19
MissionStatement
To promote the accelerated
diffusion of Information
Technology in every
socio-economic sphere
of Mauritius in line
with the national
goals and policies.
In achieving its mission,
the National Computer Board
is committed to continuous
improvement and teamwork in
the pursuit of providing
quality services.
Chairman’s Message
Chairman’s Message 2
Executive Director’s Report
Executive Director’s Report 4
The National Computer Board
Board of Directors 6
Sub-committees of the board 7
Staff 8
IT Culture Promotion
IT Coach 10
World Telecommunication Day 2002 11
School IT Competition 11
Fête de L’Internet 12
National Symposium on the theme
Industry Development
ICT Incubator Centre 14
ICT Week 2002 14
Infotech 2001 15
ICT Usage Survey 2001 16
ICT Facts & Figures 16
Consultancy 16
IT Promotion
BangoloreIT.com 2001 18
SECA/Progimark 2002 18
E-Government
Government Online Centre 20
The Government on the Internet Project 20
Standards & Practices 22
E-mail for the Civil Service 22
E-Government Interoperability Framework 22
Human Resources
Staff Development 24
Audit Report
Audit Report 26
Balance Sheet 27
Accounts 28
Notes to the Accounts 29
‘Child Safety Online’ 12
OUR THEME
The theme for this year's
Annual Report is
'Promoting IT for People.'
The National Computer Board's
work centres around the
promotion of IT in Mauritius,
but it is more than just a
focus on hardware,
software and technology.
People are the end users of IT
and our aim is to make IT easily
understood by the public
and by business users alike.
So our theme mixes images
of IT and people, in harmony
with IT in their daily lives.
I have the great pleasure to submit the annual report 2001/2002
of the National Computer Board and its audited accounts.
The Government vision of transforming Mauritius into a Cyber
Island and technology and knowledge hub is well underway with
the development being carried out at its first Cybercity at Ebene.
In view of fulfilling this vision, much efforts are being made to
provide a world class infrastructure and a package of incentives
to attract key players. Areas that are being targeted are mainly
Disaster Recovery, Business Process Outsourcing, Call Centers,
Back Office Operations. In this context, the National Computer
Board has this year been very active on the
promotion of Mauritius as a Cyber Island. The
National Computer Board (NCB) in
collaboration with the Board of Investment (BOI)
and the Business Parks of Mauritius Ltd (BPML)
participated in the Bangalore IT.COM 2001 exhibition, a
specialised Information and Communication Technology
exhibition, held in Bangalore, India. Again with the collaboration of
the BOI the NCB organised the participation of Mauritius in SeCA
(The European Call Centers Exhibition) and ProgiMark (The
Customer Relationship Management - CRM Exhibition) from the
29 to 31 May 2002 in Paris. This has been an important mission
to promote Mauritius as a location for Call Centre. In this part of
the world, regular contacts are being made with the "Association
Réunionnaise des professionnels des Technologies de
l'Information et de la Communication" ARTIC of Reunion to
identify opportunities of collaboration and joint ventures in the ICT
sector between both countries. Also exchange of ideas and the
forging of partnerships between the incubatees in the region has
also been envisaged with the incubator centre of Reunion Island.
Information Technology and Telecommunications are an
integrated system that acts as an accelerator of service levels that
could be used for knowledge products for development. This
integration has given rise to a whole series of services commonly
known as IT enabled services (ITES). To position Mauritius and to
become a globally competitive and sustainable destination for
ITES, the public private partnership is essential to overcome the
challenges in areas like standards, infrastructure, quality and
human resources. Not failing in its role of promoting the
accelerated diffusion of Information Technology, the National
Computer Board will optimize its efforts to create
awareness and to promote this sector of activity.
The National Computer Board
continues to advise the Ministry
of Information Technology and
Telecommunications
on issues relating to
the ICT sector.
The National Computer Board has participated in the
drafting of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Bill.
For seamless integration of governmental
computerised services, the E-Government
Interoperability Framework prepared under the aegis
of the National Computer Board was adopted by the
government for the public sector. This report provides
a set of technical specifications and policy for the
interoperability of Government Information Systems.
At national level, the NCB has spared no efforts to
facilitate the development of ICT sector, to promote
the industry, to promote the adoption of ICT
technologies by enterprises and the government,
and to propagate a more technology-savvy
population. The IT coaches have been used
extensively for the promotion of ICT culture. With
time, its services are being shifted from awareness to
basic ICT training. Infotech has become an awaited
event for the general public to be in touch with the
development that is taking place in ICT. Apart from
being a competition in itself, the School IT
competition has been a good method to sensitise the
young generation on the importance of the ICT
sector. To achieve this, the themes that have been
chosen for the past two competitions are "To
promote Mauritius as a Cyber Island" and "Using
Information and Communications Technology for
quality teaching and learning." To strengthen our ICT
base, the National Computer Board is proud to
announce the opening of the first ICT Incubator
Centre that will support young start-ups in the ICT
sector to flourish and mature into a viable enterprise.
Another important responsibility that has been
assigned to the National Computer Board is the
setting up of the Government Online Centre.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Hon.
Pradeep Jeeha, Minister of Information Technology
and Telecommunications for his devotion to the
development of the ICT sector and his support to the
Board, the members of NCB Board of Directors for
their commitment, contributions and counsel, the
Executive Director and the staff for their dedication
and commitment.
Mr. Suresh Munbodh
Chairman
3
MESSAGECHAIRMAN’S
The ICT industry is poised to become
the 5th pillar of the economy and this
industry will also be the foundation for
strengthening our existing pillars such as
Textiles, Sugar, Tourism and Financial
Services. Mauritius is becoming a Cyber
island and a regional ICT Hub. Our policy
to constantly upgrade the skills of our
labour force, attract foreign investment in
the ICT sector and modernize our ICT
infrastructure is gradually bearing fruit.
