(No. B/22) Mr E. Juman (First Member for Port Louis Maritime & Port Louis East) asked the Minister Arts and Culture whether, in regard to the donation of USD 5 million from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the refurbishment of mosques, he will state where matters stand. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade (Mr D. Ramful): Madam Speaker, you would appreciate that there has been much dilly-dally and opacity around this matter by the previous government, of course. With your permission, I shall provide a detailed answer in order to clarify the situation. Madam Speaker, I wish to inform the House that the proposed amount for the donation for the refurbishment of mosques by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia amounts to USD 6m. instead of USD 5m., as mentioned in the PQ. I wish to recall that on 05 August 2019, the Royal Saudi Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa, addressed a note verbale to our High Commission in Pretoria informing them that the government of Saudi Arabia had acceded to the request made by Mauritius for a donation of the sum of USD 6m. to the government of Mauritius as assistance to support the needs and requirements of the mosques in Mauritius. In June 2022, the Saudi government dispatched an inter-ministerial delegation, mainly maulanas, to Mauritius to conduct a visual assessment of the requirements of the mosques. The report of the Saudi delegation and its recommendations were submitted for approval to the Royal Court in Saudi Arabia. On 07 April 2023, the Royal Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Mauritius sent a note verbale requesting a draft MoU to be signed so that the Saudi side may initiate the grant procedures. The request was sent to the Prime Minister’s office for consideration. The final version of the draft MoU was submitted by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Planning on 12 October 2023, nearly 6 months after. Following internal consultation with the then Ministry of Arts and Cultural Heritage, the initial draft MoU was amended to reflect the new proposals, and same was vetted by the Solicitor General. 46 On 18 October 2023, the embassy in Riyadh transmitted the draft MoU in English to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia through diplomatic channels. The same MoU was translated into Arabic and transmitted to the Saudi authorities on 26 October 2023. In February 2024, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance of Saudi Arabia informed that the MoU would be finalised upon the completion of all the procedures. The Saudi ambassador in Mauritius was expected to facilitate the process, as the latter holds the authority for the signature of the MoU and the disbursement of the first instalment. The whole process, Madam Speaker, for disbursement was to be completed as follows – • the payment was to be made in three instalments from the Saudi government; • the work was to be implemented in three phases, • the first phase was to cover 65 to 75 mosques approximately. On 25 June 2024, the Saudi authorities informed Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of the proposal to add an additional clause to Article 3 of the draft MoU. On 04 July 2024, the then Ministry of Art and Culture Heritage informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade that legal advice of the Solicitor General was sought with regard to the additional clause proposed by the Saudi authorities. The Solicitor General advised that the clause proposed by the Saudi authorities should be incorporated in the draft MoU. The Solicitor General also proposed some minor changes. On 04 July 2024, the amended draft MoU, incorporating amendments proposed by both sides, was sent to the embassy of Saudi Arabia in Mauritius with a request to expedite the signature of the MoU. On 22 August 2024, the mission in Riyadh forward in the last version of the MoU, including the amendments proposed by the Solicitor General, was officially translated into Arabic. On 23 August 2024, the draft MoU, the English version along with a translated version in Arabic, was sent to the embassy of Saudi Arabia in Mauritius. Cabinet noted inter alia at its meeting of 23 August 2024 that the final agreement of the Saudi authorities is still awaited. On 06 September 2024, the embassy of Saudi Arabia in Mauritius sent a final version of the MoU between the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah 47 and Guidance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the trust fund of the Islamic Cultural Office in Mauritius. According to available records at the Ministry, on the same day, an entry was made to the effect that a correspondence on that matter was dispatched to the Prime Minister’s Office by my Ministry. It is a matter of concern, Madam Speaker, that neither the original letter nor a copy thereof could be traced out from the record. On 10 September 2024, a meeting was held with the Saudi ambassador in Mauritius and the former Prime Minister to discuss the way forward, but we have not been informed of the outcome of that meeting. On 16 September 2024, as the issue was brought to the forefront following publication of an internal note from the Ministry, a communiqué was issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade to confirm that with regard to the proposed donation of USD 6 million. from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, no disbursement has been effected whatsoever to Mauritius as of date. Since 06 September 2024, Madam Speaker, no progress whatsoever was made on this issue from the then government despite persistent questions being raised in the media. On 27 November 2024, when the new government took office, following a request from my ministry for clarification, the embassy of Saudi Arabia informed the ministry that they had already submitted the final version of the MoU since 06 September 2024 to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade to be finalised. On 09 December 2024, the embassy of Saudi Arabia once again confirmed that the final MoU was sent on 06 September 2024, and a copy of the same has been forwarded anew to my ministry. Madam Speaker, my ministry now proposes to take up the matter upon the return of the ambassador of Saudi Arabia, who is currently out of the country. Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker: Thank you, hon. Minister. Yes, hon. Juman!