The World Press Freedom Index is an evaluation of the environment for journalism in 180 countries and territories compiled by the international NGO Reporters without Borders (RSF). Mauritius improved by one place moving to 63rd this year. The Index recognised that the country is one of Africa's model democracies but highlighted as problematic the increased online attacks on journalists.  The report also shined the light on the global challenge of disinformation campaigns bolstered by artificial intelligence technology weakening journalism and undermining the right to information.  On this World Press Freedom Day, the UN in Mauritius shares the message from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.  ******START****** For three decades, on World Press Freedom Day, the international community has celebrated the work of journalists and media workers.   This day highlights a basic truth: all our freedom depends on press freedom.   Freedom of the press is the foundation of democracy and justice. It gives all of us the facts we need to shape opinions and speak truth to power. And as this year’s theme reminds us, press freedom represents the very lifeblood of human rights.   But in every corner of the world, freedom of the press is under attack.    Truth is threatened by disinformation and hate speech seeking to blur the lines between fact and fiction, between science and conspiracy.     The increased concentration of the media industry into the hands of a few, the financial collapse of scores of independent news organizations, and an increase of national laws and regulations that stifle journalists are further expanding censorship and threatening freedom of expression.       Meanwhile, journalists and media workers are directly targeted on and offline as they carry out their vital work. They are routinely harassed, intimidated, detained and imprisoned.     At least 67 media workers were killed in 2022 — an unbelievable 50 per cent increase over the previous year. Nearly three quarters of women journalists have experienced violence online, and one in four have been threatened physically.   Ten years ago, the United Nations established a Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists to protect media workers and end impunity for crimes committed against them.    On this and every World Press Freedom Day, the world must speak with one voice.   Stop the threats and attacks.   Stop detaining and imprisoning journalists for doing their jobs.   Stop the lies and disinformation.   Stop targeting truth and truth-tellers.     As journalists stand up for truth, the world stands with them. ****** END ****** For more information: https://www.unesco.org/en/days/press-freedom and https://rsf.org/en/2023-world-press-freedom-index-journalism-threatened-fake-content-industry-0

Over the past 6 months, the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) for Mauritius and the Government of the Republic of Mauritius have been collaborating to design a new strategic partnership document. The United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF 2024-2028) will be co-owned and co-signed by the UN and government and aligned to the National Development Plans and priorities. This strategic document will provide the overall strategy and plan to contribute towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).   One of the principal events associated with UNSDCF formulation is a two-day Strategic Prioritization Retreat (SPR).  The SPR co-hosted by the UNCT and the Government of Mauritius was held on 20 - 21 March 2023 at the Westin Hotel, Mauritius. The purpose of the SPR was to agree and further refine with the government and other key stakeholders the priority areas shaping the future cooperation framework. An important milestone event the SPR engagement was built on themes and focus areas for UN collaboration arising from the independent evaluation of the existing Strategic Partnership Framework (SPR) (2018-2023), UN Common Country Analysis (CCA), and consultations with government, civil society, academia, and private sector.   The SPR brought together a cross-section of around 80 representatives from major partners and stakeholders in the country including ministers, other government officials, the private sector, civil society, academia, and UN agencies to think strategically about risks and how to address risks and vulnerabilities within the unique context of the country. With less than ten years left to achieve the SDGs, the UNCT for Mauritius aims to design a Cooperation Framework in partnership with the government that is strategic, succinct, adaptable, and results-oriented and which integrates Leave No One Behind (LNOB) as the core unifying principle.   