It is quite remarkable to see how much our
small island has accomplished so quickly.
We are now seeing growth in all areas in
ICT, from the building of a new
high tech infrastructure, emergence of
e-government, e-learning and e-business.
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are
having a growing impact on the Mauritian society. The top
priority given by Government to the development of the ICT
Sector to make it the fifth pillar of the economy will further
speed up the process of moving Mauritius into an
Information Society.
In line with the government vision of transforming Mauritius
into a Cyber Island, the National Computer Board (NCB) has
implemented some key projects during the
financial year 2001/2002.
The NCB revisited its organizational structure
with the objective to enable it to react more
quickly and efficiently to the changing needs of the sector.
As part of the restructuring exercise the NCB has set up a
Planning, Research and Development Division and a
Business Development and Promotion Division. The ICT
Incubator Centre has been set up with its own management
structure. This is enabling NCB to respond better to the
requirements and to be focused in its activities.
The promotion of IT Culture has again been an important
part of the activities of the NCB. The demand for the
services of the Cyber Caravan has been growing with
bookings scheduled for almost 8-10 months ahead.
Although the programme is mainly demand driven in terms
of training needs, these have been organized in four
modules. To date over 20,000 people have benefited from
the initiation/training programme provided through the
cyber caravan project. In additional to the initiation / training
programme exhibition seminars and competition has been
organized to target the public at large as well as specific
groups such as students.
With regard to the ICT adoption by business, NCB carried
out a survey in August 2001. The survey revealed that
some 83.3 percent of Mauritian businesses have at least
one computer. Although this is quite an
encouraging result and compares well with
other countries, the effectiveness of the use
of the technology should be
further promoted. With the aim of
creating better understanding of
the use and availability
of solutions for
businesses the NCB
has continued to organize numerous
events such as the ICT Week, Infotech,
seminars and conferences.
In line with the Government objective to
develop the ICT Sector, NCB has set up
an ICT Incubator Centre to promote and
support ICT Start ups in areas such as
software and multimedia development
and in IT enabled services.
Moreover, in order to attract foreign ICT
Companies to relocate part of their
activities to Mauritius or to work in
partnership with local IT firms, the NCB in
collaboration with the Board of
Investment has promoted Mauritius in
India and France.
As part of the e-Government project, the
implementation of the Government Online
Centre project that includes the Government
Portal is well underway. To ensure the
interoperability of government information
systems, an E-government Interoperability
Framework was published. This framework
defines the policies and standards for
government information systems.
The National Computer Board will continue its
efforts to promote ICT in all the socio-economic
spheres of Mauritius to transform Mauritius
into an Information Society.
I would like to take this opportunity to
thank the Chairman and the Board
Members for their support, and the staff
of the NCB for their commitment and
dedication towards their work.
Mr. Kemraz Mohee
Executive Director
5
The pace of change in the Information
and Communications Technology
industry has been phenomenal.
This has been the result of
the technological advances, the
convergence of technology and the rate
of adoption of the digital economy.
The convergence of computing and
communications is bringing about a
variety of new technologies with
revolutionary functions and features
such as extensive imaging, messaging
and broadband connectivity.
The widespread deployment of wireless
technology such as WIFI is enabling
users to compute and communicate
even more effectively.
Information and communications
technology will continue to change our
lives, our business, and our economies.
REPORTEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S
Sub-Committees of the Board
There are three sub-committees of the Board.
Finance Sub-CommitteeThe objectives of the Finance Sub-Committee are to prepare
the budget and to monitor its implementation, to ensure that
expenditures are made in compliance with established policy
and procedures, and to advise on matters having major
financial implications on the organisation. The Finance
Sub-committee was set up in December 1999, and is chaired
by Mr. K. Seebundhun and consists of Mrs. V. P. Sanassee,
Mr. K. Mohee, Mrs. V. Patten, and Ms. V. Ramasamy.
Mr. Ram Hittoo replaced Mrs. V. P. Sanassee in April 2002.
The Sub-Committee held five meetings during the year
2001-2002.
Staff Sub-CommitteeThe objectives of the Staff Sub-Committee are to make
recommendations and to provide guidance to the Board in
matters concerning the conditions of service of the staff and
to ensure that established procedures and policy are
followed. It also undertakes all recruitment exercises.
The Staff Sub-Committee is chaired by Mr. K. Malleck and
consists of Mr. K. Mohee, Mrs. Y. Moorghen, Mr. V. Purbhoo,
Mr. N. K. Modi and Mr. V. Gondeea. The Staff Sub Committee
held ten meetings during the year 2001-2002.
Procurement Sub-CommitteeThe objective of the Procurement Sub-Committee is to
ensure that all procurements performed by the NCB are
done in a transparent and fair manner and in accordance
with established policy and procedures. As such, the
Procurement Sub-Committee vets all procurement made by
the National Computer Board and makes appropriate
recommendations to the Board.
The Procurement Sub-Committee is chaired by
Mr. S. C. Daby and consists of Mr. K. Mohee,
Mrs. V. P. Sanassee up to March 2002 (replaced
by Mr. Ram Hittoo as from April 2002),
Mrs Y. Moorghen, Mr. K. Modi and Mrs. V. Patten.
The Procurement Sub-Committee has so far held
six meetings.
Other Sub-Commitees reportingto the Board
Infotech Sub-CommitteeThe objectives of the Infotech Sub-Committee
are to plan and monitor the organisation of
Infotech. This includes making recommendations
to the Board for hosting and marketing the
event, planning of conferences, and the
mechanism for the registration of participants.
