Lack of Veterinarians in Mauritius

 The Minister of Agroindustry and Food Security, Hon Maneesh Gobin indicated that veterinarians are needed not only for the needs of domestic animals but also for animal husbandry. However, in Mauritius, veterinarians are now rare commodities, according to the Minister.

“Of the hundred or so veterinarians who are still practicing, around twenty work in the public sector. The others operate privately,” he said. The numerous announcements made by the ministry with a view to recruiting new veterinarians have, he says, yielded nothing.

The Zimbabwean government will temporarily put its veterinarians at the service of Mauritius. This, in order to be able to compensate for the lack of veterinarians in Mauritius. Hence his approach to seek help from neighboring countries, citing Zimbabwe, Madagascar, India and Egypt for short-term help, while new veterinarians are trained and recruited. 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has also been asked to respond to a shortage of veterinarians in Mauritius. The request was made by the Minister of Agro-industry, Maneesh Gobin, to the director of the FAO, Qu Dongyu, under South-South cooperation.

It is also important to note that at the Faculty of Agriculture, we trained students in general animal husbandry practices in their undergraduate programme of studies.  They have good knowledge and skills in animal nutrition, reproductive management practices, among others. Although they are not trained in diseases diagnosis and treatment, they represent an important human resource that can be of assistance to the Veterinarians.