It is an immense pleasure for me on behalf of the government and the people

of Mauritius to extend a warm welcome to you all at the opening ceremony of

this NGO forum. A special welcome is also extended to all the foreign

participants and resource persons who by now must have had the opportunity

to taste the famous Mauritian hospitality.

This event aims at providing the NGO community in Africa and in the United

States a platform for discussions as to how the civil society could work

hand in hand with other stakeholders and thereby help Africa enhance its

competitiveness and take full advantage of the opportunities offered by

AGOA.

It has been stated that for the business community to benefit fully from

the advantages offered by AGOA, one important requirement is that there is

strict observance of democratic norms and values and good corporate

governance. In this context, the civil society can and must act as a

watchdog on the operations of the governments and businesses. This forum

therefore provides a unique opportunity for all of us to create and

consolidate linkages and networking for capacity building through sharing

of expertise and experience.

In this context, women as a major component of the civil society can play a

pivotal role in the development processes. It is thus appropriate to cast a

glance on the status and roles of women in Africa in general. We all have

some common images of the African woman – the woman with the hoe, the woman

with the child on her back. Indeed, a dynamic woman, fully involved in the

processes of life. This has been so for generations. African women have

always been a pillar of the family and society, assuring the economic

subsistence of their families especially in the agricultural sector. Women

also have a long tradition of mutual support and caring in society.

I am sure, to-day my African sisters are anxious to know what the future

has in store for them. They would like to know how AGOA will help to build

a trade capacity that will take into consideration real issues in

production, like matching demand with supply and transportation from

upcountry to the ports.

They want to know how AGOA is going to facilitate the sale of the

vegetables and fruits they produce, and that have never been sprayed with

either herbicide or pesticide. How the cantic cloth, the wax or the baskets

they produce will find their way to U.S consumers. More intimately, African

Women would like to know how AGOA is going to provide the necessary support

for making cheap anti retrovirals available to their brothers, sisters and

children who are dying of aids because they cannot afford the price of such

drugs.

Women have always contributed to human development but this contribution

has remained invisible and underrated because of prejudice and

discriminatory policies and sexist mentalities.

In Mauritius, recent years have seen the emergence of small women

entrepreneurs. In the textile sector , almost 2/3 of workers employed are

women. This is why the success of this sector is attributed to women’s

contribution. More girls are going to school. More women are gaining

access to information, and it is my conviction that, given the right

signals and appropriate framework, women can rise up to the challenge of

playing more forefront roles in the economic and social spheres.

Let me now turn to what I believe is the missionary role of NGOs. They have

a history of welfare activities and their contribution in political,

social, economic development have been quite significant. It is also a fact

that today NGOs are receiving necessary support and attention. This Forum

is in itself an indication of the recognition of the potential of NGOs in

contributing effectively and efficiently in the overall human development.

One of the aims of this event is precisely to make civil society understand

the importance of trade. The Forum will try to bring the African civil

society into an environment where for the first time NGOs will have an

opportunity to be part of the discussions and put forward their ideas,

through workshops, and interaction with government and business

participants. Formerly, development was usually referred to only as

economic development wherein great importance was given to economic growth.

However, economic growth does not necessarily mean improvement in the

quality of lives of the citizens of a country. Hence, emphasis is now laid

on social development which must be conceived as a multi dimensional

process involving major changes in social structure, in attitudes and the

reduction of inequality and the eradication of poverty.

NGOs are motivated by the desire for a caring society. They have

proved to be efficient in establishing and operating programmes, working

with the poor, the elderly, the disabled and the vulnerable groups. They

are creative, flexible and have excellent mobilisation capacities to

contribute in the development process. Consequently, they are increasingly

recognised as potent forces for social and economic development and are

important partners in nation building and people's empowerment.

Here, in Mauritius, the Government through the establishment of an NGO

Trust Fund is laying great emphasis on the empowerment of NGOs.

Appropriate training programmes, hosting of lectures, targetted funding and

allocation of scholarships to volunteers with a view to strengthening

voluntarism are some of the achievements.

This Trust fund would be called upon to mount more of such programmes aimed

at enhancing community participation.

I am extremely pleased to note from the program of this NGO Forum, that two

workshops where the issues of participation of women in the African society

and the efforts to reduce hunger and poverty in Africa will be addressed. I

am confident that participants will get a better insight of the situation

of women in Africa and their potential during these two workshops.

Increasing women potential and making efficient use of this wealth will

necessarily imply that women of Africa get better access to science and

technology in general and ICT in particular. This aspect should be high on

the agenda of the African Governments.

We are meeting in an important forum for regional development with a focus

on business. We have, as you all know, various regional organisations for

trade, business and economic development Examples are SADC, COMESA, TOR,

IOC.

It is high time that we give serious thoughts to the setting up of a

regional network for gender issues. We proposed to establish contacts with

institutions and partners in the region and beyond, in view of a regional

conference which would lead to the creation of an Indian Ocean Gender

Network. Your suggestions and proposals would be most welcome.

This NGO Forum would not have its worth, were it not to address issues that

are directly relevant to us; were it not to integrate processes already in

place and provide for the real capacity building of real indigenous

society.

I am sure, NGOs are conscious that they have an important role to play in

this endeavour. They have their outreach where formal institutions do not

because they have their roots at the heart of civil society.

It is well known that Human Development if not engendered will be

endangered. So, let each one of us therefore take a pledge to contribute

to the establishment of a just and equitable society involving women's full

participation. - Ultimately, AGOA can only be beneficial to all parties

with the unflinching support and contribution of civil society in the

decisions and processes that affect our lives.

I now, have the pleasure to declare this NGO Forum open. I wish you all,

fruitful deliberations and success in future endeavours.

Thank you for your attention.