The death of Sir Aneerood Jugnauth has been marked by many tributes paid to him in the press and rightly so. It is undeniable that the contribution of SAJ has been significant in the economic development of our country. But one should not be hypocritical to expect a political career of over two decades not to be blemished by certain dark spots.

Now that things are quieter, it is time, that justice be done to those, who before him, had embarked on a long and arduous journey in bringing the several constitutional changes, obtaining universal suffrage in 1959 and achieving independence in 1968, without which, no economic or social development of the country could have been envisaged. The creation of the welfare state, the provision of free health care and the education of the masses were some of the pillars that were built by SSR to pave the way in the shaping of an educated, healthy and prosperous Mauritius. It is important to highlight that in 1951 a survey carried out, showed the magnitude of the task the government had to introduce universal primary education. It was estimated that more than 25,000 children in the 5 - 12 age groups were out of school because there were no schools. The inequality in life chances that existed then, defined the moral, economic and social agenda of SSR. The country had no oil or diamonds; it was down to education. SSR was convinced that education would determine the well-being of the nation. In 1950 when he became the liaison officer for education, he started a program of building schools in every village and by 1960 he made sure that every child had access to primary education. He invested massively in education and health because he strongly believed that, a healthy and educated population, was a sine quanon condition to build a strong foundation for a robust and prosperous Mauritius devoid of natural resources. In 1954 he had already envisaged the provision of free education at all levels, so as to get our children out of the path of poverty in which they were born, and to equip them to face the great battles of life. The creation of the University in 1963, in a poverty stricken Mauritius, against expert advice, showed the farsightedness of SSR.

In 2000 the late Maurice Paturau, a well-known figure in the world of politics and business, recorded the following testimony as to why SSR had chosen education rather than agriculture as liaison officer for which he was bitterly criticized. He said : ‘‘Ce n’est que quelques années plus tard que je compris l’importance du choix qu’avait fait Le Dr. Ramgoolam en se faisant nommer Officier de liaison pour l’Education. C’était un choix capital, car c’était bien la pierre de touche grace à laquelle allait s’édifier tout le développement politque mauricien. La nomination de trois liaison officers en 1951 couvrait les secteurs de L’Education, du travail et de L’Agriculture. Alors que l’on aurait pu croire que l’agriculture representait une activité beaucoup plus importante pour le développement mauricien, le Dr Ramgoolam eut parfaitement raison de choisir l’éducation (…) Et le choix du Dr Ramgoolam fut un choix crucial qui s’avéra génial et pour lequel le peuple mauricien devrait lui être extrèmement reconnaissant see his article ‘‘Le choix crucial’’ – J.Maurice Paturau – in Indradanush Sep 2000. And in 1993 the late Père Souchon added: ‘‘L’éducation gratuite est son oeuvre. Que serait Maurice aujoud’hui si nous étions restés une nation d’analphabètes.’’ SSR could see the longer road. He had vision, he had foresight.

When Mauritius obtained independence in 1968, the economic and social condition in the country was alarming. It is important that, that segment of our history, be reminded from time to time to the people and be narrated to our youth who were not yet born. The situation was far more chaotic than one could imagine. Let me begin by citing part of two reports that were made by two British experts to illustrate my point.

First the report of Professor Richard Titmuss, a nobel prize winner in economics, published in 1961, very often cited by our historians, described in detail the disastrous socio-economic situation of Mauritius. I would like to quote two paragraphs from that report: At para 237 he said ‘‘Frankly, they (meaning all the social and economic challenges) amount to economic, social and political disaster. We would be failing in our duty if we used any other word.’’ And then to summarize the abysmal situation in which the country was, he wrote at para 258 as follows: “We do not reach these conclusions in the interest of a far-off posterity .We are concerned with the problems of to-day; with those who are sick because they are poor and who become poorer because they are sick. The children, as always, suffer most. That is why we believe that social planning and family planning are indivisible. To be effective both require vision; a quality which we are confident is not lacking in the people of Mauritius’’.

