In The ICT/BPO Sector in Mauritius: A Study On Labour Shortage

A Study on Labour Shortage in the ICT/BPO sector in Mauritius
A Study on
Labour Shortage
in the ICT/BPO sector
in Mauritius
Demand-Side Analysis
Supply-Side Analysis
Gap Bridging Strategies
Gap Identification
May 2012 1
2
Contents
1. Landscape of the ICT sector 1
1.1. ICT Sector: HRD Matters! 1
1.2. The Mauritian ICT Sector 3
1.3. Rationale of the study 5
2. Aims and objectives of the study 7
2.1. Contribution of the ICT sector to the economy 7
2.2. Enrolment in ICT and ICTrelated courses 8
2.3. TEC Graduate Tracer Study 2011 9
2.4. Employment in Mauritius 12
2.5. Employment in the sector 16
2.5.1. Employment forecasts for the ICT Sector, 2011-2015 17
3. Methodology 19
4. Findings of labour shortage survey 21
4.1. Sector and employment profile 21
4.1.1. Employee distribution by category 21
4.1.2. Size of workforce of companies included in the survey 22
4.1.3. Terms of employment (full-time versus part-time employment) 23
4.1.4. Expatriate workers in the ICT Sector 23
4.1.5. Educational Requirement in the ICT Sector 25
4.1.6. Working experience as a requirement in the ICT Sector 25
4.2. Labour shortage status 27
4.2.1. Perception about labour shortage at the national level 27
4.2.2. Perception of labour shortage in the ICT sector 28
4.2.3. Labour shortage within the company 28
4.3. Future labour requirement in ICT firms 29
4.4. Labour shortage as defined by employers of the sector 30
4.4.1. Reasons for the labour shortage in the ICT sector 31
4.5. Current quality and level of skills in the ICT Sector 32
4.5.1. Scarcity Areas 33
4.5.2. Difficulty filling jobs 34
4.6. Skills development initiatives 38
4.6.1. Budget allocation for training 38
4.6.2. Preferred mode for acquiring skills 39
4.6.3. Skills development initiatives 39
4.6.4. Use of the National Training Fund (Levy Grant System) 41
4.6.5. Training Needs Analysis 41
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Contents
4.7. Recruitment and retention of employees 41
4.7.1. Recruitment channels 42
4.7.2. Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting new employees 42
4.7.3. Difficulties in retaining skilled employees 46
4.8. Measures proposed to fill skills gap 46
4.8.1. Education and Training system 47
4.8.2. Government Policies 47
4.8.3. Areas of HR where assistance is required 48
4.8.4. Advice to those wishing to join the ICT sector 50
5. Conclusion and Recommendation 51
6. References 63
Appendix I : Skills requirement for the ICT Sector, 2011 - 2015

Appendix II : Questionnaire
Appendix III : Number of registered professional jobseekers with ICT qualifications
Appendix IV : Number of expatriates working in the ICT Sector
Appendix V : ICT Statistics
Appendix VI : Students enrolled at University of Technology, Mauritius
Appendix VII : Students enrolled at University of Mauritius
Appendix VIII : Results of Salary Survey
Appendix IX : SC & HSC results
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Tables
Table 1: Development ICT Index, 2008-2010 8
Table 2: Enrolment in ICT and ICT-related courses, 2006-2010 8
Table 3: Graduates in Full Time Employment, distributed by Programme of Study and Cohort (%) 9
Table 4: ICT sector related figures, 2006-2010 16
Table 5: Projected number of employees in large establishments in ICT Sector 17
Table 6 : Main activities of the ICT Sector in the sample 20
Table 7: Number of companies by size of workforce and by main activities of ICT companies included in the survey 23
Table 8: Percentage of part-time employees in ICT firms 23
Table 9: Number of expatriates by employee category and main activity 24
Table 10: Work permits issued in the ICT Sector, 2008-2011 24
Table 11: Percentage of organisations employing different categories of staff per minimum educational level 25
Table 12: Experience required per employee category 26
Table 13: Top ten jobs that would be required, 2011-2015 30
Table 14: Reasons stated by employers as to why it is difficult to recruit skilled labour in Mauritius 34
Table 15: Suggestions by employers regarding the measures to reduce mismatch 36
Table 16: Percentage of budget allocated to training by organisations in ICT 38
Table 17: Preference (top five) for acquiring the required skills for organisations in the ICT Sector 39
Table 18: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Workers in the ICT Sector 43
Table 19: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Specialised worker in the ICT Sector 43
Table 20: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Professional Staff in the ICT Sector 44