The committee was chaired by Mr. Vishnu
Purbhoo - NCB Board member and consisted of
Mr. Kemraz Mohee - Executive Director NCB,
Mr. V Gondeea and Mr. Khalid Malleck -
NCB Board Member, Mr. Akhil Pirbhai and
Mr. Neemalen Gopal - MITIA Representatives,
Mr. Vijay Mauree - Research Officer NCB,
Mr. Dev Sunnassy - EDS Ltd,
Mr. Sadiq Dawood - Norcomm Services,
Miss Sandra Jean Louis - Telecom Plus Ltd,
Mr. Raj Lalji - Currimjee Jeewanjee Ltd
,Mr. Balek Auckburally - Multronics Ltd,
Mrs. Patricia Li Fung Lan - GS Informatique
Ltee, Mr. Antish Ranchurreetoo - K R Computer
Supplies Ltd, Mr. Navin Peerthy - NIIT,
Mr. Pravin Goburdhone - Ministry of Finance
and Mr. Sudesh Ramsurrun - SIL.
Incubator Management CommitteeThe objective of the Incubator Management
Committee is to ensure the smooth running
of the NCB - ICT Incubator Centre. This includes
screening projects and making recommendations
to the Board. The committee is chaired
by Mr Suresh Munbodh, Chairman, NCB and
consisted of Mr V. Gondeea, PAS, Ministry of
Information Technology and Telecommunications,
Mr B. Moothoosamy, Head BIU, Ministry of
Industry and International Trade, Mr V. Mauree,
Manager, NCB, Mr P. Geerjanan, Manager, DBM
Ltd, Mr B. Ramsahye, Assistant Manager, DBM
Ltd, Mr P. Bhoonah, IT Officer, SMIDO.
7
Board of DirectorsThe Board consists of ten members representing various
ministries and the private sector. During the year 2001-2002,
the Board met on 15 occasions.
Chairman
Mr. Suresh Munbodh
Members
Representative of the Prime Minister’s Office
Mr. N. K. Modi, Principal Assistant Secretary
Representatives of the Ministry of Information Technology
& Telecommunications
Mr. V. Gondeea, Principal Assistant Secretary
Miss C. Corimbelly (alternate member), Assistant Secretary
Representative of the Ministry of Civil Service Affairs and
Administrative Reform
Mrs Y. Moorghen, Principal Assistant Secretary
Representative of the Ministry of Finance
Mr. K. Seebundhun, Principal Financial Management
Analyst
Representative of the Ministry of Education
& Scientific Research
Mr. S. C. Daby, Director (Secondary Education)
Representatives of the Ministry of Economic Development,
Financial Services and Corporate Affairs
Mrs. V. P. Sanassee, Economist (from July 2001 to
March 2002)
Mr. Ram Hittoo, Acting Senior Economist
(April 2002 to date)
Mr. J. Seeruttun, Senior Economist
(alternate member from 6.3.2003 to date)
Nominated Members
Mr. Y. Rosunee, Manager, Data Services,
Mauritius Telecom.
Mr. K. Malleck, General Manager, Informatics,
Blanche Birger & Co. Ltd.
Mr. V. Purbhoo, IT Consultant.
The objects of the Board are:
To foster the development and growth of
information technology, information
systems and computer related services
in Mauritius;
To advise the Government on the
formulation of national policies with
respect to the promotion, development
and control of information technology
and its applications;
To assist in the framing of
appropriate national education, training
and research plans in the field of
information technology in order to build
the necessary expertise base for
consolidating the information technology
industry in Mauritius;
To ensure data protection and
security by: -
(i) Recommending legislative proposals
(ii) Overviewing any regime of data
protection or security established by law
(iii) Monitoring compliance with the Code
of Practice
(iv) Conducting a regular review and
revision of the Code of Practice
(v) In relation to personal data,
receivingand advising on complaints
of any unlawful or wrongful act and
requests for inspection thereof or
amendment thereto.
THE NATIONAL COMPUTER BOARD
The NCB was establishedunder the National
Computer Board Act 1988proclaimed on the
22nd December 1988.It is administered by a
Board of Directors.
6
IT CULTURE PROMOTION
The NCB actively promoteIT culture throughout
Mauritius and abroad,to involve people and educate
them to the benefits of IT,with training and awareness
programmes, expo’s andcompetitions, missions
and symposiums.
Staff
Organisation Structure of NCBThe NCB is organised into a technical section,an administrative section and an IT Resource Centre.The technical team consists of seven Research Officersand two Technical Officers. The administrative team iscomposed of nine officers. The Executive Director isresponsible for the execution of the policy of the Boardand the control and management of the day-to-daybusiness.
Executive DirectorMr. K. Mohee
Technical SectionMr. V. Mauree Manager
Planning, Research and Development Division as from 10th June 2002.Research Officer up to 31st May 2002.
Mr. A. Ashraf Research Officer.
Mrs. R. V. Awotar - Mauree Research Officer (on leave without pay as from 14 Dec 2000).
Mr. B. Abacousnac Research Officer (on leave without pay).
Mr. R. Soodin Research Officer.
Mrs. S. Seebaluck-Oolun Research Officer.
Mr. S. Bhatoolaul Research Officer (on leave without pay up to 31 August 2002).
Mr. J. I. Agowun Research Officer as from3rd December 2001. Technical Officer up to2nd December 2001.
Ms. P. K. Ramlogun Technical Officer.
Mr R. Toofanee Documentation Officer.
Mr. V. Heeralaul IT Animator.
Ms. S. Sowdagur IT Animator.
Ms. R. Ramessur IT Animator.
Mr J. Pokhun IT Animator.
Administrative SectionMrs. V. Patten Secretary. Mrs. S. Busawon Executive Officer.Mr. D. Kistoo Accountant.Ms. V. Ramasamy Accounts Clerk .Ms. S. Seebah Clerk/Word Processing Operator.Mrs K. Oree Confidential Secretary.Mrs B. Soopen - Murday Telephonist/Word Processing
Operator.