And in 1968 when the report was reprinted it stated that the situation had worsened further. It reiterated: “the economic and social structure of the island has not diminished and may grow in importance now that the island has gained independence. For many years Mauritius has been recognized as a microscom of all the evils of underdevelopment ,aggravated further by racial tensions between the several communities of the island; it is a classic example of a monocrop economy relying as it does almost exclusively on sugar; and its population density is one of the highest in the world’’. 

It is important to remind the readers that at that time the population was growing at 3 per cent per annum and with that trend “the population which was 600,000 would have grown to not less than 3,000,000 by the end of the century” ( see report by J.E.Meade and others –September 1960, Chap.2, p3). There was an acrimonius debate in the country amongst the political and social class on whether to introduce family planning or not(see the paper published by James D.Greig :Mauritius:Religion and Population Pressure). In a speech on the 28th April,1961 during a legislative Assembly debate, Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam sounded a warning against uncontrolled population growth and he said “We must control population growth. We must lay the foundation stone for a situation that will bring help to the needy and raise the living standards of the people(…) we must create children whom we can look after properly. We should not perpetuate a situation whereby men are unemployed and anemic women die because of bearing too many children (…) The opposition should understand this.” Later by his persuasive capacity he was able to forge a consensus with all the stake holders and start a program of family planning . What would have been the situation in the country if we had to provide all the social benefits, free health and education for a population of 3,000,000 with our meagre resources ? I leave it to the readers to appreciate.

That was the country Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam inherited from the British. The late Rico du Mee, a prominent Franco Mauritian Entrepreneur recalls how Sir Gaetan Duval cried on the evening of the vote of 1967 and he (Du Mee) was afraid. He wondered who would be there to help the Mauritians. (see L’invité – Rico Du Mée, Entrepreneur : ‘‘Notre Atout, c’est le Mauricien”, l’express, March 9, 2008. 

In that context it is also important to note, a paper published in The Journal of Development Studies, Vol.33, No.4, April 1997, pp.464-486 in London, by Barbara Wake Caroll, of McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada; and Terence Caroll, Department of Politics, Brock University, St Catherines, Canada, reiterating the dire situation in which we were. It said: “When Mauritius became independent in 1968,its prospects for maintaining democratic institutions seemed, if anything, even more tenous. It experienced large scale unemployment and a stagnant economy, and its mixture of racial, ethnic, religious and caste identities seemed to constitute ‘a well-tested recipe for social and economic disaster’.”

It was against such a background that Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam embarked himself on a long and challenging journey to change the destiny of Mauritius and its people. Despite all the pessimistic predictions, he had the courage, convictions and perseverance to start the process of nation building, poverty alleviation and get the country out of the scourge of underdevelopment in which it was trapped. With his deep faith in the people of this country and strong determination, coupled with his pragmatism and the then realities, he was able to set the foundation of a modern Mauritius. On the issue of health and education he did not compromise at all as he believed that “without a healthy, educated and contended nation, it will never be possible to develop the resources of this country”. He would allow expenditure on education and perhaps health too with a song in his heart later wrote Sir Dayendranath Burrenchobay. 

SSR defined the broad parameters and the grand contours of a newly independent Mauritius. He invited all people of goodwill to join him in the national effort to embark Mauritius on the path of socio-economic development, one of them, among so many others, was the Late Sir Edward Lim Fat.(see The article ‘‘SSR I knew’’- by Sir E.Lim Fat - Indradanush magazine –September 2000). His achievements during that period together with his allies more particular the late Sir Gaetan Duval, a patriot like him, were innumerable. I will not be able to list all of them but I will cite a few important ones, namely:

Joining the Yaounde covention and later adherance to the Lome Convention and The Sugar Protocol which became the life line of both our economic development and economic diversification - without which there would neither have been the Export Processing Zone, nor the development of the tourist industry. ‘Voilà ce qui a permis le développement du pays. Sans cela il n’y aurait pas de zone franche, pas de développement du tourisme, rien (…) Ramgoolam avait été dans ce cas précis un visionaire’ (see the Interview of SGD in Business Magazine on the occasion of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of independence 1968-1993). In the same issue, Mr Lutchmeenaraidoo, the former Minister of Finance said: “Sans le protocole sucre, Maurice aurait difficilement reussi son decollage economique. Ce protocole a été notre parechoc en temps de crise économique.” These are facts of history that our people must retain. 