In her opening remarks, United Nations Resident Coordinator (UNRC) Ms. Lisa Simrique Singh applauded the significant progress that Mauritius has made as an exemplar in the region in achieving high levels of human development. She also commended the Government’s ambition to accelerate the energy transition, climate action, and the SDGs despite the financing challenge for Mauritius as an upper-middle-income country. Reminding participants that, as a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), Mauritius’ development trajectory remained at significant risk, the Resident Coordinator underscored that resilience would be a feature of priorities and actions going forward. The importance of partnerships was highlighted. In conclusion, to convey the sense of urgency with only 7 years to go before 2030 Agenda, the Resident Coordinator quoted UN Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres:   “The choices we make, or fail to make, today could result in further breakdown and a future of perpetual crises, or a breakthrough to a better, more sustainable, peaceful future for our people and planet.” In his keynote address, Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Regional Cooperation and International Affairs, Mr. Joyker Nayeck outlined that the Government is currently consulting on its priorities, which will be formally announced in its upcoming Budget Statement. He expressed the government’s gratitude to the UN for ongoing assistance across a variety of issues while recognizing the need to build deeper and broader partnerships with a range of stakeholders to ensure greater agility and responsiveness to needs. He reminded participants that Mauritius is vulnerable to climate change – sea level rise, coastal erosion, plastic pollution, acidification, including far-off geopolitical conflicts which expose the country to price shocks. The Secretary for Foreign Affairs reinforced Mauritius’ dedication to pursuing the SDGs and the need to set clear priorities, accelerate actions and address challenges for the progress of society. As he concluded Mr. Nayeck encouraged the participants to view SPR as an important consultative space and a “laboratory of ideas”. A high-level panel discussion was moderated by Ms. Amanda Serumaga, UNDP Resident Representative, on behalf of the UNCT. Panellists included: Prof. Mohammad Issack Santally, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Academia), University of Mauritius Mr. Suraj Ray, Chairperson of the Mauritius Council of Social Service (MACOSS) Prof. Hubert J Gijzen, UNESCO Regional Director Dr. Sen Narrainen, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Ms. Celine Lemmel, Chief of Mission, IOM The questions posed initially to the panelists led to lively and insightful conversations and dialogues with all the participants. Some key themes to emerge included the focus on people-centred development; a new UN approach with partnerships across the development spectrum; and strengthened attention to vulnerabilities, risks, and disruptors, in particular in food systems with energy and water systems closely allied. A triad of mutually reinforcing transformations to strengthen resilience was identified i) towards a green Mauritius; ii) the blue economy and; iii) digitization. During the afternoon of day one, and the morning of day two, a series of group foresight exercises were held to encourage the UN and government participants to think strategically to jointly identify the key challenges and priorities to address in support of the SDGs and national development priorities. Based on the participants’ inputs from the SPR outcomes and inter-agency outputs will be reviewed to ensure a high-quality, risk-informed strategic document for Mauritius. The draft cooperation framework will be shared for validation in April.   In her closing statement the UN Resident Coordinator reinforced the UN’s intention to deliver as one through interagency collaboration. She recognized that the new cooperation framework provides an opportunity to take a focussed approach to encourage transformative change that is sustainable, contributes via clear UN comparative advantages, using systems thinking, incorporating enablers, and mobilising its convening power to energise the participation of all partners. The Hon. Mr. Alan Ganoo, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade in his closing remarks reflected that Mauritius has a proven track record, adept at reinventing itself, transitioning from an economy that has evolved from agrarian to knowledge-based with a wide spectrum of business activities, and which is committed to sustainable growth, inclusiveness and resilience, and to leaving no one behind. He reminded the participants of the continued importance to invite fresh thinking and new approaches to meeting sustainable development needs due to inherent vulnerabilities as a ‘SIDS’ in a competitive and volatile world. Further he reiterated that sustainable development is only impactful if it benefits everyone in society especially the most vulnerable. Minister Ganoo stated: “Our greatest strength remains our people, especially our youth”, hence, opportunities for youth, harnessing their powers, and continuously boosting capacities, is required. The honourable minister concluded by recognizing that the SPR provided a unique and invaluable opportunity to discuss development challenges in the context of the new anticipated Cooperation Framework. He expressed his gratitude to all partners at the SPR, in particular to the UNRC, and to whole UN system for its dedicated support to Mauritius.