Representatives on Boards& CommitteesMr. K. Mohee
Mauritius Society of Authors (MASA).Training Advisory Committeeon Information Technology of IVTBState Informatics Limited. Statistics Advisory Council.Member of Senate ofUniversity of Mauritius.
Mr. V. MaureeAdvisory Committee - Information. Technology, Maharishi Dayanand. Polytechnic, Pamplemousses. E-Govt Masterplan Sub Committee - Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications.Sub-Committee of E-educationand Training Taskforce -Ministry of Education andScientific Research ICT - Technical CommitteeBoard of Investment. External Examiner forSchool of Business Informatics and Software Engineering atUniversity of Technology of Mauritius.
Mr Ashraf AhsanBoard of Examiners – Basic Course in Information Technology for HSC holders, IVTB.Computerisation of the National Library Committee.IT and Multimedia Committee, IVTB.MRC Steering Commitee.Workshop on Intellectual Property Rights.Computerisation of Mauritius Meat Authority Commitee.
Mr S. BhatoolaulTaskforce on National Qualification Framework - Ministry of Trainingand Skills Development.Sub-Committee of E-educationand Training Taskforce -Ministry of Education andScientific Research Implementation Working Group - National Strategy for the promotion of E-education and TrainingTaskforce on E-education and Training - Ministry of Education and Scientific Research.
8
World Telecommunication Day 2002
This year for the celebration of World Telecommunications
Day, ITU members selected the theme "ICT for all:
empowering people to cross the Digital Divide"
for World Telecommunication Day 2002.
World Telecommunications Day is an excellent opportunity
to launch public campaigns and advocacy activities
in favour of equal access to ICT for all those who find
themselves at an information disadvantage.
The challenge is to empower all people to cross
the Digital Divide. Countries were invited to celebrate
World Telecommunications Day 2002 by organizing
national programmes that would address:
How to measure and take stock of the situation
concerning ICT access, and in particular, with respect to
women in rural areas.
How to put into place policies that would help break
down the gender and geographic barriers in ICT access
(review of policy and regulatory frameworks and legislation.)
In this context, the two IT Coaches of the NCB were used
on the 17th May 2002. A presentation on the ICT sector
in Mauritius as well as a demonstration on the
opportunities of ICT and Internet were made in
the following locations: Grand Sable Social Welfare Centre,
Old Grand Port Social Welfare Centre, Case Noyale Social
Welfare Centre and Camp Charlot Community Centre.
School IT Competition
The National Computer Board regularly organises
IT Competitions with the aim of promoting IT in schools.
The School IT Competition 2001 consisted of a website
design competition with the objective of promoting the use
of Internet as an instrument of education among students
in secondary schools. The theme of the competition was
"To promote Mauritius as a Cyber Island". Twenty-eight (28)
teams participated in the competition. The winner of
the School IT Competition 2001 was the John Kennedy
College and the runners up were the Saint Joseph College
and the Islamic Cultural College. The submitted projects
are available at the IT Competition 2001 website at
http://ncb.intnet.mu.
The theme for the IT Competition 2002 was
"Using Information and Communications Technology
for Quality Teaching and Learning".
Eighty-nine teams were registered to participate
in the competition.
11
IT CULTURE PROMOTION
An innovativeand fun way of learning,
the IT Coachenables people
to become part of theglobal information society,
with a full range ofIT facilities on board.
IT Coach
Objectives
The IT Coach Project aims at spreading
IT Culture and makes IT facilities available
to the most isolated areas of Mauritius.
The main objectives of the IT Coach
Project are:
To raise the level of knowledge
about ICT and the level of competence
in using personal computers and
common computer applications.
To promote and encourage
ICT literacy.
To ensure all computer users
understand the advantages of using a
personal computer.
To increase the employability of all
people, to enable them to be part of the
global information society.
Awareness Programmes:
The awareness programmes provided by
the IT Coach are customized to meet the
needs of all people, regardless of age,
education background or profession.
The ICT Awareness programme is an initiation session
of 1 hour on each of the following module:
Introduction to Internet and Internet Services
Word Processing
The basics of a computer
The IT Coaches have provided training in about 150 centres
and more than 13,500 persons have benefited from the
services as at June 2002. The sites include
Social Welfare Centres, Community Centres, Village Halls,
Municipal Councils, Youth Centres, Primary and Secondary
Schools and Centres for Disabled Persons.
How to apply
Any organisation wishing to make use of the facility may
contact the National Computer Board in writing or
complete the downloadable application form available on
the NCB website at the address: http://ncb.intnet.mu
More information on the IT Coach schedule can also
be obtained on the NCB website.
10
INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT
The NCB help to nurture IT ideas and develop them into productive businesses,
as well as assisting established IT ventures with expo’s and ICTWeeks for the industry to learnmore about latest technologies
and purchase hardware andsoftware solutions and services.
Fête de L’ Internet
The Internet Fiesta is a Virtual Planetary
Exhibition of initiatives and propositions
coming from thousands of web users
on all continents. Here, they present their
projects, exchange their point of views
and experiences. They also share their
cultural richness with others. The fourth
edition of the Fiesta was organised
worldwide from 18th to 24th March
2002. In 2002, Internet Fiesta connected
55 countries, which presented numerous
projects and initiatives.
It was the second time that the event was
organised in Mauritius under the aegis of
the National Computer Board. The NCB
created a website on the event and
provided information about all activities
being organised to mark the event.
Other institutions that contributed to the
organisation of the event were
Telecom Plus Ltd. and the
Centre d' Information de Formation
d' Orientation et Documentation
(CIFOD).