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Figures
Figure 1: Trend in employment in the ICT sector by gender, 2006 2010 16
Figure 2: Trend in employment in the ICT Sector with forecasts, 2006-2015 18
Figure 3: Composition of ICT sector workforce 21
Figure 4: Proportion of employee categories by size of company 22
Figure 5: Do you agree that Mauritius is experiencing labour shortage? 27
Figure 6: Perception of labour shortage at sector level 28
Figure 7: Do you have labour shortage in your organisation currently? 28
Figure 8: Existence of labour shortage in the ICT Sector per sub-sector 29
Figure 9: Will there be a net increase in the number of employees in 2012 in organisations? 29
Figure 10: Description of Labour shortage terms of qualifications and past work experience 30
Figure 11: Description of labour shortage in terms of lack of technical and soft skills 31
Figure 12: Reasons for labour shortage in the ICT sector 31
Figure 13: Status of skills among existing pool of skills in the ICT sector 32
Figure 14: Importance attached to soft skills in the ICT Sector 33
Figure 15: Initiatives to address skills shortage among existing employees in the ICT Sector 40
Figure 16: Strategic skills development plan for the organisation 40
Figure 17: Do you use the Levy Grant System provided by the HRDC? 41
Figure 18: Do you carry out any TNA before training your employees? 41
Figure 19: Most preferred method of recruitment in the ICT Sector 42
Figure 20: Does your organisation face any difficulty in retaining skilled people? 46
Figure 21: Percentage of respondents who ranked their recommendations among top three 47
Figure 22: Policies which the Government may consider to fill skills gap 48
Figure 23: Areas in HR where organisations would like to have training and / or assistance 49
Figure 24: Percentage of respondents who ranked the following advices among top three 50
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Acknowledgement
The survey and the report prepared is an effort of a vibrant team. This report for the ICT Sector
is the result of the splendid support of our stakeholders namely the employers of the ICT Sector
who were the respondents of the survey. Grateful acknowledgement is accorded to the team of
the Research Division for their valuable contribution and continued support. This report could
not have been put together without the thought leadership of Dr K S Sukon and undoubtedly the
combined effort of:
Leena Ramtohul
R K Sharma Seechurn
Kreshna Googoolye
Tehjal Vaghjee-Rajiah
Devika Gopaul
Malini Ramah
The series of consultations and survey results have helped in drawing conclusions and make
recommendations on the future manpower requirements of the ICT Sector. We look forward to our
continued partnership with our stakeholders.
The opinions and interpretations in this publication are those of the respondents and do not
necessarily reflect those of the HRDC.
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vi
In the modern knowledge-intensive economy
A Study on Labour Shortage human
in the resources
ICT/BPO are the most
sector in Mauritius
critical factor behind the success of corporations. Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) sector is one of the most knowledge-
1. intensive
Landscape
branches of of
the the ICT The
economy. sector
overall importance of ICT has also
greatly increased, as it is nowadays widely integrated into almost all functions
1.1. ICTwhole
of the Sector:economy,
HRD Matters!
business and society.
In the modern knowledge-intensive economy human resources are the most critical factor behind
the success of corporations.
Numerous research has Information
provenand Communication
how these newTechnology
ICT tools (ICT) sectorthe
within is one of theof
fields
most knowledge-intensive branches of the economy. The overall importance of ICT has also greatly
education,
increased, as it is environment and
nowadays widely integrated income-generating opportunities
into almost all functions of the whole economy, are
business and society. and helping nations develop socially and economically faster
revolutionising
than ever
Numerous before.
research As a result,
has proven how theseit new
is highly important
ICT tools within the to foresee
fields the skills
of education, needed
environment
and income-generating
from opportunities
the ICT professionals in are
therevolutionising
future. and helping nations develop socially and
economically faster than ever before. As a result, it is highly important to foresee the skills needed
from the ICT professionals in the future.
