The minister of finance and economic development, Pravind Jugnauth, very proudly announced in his budget speech that the Dubreuil tea factory will be reopened after more than two decades of closure. Putting life back into what is now considered an eyesore in the Dubreuil area would mean kick-starting an economic machinery that could go on to create direct and indirect jobs whilst also giving a new identity to the small village that lends its name to the factory. However, this scenario will only become a reality if this particular project really takes shape as announced by the minister.

The tea industry once used to be a massive contributor to the local economy and was the second source of income for the country almost four decades ago. It used to provide employment to a good number of Mauritians and assured the income of the hundreds of tea planters mostly located in the central plateau of Mauritius.

However, merely announcing the reopening of an old factory does not necessarily put this once important industry back on the right track. The tea industry suffered setbacks on the international market two decades ago, as did the sugar industry a decade later. However, the tea sector did not get the same treatment and attention as sugar. The former was left on its own and attempts to boost the sector remained more or less fruitless over the years.

The industry suffered another setback when the Tea Board closed down in 2012 and, with time, the industry lost track of its own vision. Yet, the Mauritian tea still did not fail us when it was discovered a few years ago that the leaves contained unique antioxidant qualities. This could have been yet another reason to find a proper market on the regional and international scale.

Unfortunately, despite all its qualities and potential, the tea industry was still left high and dry in subsequent budgets. And the results are only what could be expected. The area of tea plantation went down by 14.6% from 672 hectares to 574 hectares between 2014 and 2015. Moreover, the production of green tea leaves fell by 11.5% between 2014 and 2015 while the production of manufactured tea also went down by 13.9% in these two years.

Just like its sugar counterpart, the tea industry also deserves to have an authority regulating it, a marketing agency of the like of the Mauritius Sugar Syndicate and finally a proper attention from the government to get it back on track.

While the tea industry has been calling for a new lease of life with a solid roadmap, it is a pity that the last budget grossly failed at giving this sector any concrete measures.

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