During this week the National Computer
Board provided training through its IT
Coach to 200 participants on
"Introduction to Internet and Internet
Services". The participants came from
the following centres: Vacoas & Valetta
Women Centres, Pailles Club, Rivière des
Anguilles & Goodlands Social Welfare
Centres and Bambous Internet Club.
National Symposium on the theme:
"Child Safety Online"
The National Computer Board participated in a one day
National Symposium on the theme "Child Safety Online"
at Radisson Plaza Beach Resort in Mauritius on Thursday
26th July 2001. The symposium was organised by the
Internet Child Safety Foundation and was officially opened
by the Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius. Other speakers
at the opening ceremony were the Minister of Women's
Rights, Child Development & Family Welfare. The national
symposium comprised a panel session.
The objective of the symposium was to raise awareness
on the security aspect pertaining to Internet use.
12
Infotech 2001
The National Computer Board organized Infotech 2001
from Wednesday 3rd October 2001 to Saturday 6th
October 2001 at FOM Ltd., Mer Rouge, Port-Louis. Hon.
Paul R. Berenger opened the event on Wednesday 3rd
October 2001 at 18:00 hrs. Over 450 guests attended the
opening ceremony. Infotech was at its 8th edition and was
visited by over 20,000 visitors. The theme for Infotech
2001 was "Enter the e-world".
57 companies participated in Infotech 2001.
31 Conferences were scheduled over 3 days of Infotech.
The NCB Cyberspace and IT Coach provided Infotech
visitors with free access to the Internet. The Cyberspace
was equipped with 20 PCs with access to the Internet.
15
INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT
The National ComputerBoard helps IT ideas
come to fruition. The people behind these
IT ideas have becomeknown as ‘technopreneurs’
and are the futureof our country.
ICT Incubator Centre
As announced in the Budget Speech
2001/2002, the National Computer
Board will set up an Incubator Centre
to promote entrepreneurship in the ICT
sector. The Incubator Centre will provide
an ideal environment for young start-ups
and new technopreneurs to nurture
ideas and develop them into productive
businesses. The Incubator Centre will
also fulfil the need for incubating young
entrepreneurs, new start-up companies
and fledgling companies that need
nurturing and mentoring.
Entrepreneurs and small businesses
may have potentially good ideas
but lack the proper framework and
guidance to support them to
successfully start a commercial venture.
The Incubator Centre will help translate these
ideas into marketable products, applications
and services via appropriate package of
infrastructure and financial support.
ICT Week 2002
The second edition of the Information and Communications
Technologies (ICT) Week, organised by the
Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunications and
the National Computer Board was held from the 4th to 8th
March 2002.
The organisers had two broad objectives for the ICT Week:
Sensitizing the public and stakeholders of the initiatives
and measures which Government is taking to develop
the ICT sector in Mauritius.
Giving the opportunity to solution providers to apprise
the public of the different solutions currently available on
the market that can be used to improve productivity
and competitiveness.
ICT Week focused on three themes namely
E-Government, E-Learning and E-Business.
Over 50 institutions from public and private sector
participated in the ICT Week 2002, which were held
at different venues. Mr A. Choudhury, Director - Market
Technology and Innovation, Office of the e-Envoy, Cabinet
Office, UK and Prof T.B. Riley, Executive Director,
Commonwealth Centre for Electronic Governance
were among the Guest speakers.
Presentations and speeches are available on the website
http://telecomit.gov.mu
14
IT PROMOTION
Participating in missions abroad,the NCB, in collaboration with
mauritian partners, promotes thepotential of Mauritius as an ICT
hub for the region. Considerableinterest and support has been
acheived to date.
ICT Usage Survey 2001
The ICT Usage Survey 2001
was conducted in August 2001 through
a stratified sample survey on 300 business
establishments in the Island of Mauritius.
It complements the efforts of the NCB in
assessing ICT adoption, usage and
penetration, following the IT Household
Survey 2000. The emphasis this time is
placed on the business community in
terms of the extent of the use of
information and communications
technologies such as computers,
Internet, e-mails and e-commerce across
key economic sectors of the country.
The information gathered thereby can
provide useful input for the elaboration
of ICT policies, notably with regards
to areas such as ICT professionals,
ICT culture promotion, development
and adoption of new ICT trends such as
E-commerce. This will also help to update
our current ICT statistics, which is useful
to stakeholders in the ICT sector as well.
The survey was published in January
2002 and the results are available
on the ncb website http://ncb.intnet.mu
The main objectives of the survey were to:
Measure the computerisation level
by sector
Measure the ICT spending by sector
Assess the ICT infrastructure by sector
Assess the extent of e-commerce
adoption by sector
ICT Facts & Figures
The NCB compiles the following ICT
Facts and Figures on a regular basis
to monitor the trend in the ICT sector.
Number of foreign IT professionals
working in Mauritius
Number of IT vacancies
Internet usage
Number of Internet Hosts
These information is available on the
NCB website.
Consultancy
The National Computer Board has been providing advice
and consultancy services ranging from high level guidance
in new project feasibility studies to tender evaluations
for a number of institutions. Institutions that have benefited
from the services of the National Computer Board
for the year 2001-2002 are as follows:
Rose Belle Sugar Estate Board
New Co-operative Bank Ltd.
The National Computer Board is also involved in the
Computerisation Project Committee of the Mauritius Meat Authority
16
E-GOVERNMENT
The Government’s vision willcreate e-governancethrough creating the
necessary infrastructure.The NCB has been given the
responsibility to help push thisforward which in turn will
produce integrated servicesof great benefit to anyone
interacting with Government.
BangaloreIT.Com 2001
The National Computer Board (NCB)
in collaboration with the Board of Investment
(BOI) and the Business Parks of Mauritius
Ltd (BPML) participated in the Bangalore
IT.Com 2001 Fair, a specialised
Information and Communication
Technology exhibition, held in Bangalore,
India from 1st to 5th November 2001.