Based on the 2011/2012 Global
Based on the 2011/2012 Global Competitiveness
Competitiveness
Index published by the Index published
World Economic by the
Forum,
Mauritius was pitched at the 54th position out of a
World
total of 142Economic
countries whenForum,
rankedMauritius
from high towaslow
competitiveness. th
pitched at theThe 54 index which out
position is measured
of a total on of
a
scale from 1 (lowest degree of competitiveness) to
7 142 countries
(highest degree ofwhen ranked from
competitiveness) stoodhigh to
at 4.31
for
lowthe competitiveness.
country. Putting the lens
The closer
indexto which
the pillars
is
(efficiency enhancers: rank of 68 and score of 4.04)
measured
that on a education
comprise higher scale from 1 (lowest
and training and
technological readiness amongst others, Mauritius
degree of competitiveness) to 7 (highest
has been pitched at the 68th (score: 4.17) and 61st
degree
(score: 3.76)ofpositions
competitiveness)
respectively. Onstood at 4.31
the Innovation
and sophistication factors scale, we were ranked 60th
for the country. Putting the lens closer to
with a score of 3.62. Business sophistication rank was
44th
theand a score(efficiency
pillars of 4.27, innovation at 89th and
enhancers: rankscored
of
2.96.
68 and score of 4.04) that comprise Source: Global Competitiveness report 2011/2012
The report education

higher recommendsandthat training
efforts continue to be
and technological readiness amongst others,
required in the area of education. Educational enrolment rates remain low at all levels, and the
Mauritiussystem
educational has been pitched
gets only mediocreatmarks 68th
the for (score:
quality. 4.17)
Beyond and 61stweaknesses,
its educational (score: 3.76)
the
labour markets could be made more efficientit has stringent hiring and firing
positions respectively. On the Innovation and sophistication factors scale, we laws (82nd) and
wages that are not flexibly determined (107th), reducing the incentive for job creation in the
country.
7
The Global IT Report ranks Mauritius on the 47th position in 2010-2011 out of 138 countries.
Mauritius consolidates its predominance in the region, with a six-place improvement to 47th. This
has been associated with the fact that the government has been placing a high priority on ICT
diffusion in its development strategy (25th), notably using these technologies to provide better
access and quality of basic services for its citizens (53rd) among other initiatives. On a more
negative note, infrastructure especially in its human resources dimension, shows a margin for
improvement at 78th place, and ICT usage is still far below international best practices, especially
for the business sector (69th) and the government (72nd).
1
The Global IT Report 2010-2011-Mauritius
2
In the emerging digital economy, human resources are the critical factor behind success. Therefore,
scarcity in skills or in skilled personnel can pose a serious threat to the ICT sector. The quantity and
quality of skills have been important issues especially in the high growth development phase, which
the ICT sector in many countries has gone through. But quantitative skills shortage and qualitative
skills gap could still threaten further positive development of the ICT sector. In addition, when
ICT is nowadays widely integrated throughout the functions of the whole economy and society,
the possible skills related problems are to be taken seriously (Pohjola 2002, SRI Consulting 1997).
When generalised to all end-users and the whole society, the qualitative skills gap could also block
countries path towards true information society (Gaia 2000 and Koski et al., 2001). Changes taking
place in the operational environment of the ICT firms influence the skill profiles they demand from
The rapidly changing By
their employees. nature of ICT
examining has likewise
the evolution putsector
of the ICT pressure on the
and business sector.
a clearer IT of the
picture
skills demanded in the future can be formed.
workers can quickly find themselves out of work as new technologies render
The mostskills
their technical critical
allchallenge has moved
but obsolete, significantly
while at the sametowards the professionals
time actual human dimension
with and
capacities required to actually capitalize on these new technologies. Skills shortage is a global
old skills'',
concern become coveted.
as revealed by research studies in many parts of the world (Kikwasi, 2011).
Recent theories argue that the role of employees has dramatically changed over the past century.
Even though new institutions
The current for training
environment emphasizes and education
quality of ICT
and innovation, for manpower have
which human, rather than
physical capital,
been established is particularly
in various forms important (Zingales,
in Mauritius, it 2000). Human relations
is acknowledged theories
that (e.g. Maslow,
FDI and
1943; Hertzberg, 1959; McGregor, 1960) view employees as key organisational assets, rather than
foreign expendable
technology transfer via
commodities, whoMulti-National Companies
can create substantial value by(MNCs)
inventinghave played or
new products a building
client relationships. These theories argue that satisfaction can improve retention and motivation,
significant role in developing ICT skills. MNCs can effectively transfer
to the benefit of shareholders.
technology and diffuse
The rapidly changingknowledge,
nature of ICTwherever
has likewisetheir subsidiaries
put pressure are located.
on the sector. IT workers can quickly
find themselves out of work as new technologies render their technical skills all but obsolete,
while at the same time professionals with old skills, become coveted.