Here it is apposite to quote what the late Sir Aneerood Jugnauth had to say on the administration of SSR from 1968 onwards – “Le Dr Ramgoolam avait jeté certaines bases de notre système économique, malgré le fait qu’il n’était pas très diversifié. Il a aussi organisé l’administration publique et le welfare state. Depuis que je suis au pouvoir, nous avons relancé l’économie.’’ One should not forget that SSR started building a nation from scratch. To address a mountain of socio-economic problems in a short period after independence would have been an insurmountable task without his stewardship.

2. Launching of the Export Processing Zone in 1970 with the construction of six Industrial Estates during 1968 – 1978 by the DBM and the private sector and the establishment of 107 enterprises and creation of more than 24,000 jobs. Mauritius was probably the first African Country to have launched the EPZ. It is worth mentioning here that although the official launching of the EPZ took place in 1970, the first industrial estate at Plaine Lauzun was initiated by government in 1968. However there was a period of inactivity in 1979 – 1983 due to the world economic recession and of the critiscism levelled against the EPZ by the opposition. After the recession was over by 1984, there was an acceleration in the EPZ sector. It is clear therefore that industrialization of the country started during the SSR era. 

3. Development of the Tourist Industry. 51 hotels were constructed and 5,000 jobs created. The number of tourists increased from 14,000 to 121,000. 

4. Introduction of free secondary education which, not only brought, a societal change in the country but also gave access to thousands of our youths who could not afford secondary education because of poverty. 

5. The building of 30 new schools to cater for the increase in the school population. 

6. Building of five Health Centres and expanding primary health care by creating more than 88 Maternal and Child health care centres to bring down the infant mortality rate. 

7. Introduction of pension coverage for all workers in the private sector by the establishment of the National Pensions Fund in 1976, an idea which had germinated in his mind in 1942 - ( see SSR’s interview in Le Mauricien – 28 April 1983).

8. The amendment of the constitution in December 1975 to give the right to vote at the age of 18, something which he had requested in 1965 at the Constitutional Conference of 1965 but which was refused - (see his Opening Speech at the Conference.) 

9. The rural electrification program and the improvement of access to potable water in the rural areas and other infrastructural development by the creation of the Rural Development Program by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development in order to bridge the gap between the rural and urban areas. 

10. Construction of 18,188 low-costs housing units by the Central Housing Authority to cater for the poor. 

11. Establishment of The Tea Development Authority which created thousands of employment. 

12. Creation of Air Mauritius in collaboration with the private sector especially the late Amedee Maingard to support our tourist industry. If my memory serves me well, the decision SSR took in the 1980’s during the world economic recession to allow the airline to fly to South Africa saved it from bankruptcy although the decision was bitterly criticized by his opponent. The route became the most profitable one and saved the airline.

13. The creation of The Mahatma Gandhi Institute, the School of Mauritian, African and Asian Studies, The Mauritius College of the Air, The Mauritius Institute of Education which were dedicated to the cause of learning and the propagation of our ancestral culture . 

It should be recognized that all these achievements were realized in a difficult conjecture when the economy was not as resilient as it is today. 

I must add that all the objectives set out in the 4-year development plan , 1971 to 1974, with emphasis on employment creation were reached - (Review of the plan in 1976 by the Ministry of Economic Planning). The list of achievements is indeed very long.

administration has very often been the subject of much criticism by some politicians and journalists alike and some even said that it was catastrophic. Sir Seewoosagur has even been accused of having led the county to the brink of bankruptcy. I consider this to be most unfair, unjust, unwarranted and far from being the truth. The facts pertaining to that period have for too long been occulted. It is high time that the truth be told to the public as to the reasons which brought our country into such a difficult situation.