The aims of the participation at Bangalore
IT.Com was to promote Mauritius
as a Cyber Island with the objective
of attracting overseas ICT company
investments and to encourage joint
ventures and partnership between local
companies and international players.
The NCB had taken a stand at the fair,
which was located in the Country Pavilion.
A Mauritius Country presentation
was held on the 2nd November 2001
followed by one-to-one meetings with
investors. 110 Indian investors attended
the presentation. It was one of the most
well attended country presentations.
Numerous queries were received during
the country presentation at the stand.
Many of these companies showed
interest to further explore the
opportunities being provided by
Mauritius. In this respect, some of the
companies have planned prospective
visits to Mauritius.
The participants from Mauritius included
representatives of the Board of Investment,
the Business Parks of Mauritius Ltd,
the Mauritius IT Industry Association,
Mauritius Telecom, State Informatics Ltd,
EPZDA, Harel Mallac, Leal
Communication & Informatics, First
Cyberking Network, R. P. Electronics Co. Ltd
and Hamido.
SECA/Progimark 2002
The NCB in collaboration with BOI organised the participation
of Mauritius in SeCA (The European Call Centres Exhibition)
and ProgiMark (The Customer Relationship Management -
CRM Exhibition) that was held on 29th, 30th & 31st of May
2002 in Paris. The objective was to promote Mauritius as a
location for Call Centre activities.
Mauritius participated as a team comprising of government
and private sector institutions headed by the Honourable
Deelchand Jeeha Minister of Information Technology
and Telecommunications.
Other Promotion Missions
The National Computer Board participated in
the mission led by the Minister of Information Technology
and Telecommunications, Hon. P. Jeeha, to Malaysia and
Singapore to identify opportunities for the development of
the Mauritian ICT industry through possible exchange
programmes and technical assistance.
The National Computer Board in collaboration with the
Ministry of Information Technology and
Telecommunications organised a Private-Public Sector
Mission to Europe namely Paris, London and Dublin from the
7th to 15th February 2002 for the promotion of the ICT sector.
IT PROMOTION
18
"gov.mu" domain management
Currently all ministries together with 22 departments and parastatals have
an address under the gov.mu domain .
21
E-GOVERNMENT
As an example ofimproved and centralised
service, all ministriestogether with 22departments and
parastatals have anaddress under the main
Government domainname.
The Government’s vision is to provide
citizens and businesses with round-the-clock
online services. This is attainable using
the latest technologies to modernise the
government services and thus creating the
necessary infrastructure for e-governance.
Government Online Centre
The Government Online Centre (GOC)
will be the key infrastructure to enable
E-Government. It is the backbone carrier
for the Web portal as well as all
government services provided online.
The GOC will be an independent entity
with the entire IT infrastructure
of software, servers and network
backbones amongst others to ensure
online government services to citizens,
businesses and government.
It will host the government web portal
that will be the ‘front office’ vehicle to
deliver integrated services to citizens
and businesses in an efficient and
effective manner.
It will enable the government to bring together services
and organize them in a way that is convenient and logical
for users. As a result individual users as well as businesses
no longer need to understand the government
mechanisms in order to use its services. The National
Computer Board has been given the responsibility to set
up the Government Online Centre. In this context,
a request for proposal for consultancy services to advise
the NCB on the setting up of the GOC was launched on
19th October 2001.
After tender evaluation, the contract for the consultancy
services was awarded to Tata Consultancy Services Ltd
(India) and was signed on 21st March 2002.
A workshop was organised at Domaine Les Pailles
to sensitise the Senior Government Officials about the
objectives of the Government Online Centre on 19th June
2002. Presentations were made by consultants from Tata
Consulting Services on how the Government Online Centre
will enable electronic delivery of government services.
The Government on the Internet Project
Web Sites
The "Government on the Internet" project now consists of
the web site of all 26 Ministries, and 58 departments and
parastatals. The Ministries and department web sites are
regularly updated and re-engineered when needed with
the help of the webmasters of the Central Information
Systems Division. The latter also caters for designing new
web sites for departments as and when required. Web site
of parastatal organisations are however maintained by the
NCB. The NCB manages the web server which hosts all
the sites for the Government of Mauritius, providing
necessary technical support.
20
HUMAN RESOURCES
The people behind the NCBare the force that enables thedevelopment of the IT sector.
Ongoing training schemesare vital in keeping our human
resources knowledgeableand aware. ICT literacy
programmes for Mauritianpeople are also a valuable way
of improving IT sector skillsfor the market.
E-Government
Interoperability Framework
In the context of the e-government
initiative, the E-Government Task Force
decided to set up an E-government
Interoperability Working group under the
chairmanship of the Executive Director
of the National Computer Board
to prepare an E-government
Interoperability framework (e-GIF)
report to clearly formulate policies
and specifications for the interoperability
of Government information systems.
The committee consisted of representatives
from the Central Informatics Bureau,
Central Information Systems Division,
Central Electricity Board, Export
Processing Zone Development Authority,
Ministry of Social Security, National
Solidarity and Senior Citizen Welfare and
Reform Institutions. The committee
based its report on documented
government experience in other
countries and in particular the UK.
The e-Government Interoperability
Framework (e-GIF) sets out
the government’s technical policies
and specifications for achieving
interoperability and information systems
coherence across the public sector.
The e-GIF defines the essential
pre-requisites for joined-up and web
enabled government. It is a cornerstone
policy in the overall e-Government
strategy. All future applications
development in the public sector
will have to abide by this standard,
to ensure interoperability with the
Government Online Centre.
Standards & Practices
An IT Security Sub-Committee was set up at the level of the
National Computer Board to review the existing security
standards and to make recommendations for the adoption
of a suitable standard for the Government.
