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Mauritius Minister of Education Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun attended a forum for the beneficiaries of the Master of Philosophy (MPhil)/ Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) scholarships of the Higher Education Commission (HEC), held at the Mauritius Institute of Education in Réduit.
The education Minister also gave a speech in which she said, “We are proud to associate ourselves with you, potential leaders of tomorrow, who, through your impactful research, can change the destiny of our country and the community for a better future.”
In the forum, they also gave tokens of the gifts to students who have completed their PhD.
In her address, VPM Dookun-Luchoomun highlighted that the forum will provide the students with a platform to connect, voice their views and concerns, engage in knowledge mobilisation, knowledge exchange and network among themselves.
She stressed that it is time for a paradigm shift so that the students as researchers become more open to collaborating and engaging in shared and broader understanding.
Moreover, Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun rejoiced that the excellent response of today’s forum is a good example and a promising sign of the Higher Education sector coming together to move the education agenda forward, which will enable the Government to succeed in building a stronger research-based, vibrant and robust education sector.
She stated that Government is sparing no effort to provide the necessary incentives to this end while pointing out that ever since the HEC was set up, more than 150 MPhil/ PhD students have been funded.
The Education Minister further commended the HEC for providing scholarships to graduates of the public universities, a move, she said, is most welcome and crucial since it puts firmly into orbit the Government’s determination to promote research in the country.
On that score, the VPM underpinned the importance of research, most notably into areas that will give direction to the development of the country and improve the position of our education institutions in international rankings.
Besides, she reiterated the government’s objective to create a knowledge hub in the country. She called on the researchers to further extend the frontiers of knowledge, influence change and spearhead innovation.
She observed that the knowledge created by the researchers must be disseminated to impact people’s lives and improve the community’s life.