First, the World economic crisis of the 1980’s provoked by the massive increase in the price of petrol and petroleum products, was a major factor that brought not only Mauritius but the world economy into recession. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) dictated the pricing of crude oil on the world markets. On two occasions oil prices rose steeply because of the Arab oil embargo and the outbreak of the Iranian Revolution in 1979. The massive increase in oil prices in turn trigerred a World economic recession which adversely affected our economy. Our costs of imports of petrol and petroleum products increased from Rs.209 million in 1976 to reach Rs.900 million in 1981 . At the same time the prices of both our sugar and tea fell on the world market. These events coupled with the increase in costs of freights and transport for our imports and the rise of inflation brought a terrible blow to the lives of our people. These events forced the government to take the bold decisions of devaluating the rupee by 30 percent which in its wake slowed down the economy further resulting in an increase in unemployment and inflation. The world economic recession was so severe that the “Economist” a reputed international magazine, came out with a report in 1980 in one of its edition entitled “The fifty year cycle” comparing the 1980 recession to that of the 1930’s. In 1980, even The Joint Economic Council of Mauritius published a paper confirming the difficult economic situation in the world. It stated “De plus, l’économie mondiale passe présentement par une grave récession où l’on note une croissance pratiquement nulle mais une augmentation très inquiétante des taux d’inflation et du chomage’’ - (see JEC Juin 1980, Chapter 2, p.3). These are the hard facts of which we must not be oblivious. How could Mauritius, with its open economy, be spared of what was happening in the world? These are facts which I expected all those who criticized the SSR’s administration to be aware of. 

Secondly, we should not forget that the already difficult economic situation was exacerbated by the unfavorable climatic conditions which hit the country during that period. The terrible cyclone ‘‘Claudette’’ in December 1979 coupled with the several cyclones and floods at the beginning of 1980 did not help at all. Our sugar cane plantations were destroyed. The sugar production was reduced to some 400,000 tons of sugar instead of the normal 600,000 tons. The country was on its knees, unable to meet its quota of 500,000 tons of sugar, to the European union.

Finally, the strained industrial relations that existed between the workers and their employers were at its lowest ebb, very often resulting in strikes in the key sectors of the economy thus further compounding the situation. These were some of the factors which contributed immensely to bring the economy to a standstill.

When SAJ came in 1982, many unpopular and corrective economic measures had already been taken by the SSR government to relaunch the economy. SAJ policy of nationalization adopted by him in 1976 and his speech in the National Assembly in April 1977 advocating nationalization as the only means to have an equitable distribution of wealth in the country scarred off the investors both local and foreign. In 1982, his decision to change course from his policy of nationalization to that of a mixed economy helped in reassuring the investors and restoring confidence in the economy and attract foreign investment, especially in the export processing zone. The coming to an end of the British administration in Hong Kong and its taking over by China was another factor which also helped the take-off of the EPZ. In an interview SAJ himself said: “J’ai personnellement réalisé dès 1982 qu’au niveau idéologique nous faisions fausse route (…) relancer l’économie, attirer des investisseurs étrangers, encourager le secteur privé et lui donner l’occasion d’investir dans le pays’’ were the new policies he adopted when he became Prime Minister - (see SAJ interview in Business Mag 1968 – 1993 pp 108-109). Even the nascent Export Processing Zone was not spared from severe criticism during that time. A senior Leader of the then opposition later admitted that ‘‘Je reconnais que notre attitude vis-à-vis la zone franche n’était certainement pas la bonne…”. To revive the economy SAJ, although belatedly, realized that he had to adopt the same economic philosophy that was always preached by SSR.

I would also like to add that another major factor which helped tremendously for the revival of the economy was the price of oil which started weakening after reaching record levels early in the decade, before crashing in 1986 - (see OPEC paper). This situation coupled with the already corrective measures taken by SSR, the Hong Kong issue, and the take-off of the world economy as from 1984, amongst other things gave SAJ government plenty of fiscal space, not only to slash income tax by half but also to abolish the export levy on sugar.