Changes in skill profiles happen at all levels of qualifications and across all
Even though new institutions for training and education of ICT manpower have been established
sectors.in To avoid
various future
forms skill shortages,
in Mauritius, countries
it is acknowledged that need
FDI andtoforeign
devise strategies
technology transfer via
based Multi-National Companies
on well-informed (MNCs)decisions,
policy have played asocial
significant role in developing
dialogue ICT skills. MNCs can
and coordination
effectively transfer technology and diffuse knowledge, wherever their subsidiaries are located.
among ministries and between employers and training providers.
Changes in skill profiles happen at all levels of
qualifications and across all sectors. To avoid future
1.2. The
skillMauritian ICT Sector
shortages, countries need to devise strategies The IT/BPO global sourcing market size is
based on well-informed policy decisions, social currently estimated between USD 89bn
The Government
dialogue andProgramme
coordination 2010-2015 has set
among ministries and a and 93bn with IT and BPO market shares
averaging 40 and 60 percent respectively.
numberbetween employers targets
of challenging and training
to providers.
the next stride to The contribution of the IT/BPO sector to
the Mauritian economy is expected to
convert Mauritius into a regional ICT hub. The grow to some 8% by 2015 with direct
employment in the sector amounting to
1.2.
vision of The Mauritian
Government ICT make
is to Sector of Mauritius an I- 25,000.
Mauritius (IntelligentProgramme
The Government Mauritius) through
2010-2015 has set full
a Mauritius is a leading global outsourcing
destination ranked 25th on the A.T.
number of challenging targets to the next stride to Kearney Global Services Location index
Broadband Islandwide Connectivity and to narrow 2009 and 2nd in Africa as per the
convert Mauritius into a regional ICT hub. The vision
Commonwealth Business Council report
the digital divide. isBecause
of Government of its cross-cutting
to make of Mauritius an I-Mauritius 2009. The country is also among the
(Intelligent Mauritius) through full Broadband highest in Africa in the Digital Opportunity
nature,Islandwide
the ICTConnectivity
sector plays a pivotal role in
and to narrow the digital
Index ranking (DOI).
divide. Because
employment, of its and
job creation cross-cutting nature, thein
quality/efficiency Source: BOI, 2012
ICT sector plays a pivotal role in employment, job
other services
creation delivery.
and quality/efficiency in other services
delivery.
3
The National Computer Board (NCB) has recently redefined its strategies to
Further diversification of ICT services, including Software development, high-
end BPO activities and Disaster Recovery Centres has been envisaged.
Mauritius
The Nationalhas, up toBoard
Computer now,(NCB)
successfully navigated
has recently redefined the vagariestoofrespond
its strategies the global
more
effectively to new national aspirations in view of multi-faceted challenges emerging in the wake of
economy, on which it is so dependent. The development of the ICT sector
globalisation and threatening the very resilience of the countrys economy. Its core mission is now
poses
to numerous
accelerate challenges
the transition for into
of Mauritius thea regional
island inICT its
hub effort to gain
and ensure a competitive
the swift realisation of
governments objective to make of the ICT sector the third pillar of the economy.
edge in the presence of Asian giants namely India and China where their
Further
humandiversification of ICT
capital is their services,
major including Software development, high-end BPO activities
asset.
and Disaster Recovery Centres has been envisaged. Mauritius has, up to now, successfully navigated
the vagaries of the global economy, on which it is so dependent. The development of the ICT sector
poses
The numerous
ICT sector challenges for the island
is strategically in its effortfor
important to gain a competitive
Mauritius as it edge
playsin athevital
presence
role of
in
Asian giants namely India and China where their human capital is their major asset.
the development of other sectors. Its weight in GDP is rising fast. It reached a
The ICT sector
figure is strategically
6.4 percent in 2011important
and for Mauritius as itnearly
it employed plays a 13
vital000
role in the development
people in 2010 of
in
other sectors. Its weight in GDP is rising fast. It reached a figure 6.4 percent in 2011 and it employed
large 13
nearly establishments
000 people in 2010 (those
in largeemploying more
establishments (thosethan 10 employees).
employing more than 10The budget
employees).