Being a small island state means that Mauritius can face challenges around making sure the population has reliable access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. Linked to this vulnerability is the inequitable impact of climate change and its effects on the country’s food systems. World Pulses Day is celebrated on 10th February, giving us the opportunity to highlight the benefits of this superfood in terms of nutrition, food security, and the environment.   Pulses, nutritious seeds Humans have been cultivating pulses since the dawn of agriculture, and they were one of the first plants in the world to be domesticated. According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the lead agency for World Pulses Day, pulses are among the most nutritious crops on the planet. Every time dried beans, broad beans, chickpeas, lentils and peas are used, both sides of the nutrition problem are addressed, namely quality and quantity. These are the key ingredients of a healthy diet. Some main benefits of pulses are listed in the table below: They also contain a lot of carbohydrates and fibre, which slows down digestion. Not only does this process make you feel full, but it also helps control blood sugar and insulin levels, making it an ideal food for diabetics. With this noncommunicable disease being one of the top 10 causes of mortality (2019) in Mauritius as reported in the World Health Organization (WHO) “Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-26”, a diet high in pulses can only be beneficial to supporting a healthy lifestyle.   Pulses as a climate-smart crop The challenge facing the world today is how to produce enough food for a growing population without further degrading natural resources and exacerbating the consequences of climate change.  Pulses are climate smart: growing them helps fight against soil erosion, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improves carbon sequestration, which is good for the planet. The cultivation of pulses not only helps to fight against climate change, but also has a beneficial effect on soil biodiversity because they do not need nitrogen fertilizers. When pulses are planted in the soil, micro-organisms are activated and considerably increase the fertility of the soil. This self-sufficiency avoids the emission of greenhouse gases, which are a by-product of the production and use of nitrogen fertilizers. Pulses, a tool for food security Pulses are a low-cost crop for farmers thriving in dry lands with a long shelf life. Ninety percent of the world's pulses are produced by 100 million farmers who grow them in drylands. Because they require less water than other crops, they can be grown in climates where rainfall is scarce or erratic, where other crops die or show low yields. Read more about how pulses contribute to achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development https://www.un.org/en/observances/world-pulses-day

Science is a way of building knowledge and generating solutions for everyday life. It helps us solve human, animal and plant diseases, understand water and climate change, and lead us to innovations that make the world a better place.  Science must be accessible to everyone across the world, especially to women and girls. February 11 is an annual recognition and celebration of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (IDWGIS), a day that reminds us to work towards improving access for women and girls to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and research, and creating a conducive and favorable environment for female scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians. Despite celebrating the IDWGIS for the past 8 years, UNESCO’s Director General, Ms. Audrey Azoulay reports that just one in three researchers is a woman and only just over 35% of graduates in STEM-related fields in higher education. And yet, it is clearly acknowledged that increased female participation in science is key to tackling major global challenges such as major diseases, climate change, and natural disasters and developing more equitable, inclusive, effective, and sustainable responses to these threats, In this year’s statement on the auspices of IDWGIS, UNESCO’s Director General, Ms. Audrey Azoulay has stressed the importance of closing the science gender gap by taking concerted, concrete measures to overcome stereotypes and biases that prevent women and girls from realizing their full potential. Ms. Azoulay reiterated that at:  “UNESCO, where we work to build peace in the minds of men and women, addressing these stereotypes is a priority – because more women in science means better science. This conviction underpins all our work in this domain, and is enshrined in our Recommendation on Open Science, adopted by all our Member States in 2021”. UNESCO is working to foster equitable and inclusive environments with Partners such as Intel to close the science and digital divide by encouraging girls to pursue science courses by offering them scientific mentorship opportunities in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. Through this initiative, millions of girls will be mentored by women scientists who have broken the glass ceiling and are pioneering scientific breakthroughs in their respective fields. This year’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science will celebrate the achievements of these women and provide encouragement, support, and opportunities for girls to be engaged in the wealth of scientific fields led by women that will define all our futures. For this to happen, governments need to devise concerted and creative new solutions to enable girls and women to seize new and emerging STEM opportunities in the artificial intelligence and automation age; without them, women will definitely fall further behind in the scientific and technological world of work. Two of the Winners of the 2022 L'Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science sub-Saharan Africa Young Talents Awards are women from Mauritius. They have forged successful academic careers in the fields of Science and Technology - Bibi Nausheen JAFFUR, Ph.D. student in Engineering Sciences and Technology – ‘Biopolymer production from plant fibres’ and Bibi Yusra RUHOMALLY, Ph.D. student in Formal Sciences – ‘Modelling illicit drug use dynamics using NERA model’. Their achievements in these areas can serve to encourage more girls to take up STEM subjects and careers.