I was surprised to read an article in l’Express of 8 June 2021 written by Nivritty Sewtohul C.S.K in which he quotes K.Shillington as saying that SAJ resigned from the government of SSR because the latter had refused to accept rich indian people from Kenya to invest in Mauritius and that he (SSR) told him that industrialization was not meant for Mauritius - citing the advice of Professor de Smith. As far as I can recollect Professor de Smith was never an economic adviser to Mauritius. Professor de Smith was appointed as Constitutional Commissioner in 1961 for Mauritius and was involved in advising in the constitutional development of Mauritius - See Report of the Constitutional Commissioner, Professor S.A.de Smith November 1964 – (sessional paper No.2 of 1965). The only British Expert who advised us on the prospects of creating import –substitution industries was J.E.Meade in 1960 - (see his report at pages 25- 31 –Prospects in Industry). 

SSR implemented all the recommendations made by him by facilitating and supporting the creation of industries like Margarine, Soap and Allied Industries Ltd, Maucob, Subana, Blendax, Phoenix Beer etc, by giving tax privileges, direct subsidies and tariff protection as recommended in the report and also created the Agricultural Marketing Board to help the farmers by buying their produce at subsidized prices as advised by Meade. 

SSR worked hard to inculcate the virtues of responsibility and self – sufficiency into the consciousness of the masses. The provision of free education at all levels had as objective to create a respectful, literate and responsible citizen and to build a modern Mauritius. 

His humane approach is clearly illustrated by the creation of the welfare state, where the health of the citizens and their economic rights were SSR’s prime concern for social justice. It is this approach of his that provided a sense of security to all our people and which helped in establishing a spirit of tolerance among the different communities. He tried to wipe a tear from every eye said Sir Dayanandranath Burrenchobay. This is a fitting tribute to SSR’s sense of dedication to the service of his country. He has always been inspired by lofty ideals ,which have pervaded everywhere and are apparent in the history of our country. SSR was a socialist at heart, imbued by the high principles of Fabianism. He always put man at the centre of development.

I can go on and on, on a man whose life has spanned over more than five decades in the service of his country. Of course, like the common mortals he also had his own weaknesses and frailties but he never lost faith in his convictions and ideals. SSR lived and worked to give himself to the cause of his people and his country. This is why he has been rightly called the ‘‘Father of the Nation’’. The late Dr K.Hazareesingh, another illustrious son, a close collaborator of SSR named him ‘‘SSR - the man of the 20th century ’’. 

From scratch he laid the foundation of a modern Mauritius. Sir Aneerood Jugnauth, who succeeded him, continued the work and therefore, it should be remembered that the development of a country is a journey and not an event. 

Let me quote the testimony of the late Cyril Leckning,a member of Parliament of the PMSD and an opponent of SSR. He said: ‘‘aujoud’hui on parle beaucoup de ‘boom économique’ mais on oublie trop vite que la vision et le réalisme de Ramgoolam y sont pour beaucoup’’ - (see Le Mag – L’ombre d’un Homme’’ of 7 March 1993).

Let me conclude by reproducing part of the obituary speech made by SAJ in the National Assembly on the 24th December 1985 on the occasion of the death of the late SSR. He said: ‘‘It is an impossible task in an obituary to do full justice to the memory of this outstanding son of Mauritius who has marked every aspect of life of our country with sagacity, his farsightedness, his vision, his profound humanism, his love of man and his love of all living things. His name is so closely and intimately associated with the emancipation of Mauritius that it will forever be written with diamond letters in our history. His memory will be eternal. He was one of the giants of the world, and could have successfully taken the destiny of any other country into his safe hands (…) The Father of the Nation has given us Independence and dignity. And Independence lifted us from isolation, made her a significant part of the World (...)Let us all be united (...) and continue the work of SSR (…) The greatest tribute we can pay to him as an entire nation is to show that we have fully understood his message of love, peace, patience, and the brotherhood of man’’. 

This is an important part of our history, which I believe, our people and more particularly the younger generation should take on board as we continue to navigate the tumultuous seas of an uncertain future.