ENVIRONMENT: Rs 4 billion against coastal erosion and for climate resilience

Faced with the growing challenges linked to climate change, the government intends to make environmental protection and strengthening climate resilience one of the pillars of its action. This was announced by the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Navin Ramgoolam, during the presentation of the 2026-27 budget. “As a small island state, Mauritius faces acute risks linked to climate change. Even if we cannot stop global warming, we must assume our responsibilities in order to adapt and protect our population as well as our economy,” he declared. With this in mind, an envelope of Rs 4 billion will be devoted to the Coastal Erosion Adaptation Program. Over the next five years, more than 11.5 kilometers of coastline severely affected by erosion will be rehabilitated at 17 priority sites across the island. The government also plans to support coastal protection works with nature-based solutions. These will include reforestation programs, wetland preservation, dune restoration as well as the rehabilitation of coastal vegetation. Today, only around 7% of waste in Mauritius is recovered and recycled. This rate remains insufficient, notably due to several challenges. Previous studies on the recycling sector have highlighted several obstacles, such as the limited quantity of sorted and clean recyclable materials, operating costs higher than revenues and restricted markets for recycled products. This allocation will strengthen the recycling sectors. recovery, to encourage investment and to make waste flows which, until now, were not economically viable. Waste must no longer be considered as a burden, but as a resource and each tonne diverted from landfill represents progress towards a circular economy, creating value, jobs and more respectful of our environment. Another major challenge: Pollution plastic. With around 170 million PET bottles produced each year, we need to change our model. The extension of the PET tax of Rs 2 to all containers concerned reflects a clear desire. Furthermore, a National Shoreline Management Strategy will be developed in order to supervise the management of coastal zones. The head of government also announced the relaunch of the Maurice Île Durable project, which had benefited from international recognition. This will now be part of the country's ecological transition strategy. Believing that Mauritius must engage in "a profound socio-ecological transition", Navin Ramgoolam underlined the need to establish a more harmonious relationship between man and nature. In this perspective, a Just Tr