Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, my Ministry enlists the services of foreign specialist doctors through short-term international visiting missions with the objective of providing highly specialised clinical services, facilitating knowledge transfer, strengthening the capacity of our local healthcare professionals and reducing the associated costs for sending patients abroad for overseas treatment. With regard to part (a) of the question, the medical specialties for which foreign specialist doctors come to Mauritius include, amongst others – • Oncology and Paediatric Oncology; • Vascular Surgery; • Renal Transplant; • Cardiothoracic Surgery; • Spine Surgery; • Neurosurgery; • Urology; • Laparoscopic Surgery; • Thoracic Surgery; • Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) Surgery; • Ophthalmology including vitreoretinal surgery and corneal transplantation; • Haematology, and • Other highly specialised disciplines such as autism and diabetic foot care as and when the need arises. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, my Ministry has entered Memorandum of Understanding with several Private Health Institutions in India in the field of healthcare delivery. These MOUs provide for the treatment of patients inoperable in Mauritius abroad. The MOUs also cater for the training of our health professionals and the dispatch of consultants to Mauritius to carry out complex surgeries. Under the MOUs, my Ministry provides air fares, accommodation and transport facilities. In addition, many Mauritian doctors who have settled abroad often visit the country to provide their services on a pro bono basis. My Ministry also provides air tickets. Furthermore, my Ministry also benefit from visit of other highly specialised doctors from UK, South Africa, Australia, France and United States of America who undertake complex surgeries in different fields. I wish to highlight but a few examples of such doctors who provide their services to my Ministry on a voluntary basis. Dr. Rittoo, a vascular surgeon from UK comes to Mauritius every two months and has already operated on or around 100 cases since his first visit. Professor Patrick and Cynthia Yu from UK also come to Mauritius to carry out glaucoma screenings. Presently, Dr. Heerani Woodun, a Mauritian born, and Dr. Shailendra Singh from UK are in Mauritius to conduct onco-paediatric surgeries. In the same vein, Dr. Vinay Kumar, a vascular surgeon from India is also in Mauritius to perform complex cases. Dr. Jeena Joseph Rosemary, an onco-surgeon from India is also in Mauritius to conduct complex surgeries at National Cancer Centre as from today. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, since the beginning of the year, other eminent specialists in different fields have also come to Mauritius to carry out complex surgeries. To name a few, in January 2026, Dr. Ashley D'Cruz, and his team carried out seven complex paediatric surgeries while Professor Ravi Ramalingam from India performed 12 ENT surgeries. In addition to the above, there is a team of specialists and paramedical staff presently undertaking cataract surgeries. In fact, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the waiting list for patients awaiting cataract surgeries has gone up to more than 2,500. With the existing capacity of our local ophthalmologists, around 75 to 80 surgeries are being performed on a weekly basis. At this rate, many patients would have lost their eyesight before being considered for surgery. In accordance with the provision of the MOU, KIMS Hospital has, therefore, sent its medical team to undertake these surgeries and up to now, 550 patients have already been operated. It is expected that the waiting list will be cleared by mid-September. The expenses incurred for these interventions include costs of airfares, accommodation and a fee of Rs5,500 per intervention. This amount is far less than the sum which was paid by the previous government. From May 2023 to August 2024, an amount of Rs116,790,000 was paid by the previous government to private clinics in Mauritius. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, concerning part (b) of the question, the engagement of foreign specialist doctors is based on the following selection criteria – (i) lack of specialised expertise in the public health sector; (ii) need to perform complex procedures which are not routinely available locally or for which local capacity is limited; (iii) potential to reduce the number of patients requiring treatment overseas; (iv) expected contribution of visiting specialists towards the training, and skill transfer to local specialists and other healthcare professionals; (v) availability of required infrastructure, equipment and multi-disciplinary support in the public hospital, and (vi) experience and recognised expertise of the visiting specialist. Prior to the engagement of foreign specialist doctors, my Ministry carries out an assessment of the availability of the required expertise within the public health sector. The assessment is conducted by the relevant clinical departments and technical officers, taking into consideration the existing human resource capacity, the complexity of the procedures required, patient demand and waiting list, as well as the continuity and sustainability of the services. The assessments have identified that in certain highly specialised medical fields, there is either no specialist available in the public sector or an insufficient number of specialists to adequately meet service demands. In some instances, although specialists are available locally, additional expertise is required for highly complex procedures, the introduction of new techniques and technologies or to provide advanced training to local medical teams. Accordingly, my Ministry continues to engage foreign specialist doctors on a need basis to complement existing local expertise, improve patient access to specialised healthcare services, reduce waiting times, minimise referrals for overseas treatment and strengthen the capacity of the public healthcare system through knowledge and transfer skill. FORMER SUPREME COURT OF MAURITIUS – LAND & BUILDING – CURRENT USE