The sub-committee recommended the ISO/IEC 17799
to the Task Force Committee on E-Government. At its
meeting held on 6th August 2001 the Task Force
requested that a Committee be set up to work out an
implementation plan. The Implementation Committee
recommended the setting up of an IT Security Unit within the
Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications
for the implementation of Government policies relating to IT
Security. And recommended that IT Security consultants be
appointed to develop a methodology on how to implement
IT Security in Government.
On 22nd February 2002, Cabinet agreed to the above
recommendations.
E-mail for the Civil Service
The Government E-mail Service(GES) is now operational.
Officers previously using e-mail addresses under
"intnet.mu" are progressively moving to GES. E-mail can be
accessed at the address: http://mail.gov.mu. The e-mail
system is web-based and therefore can be accessed from
any computer connected to the Internet. Other mail
software such as "Outlook Express" can also be configured
to access this service.
To encourage use of the GES, the E-government taskforce
decided to set up a committee chaired by the Executive
Director of NCB to come up with initiatives/programmes
to improve the use of the Government E-mail Service.
Potential areas of GES usage have been identified together
with their constraints.
The following actions were also taken:
Statistics on the usage of the Government E-mail
Services are being compiled regularly.
A survey was carried out to assess the usage of the
e-mail facilities amongst the government e-mail users.
A directory of e-mail addresses for the public service
is under preparation.
22
AUDIT REPORT
The financial accounts of the National Computer Board
for the year 2001/2002.
HUMAN RESOURCES
The general public andour own staff are
beneficiaries of vitaltraining programmes,
which enhance knowledgeand employability both
locally and abroad in theICT sector.
ICT Awareness Programme
The ICT Literacy programme provided by
the IT Coach aims to equip Mauritian
people with the basic IT literacy skills
so as to enhance their employability
in the Information Age and improve
their quality of life.
The ICT Literacy programme consists
of 4 different courses:
Basic Computing: The basic physical
make-up of a personal computer,
maintenance guide and IT Security.
Introduction to Internet and Internet
Services : Using a web browser
application and available search engine
tools to accomplish basic web search
tasks, send and receive e-mails, download
music and chat on line.
Word processing : Creating, formatting
and finishing a word processing document,
and using more advanced word processing
features.
Spreadsheet Processing: Developing,
formatting and using a spreadsheet,
using basic formulas and function to perform standard
mathematical and logical operations.
Each module is of 20hr duration. A certificate of attendance
is issued to participants who have followed the training for
each module.
Staff Development
Mr V. Mauree - Manager Planning, Research and
Development Division participated in E-Governance
roundtable in Uganda from 24th to 26th June 2002
Mr J.I. Agowun, Research Officer attended training on
Advanced Networking Technologies at NIIT (New Delhi, India)
from the 24 June to 2 August 2002
Mrs P. K. Ramlogun - Technical Officer attended training
given by Centre CYFED on Conception du Contenu Web
from 13th - 17th May 2002.
Mr K. Mohee - Executive Director attended workshop on
e-transformation on 2nd May 2002 given by IntraConsult.
Miss V. Ramasamy - Accounts Clerk completed
a training as Accounts Clerk at PriceWaterhouseCoopers
from February 2002 to April 2002.
Mr V. Mauree - Research Officer attended the Gemba
Kaizen Public Seminar and Inplant Training on Managing
Clusters from 19-20th February 2002 given by NPCC
(National Productivity and Competitiveness Council).
Mrs S. Oolun - Research Officer attended training in India
given under ITEC/SCAAP Programme on Web Centric
Technologies conducted by TATA, Infotech, New Delhi from
27th August 2001 to 16th November 2001.
Mr J.I. Agowun, Technical Officer attended training
given by Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie
on "Formation des formateurs à l’ administration du réseau
informatiques en utilisant Linux et les logiciels libres" from
16 - 25 july 2001 inclusive.
24
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 30TH JUNE 2002
Notes
Fixed Assets 2
Current AssetsStocks and Inventories 4Accounts ReceivableCar LoanCash and Bank Balances
Current LiabilitiesBank OverdraftCreditors and AccrualsProvision for Passage Benefits
Working Capital
Total Net Assets
Financed by
General Fund 5Government Grant 6Deferred Revenue 6
Notes 1 to 7 form an integral part of the accounts
................................................... ...................................................Executive Director Chairman/Director
Date 14-02-2003
Rs
275,3711,241,146
309,119
Rs
59,567478,369587,549
12,008,41313,133,898
1,825,636
2001/2002Rs
3,302,062
11,308,262
14,610,324
10,829,2393,661,085
120,000
14,610,324
2000/2001Rs
3,497,976
48,452721,117736,5987,120,143
8,626,310
456,861329,721266,818
1,053,4007,572,908
11,070,884
7,443,1453,277,739350,000
11,070,884
27
AUDIT REPORT
REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF
AUDIT TO THE CHAIRMAN OF
THE NATIONAL COMPUTER BOARD
I have audited the financial statements
of the National Computer Board for the
year ended 30 June 2002.
2. Respective Responsibilities of the
Board and Auditors.
As required by the Statutory Bodies
(Accounts and Audit) Act the Board is
responsible for the preparation of the
financial statements and their
submission to me. It is my responsibility
to form an independent opinion, based
on my audit, on those statements and to
report my opinion to you.
3. Basis of opinion.
I conducted my audit in accordance with
auditing standards and procedures
which are consistent with those
recommended by the International
Organisation of Supreme Auditing
Institutions (INTOSAI). An audit includes
examination, on a test basis, of evidence
relevant to the amounts and disclosures
in the financial statements. It also
includes an assessment of the significant
estimates and judgements made by the
Board in the preparation of the financial
statements and of whether the
accounting policies are appropriate to
the Board’s circumstances, consistently
applied and adequately disclosed.
