritius.

Graduation and Award Ceremonies

• Fashion and Design Institute – 7 November

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• Mahatma Gandhi Institute – 11 November

MPCB Scholarship Award Ceremony at

University of Technology, Mauritius – 21

November

Courtesy Call by Mr. Bernard Cerquiglini

Rector of Association of Francophone

Universities (AUF) on Minister – 29

November

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