I planned and performed my audit so as to obtain all
the information and explanations which I considered
necessary in order to provide me with sufficient evidence
to give reasonable assurance that the financial statements
are free from material misstatement, whether caused by
fraud or other irregularity or error. In forming my opinion,
I also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of
information in the financial statements.
Audit Opinion
4. In my opinion, the attached Balance Sheet and Income
and Expenditure Account give a true and fair view of the
state of affairs of the National Computer Board at 30 June
2002 and of its surplus for the year ended and have been
properly prepared in accordance with the Statutory Bodies
(Accounts and Audit) Act.
(R. JUGURNATH)
Director of Audit
Government Audit Office
Air Mauritius Centre
PORT LOUIS
31 March 2003
26
1. Basis of Accounting
a) The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention.
b) Depreciation
Depreciation is calculated to write off the cost of the fixed assets on a straight line basis over the expected useful life of the
assets. A full year depreciation is charged in the year of purchase and none in the year of disposal. The annual rate of
depreciation also used for the purpose are as follows:
Motor Vehicle 20%
Office machinery & equipment 20%
Furniture & fittings 10%
Web Server 20%
The Assets which are still in use and which attained scrap value in the year 2001/2002 have been given a nominal value of Rs 100
2. Tangible Fixed Assets Schedule
Statement of Fixed Assets as at 30th June 2002
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 2001-2002
Total
Rs
8,735,287
1,225,0269,960,313
9,960,313
5,237,3121,420,9406,658,252
6,658,252
3,302,062
3,497,975
WebServer
Rs
1,029,140
1,029,140
1,029,140
811,656217,484
1,029,140
1,029,140
217,484
MotorVehicle
Rs
831,000
831,000
831,000
285,628166,200451,828
451,828
379,172
545,372
Furniture& Fittings
Rs
1,287,188
55,6001,342,788
1,342,788
731,479125,462856,941
856,941
485,847
555,709
OfficeMachinery
Rs
5,587,959
1,169,4266,757,385
6,757,385
3,408,548911,794
4,320,342
4,320,342
2,437,043
2,179,410
Fixed Assets
Cost As at 1.7.01
Add Acquisitions
Less DisposalCost as at 30.6.02
Depreciation
As at 1.7.01Charge for the year
Less Depn. On DisposalDepreciation as at 30.6.02
Net Book Value 30.6.02
Net Book Value 30.6.01
29
INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30TH JUNE 2002
2000/2001Income Notes Rs
Grant 6 9,557,999Deferred Revenue - Donation 200,000Interest Receivable 498,274Other Income 630,669
10,886,942Expenditure
Salary 2,848,633Allowance 159,459Accessories for PCs,Printers,Photocopies etc 43,647Advertising 239,876Bank and other Financial Charges 477Board Members Fees 140,245Contribution to EWF 28,296Contribution to Staff Pension Fund 346,063Contribution to Family Protection Scheme 45,426Electricity 189,744Incidentals & other office expenses 91,704Insurance of Equipment 15,757Maintenance and Insurance of NCB Car 98,429Maintenance & Repairs of Office Machinery 21,552Overseas Mission 557,236Printing of NCB Publications 109,01 0Professional & Legal Charges 15,000Provision for Passage Credit 100,513Rent of office premises 679,920Stationery & Postage 173,239Telephone and Fax 179,874Training of Staff 126,543Travelling 365,933Welfare of Staff & Entertainment 39, 39,529
Projects
Electronic Commerce 89,080International PromotionICT WeekGovernment on the Internet 884,974Surveys 150,520MU Domain Name Management 89,668I.T Resource Centre 816,977IT Competition 33,560Seminars, Exhibitions & Competitions 134,742GOCIT Coach 86,378Depreciation 2 1,032,195
9,934,196
Surplus of Income over Expenditure 952,746
Date : 14/02/2003 ................................................... ...................................................Executive Director Chairman/Director
2001/2002Rs
14,616,654230,000
1,065,48415,912,138
10,886,942
12,526,044
3,386,094
Rs
637,555427,929
10,886,942
7,331,961
3,773,1431,420,940
Rs
3,158,296235,505
18,20997,3471,075
203,79036,751
368,28348,716
295,13474,91815,757
92,98457,029
228,52474,75015,00098,126
1,359,8401 57,487264,669
28,477376,95324,341
49,0071,496,141
49,0501,206,947
99,653
53,00464,130
65,106690,105
28
3. Web Server
This represents a donation by SIL valued at Rs1, 000,000. This amount has been credited to a Deferred Revenue Account
from which Rs200, 000 is deducted each year to account for depreciation at the rate of 20% p.a.
4. Stocks and Inventories
These consist of stores and office stationery valued on a FIFO basis.
5. General Fund Rs
Balance as at 1.7.2001
Surplus of Income over Expenditure
Balance as at 30.6.2002
6. a. Deferred Grant from Government
Grant from Government for capital expenditure is credited to a deferred grant account and released to the Income and
Expenditure Account on an annual basis over the useful life of the related assets. An amount of Rs841, 680 equivalent to the
annual use of assets purchased from capital grant has also been released to the Income and Expenditure account for the
financial year 2001-2002.
b. Grant from Government of Mauritius
During the year 2001-2002, Rs15,000,000 was received as grant from the Government of Mauritius. Rs13,774,974 has been
credited to the Income and Expenditure Account for Recurrent Expenditure and Rs1,225,026 has been credited to the
Deferred Revenue Account. This amount represents fixed assets purchased from the grant during the year.
7. Staff Pension Fund
A contribution of 15% is paid to SICOM Ltd on the emoluments of the employees of the Board since 1st May 1990. The
balance of the Fund at 30.6.2002 stood at Rs3,450,133.70.
7,443,145
3,386,094
10,829,239
30