The budget speech 2012 announced that occupation permits will be issued to workers in the ICT/
speech 2012 announced that occupation permits will be issued to workers in
BPO earning more than Rs30 000. This measure will enable more local ICT professionals to be
the ICT/BPO earning more than Rs30 000. This measure tapped by will enable industry.
the ICT/BPO more local
Nitish at Accenture ICT professionals to be growing
tapped
The BPO is one of the fastest
Nitish joined Accenture in November 2009 in Solutions, SAP CRM 7 with
segments
by of Information
the ICT/BPO Technology
industry.
an HSC and a few months experience. Nitish was subjected to an HR
interview followed by a technical interview. The company found lots of Enabled Services. Mauritius has
potential in Nitish and he was offered a job as a Trainee at the beginning. The
takenBPO is one
several of the
initiatives fastest
to develop
He was converted from Trainee to Assistant Software Engineer in Feb 2010 the ICT/BPO industry. There are
despite not possessing a degree and promoted to Software Engineer in growing segments of
March 2012. He was given the same opportunities to grow as anyone activities that require greater skill,
else.. Information Technology
knowledge, education and expertise
to handle and these form an offshoot
The training facilities (online, classroom and on the job coaching) and HR Enabled Services. Mauritius
of BPO known as Knowledge Process
support assisted him to acquire the know-how and ramp up quickly on SAP
CRM 7. has taken several
Outsourcing (KPO). initiatives to
The young Nitish was encouraged to pursue his studies he is currently develop the ICT/BPO
The evolution of the ICT sector
enrolled in a degree in IT programme at UoM. The flexible working hours
in Mauritius
industry. warrants
There
allow him to attend classes. He has set clear career goals for himself to meet are aactivities
detailed
his aspirations. evaluation of the current skills and
that require
knowledge greater
since they skill,
are the main
driving forces of economic growth
and social development of Mauritius. Countries with higher and better levels of skills adjust more
effectively to the challenges and opportunities of the world of work. Thus, it is necessary that the
12
local workforce be adequately skilled to realise the demographic dividend.
Clearly, the pattern of skills required in the local sector is changing. Companies are increasingly
recruiting skilled and highly skilled people who can easily use and adopt latest trends and
technologies. Therefore, identification of imbalances between the demand for and the supply of
specific skills in the local ICT industry is particularly important since it contains a large number of
distinct skills categories. Shortages in any particular category can result in bottleneck in output
and reduce productivity, whereas surplus of trained workers can cause serious unemployment or
underemployment which represents a squander of national resources (Hillebrandt and Leikle,
1985; Kao and Lee, 1998).
On the demand-side, manpower forecast focuses on the expected quantity of jobs to be available
and nature of the requirements in the future (Bartholomew et al., 1991). Therefore, manpower
planning has become useful for this sector in order to reduce the mismatch in skills as well as
to help economic planners, policy makers and training providers in their endeavours. Availability
4
of employment forecasts provides forewarning information of likely shortfalls to stakeholders

including employment policy makers and training providers who can adjust the supply of skills and
thereby mitigate some damaging effects of shortages (Hillebrandt and Meikle, 1985). The need for
nationally coordinated manpower planning is crucial as educational and vocational guidance helps
to deal with the problems of growing unemployment, knowledge obsolescence and changing skill
requirements (Heijke, 1993). Concerted efforts of all the stakeholders are necessary to ensure
sufficient number of skilled people is available to work in the local ICT/BPO sector as well as to
avoid the erosion of attraction to ICT/BPO careers.
1.3. Rationale of the study
In this hyper-competitive global era where technological change is intensifying and demographic
change is unfolding, skills mismatch has come to the forefront of the policy debate in Mauritius
especially that human resources remain our most important resource. Skills mismatch includes
skill shortages due to lack of qualification, knowledge and experience as well as skills exceeding
job requirements. Lack of skills in some sectors may occur simultaneously with supply of over
qualified people in others. If skills mismatch is not resolved, it adds to real costs on individuals,
enterprises and societies. Therefore, it is imperative to know the ever-changing skills needs in
order to match skills and jobs.
More and more employers complain about the lack of required labour to fill the skills gap in the
ICT sector in Mauritius. It is an undisputed fact that foreign labour would be needed to ensure
that the sector continues to grow. However, stakeholders need to work together in order to reduce
the dependency on foreign labour while providing services that meet all local and international
norms.
This study focuses on skills need in the local ICT/BPO sector. There are shortages of skilled
individuals across several disciplines of the ICT sector. The report satisfies to a large extent the
urgent need that was felt to synthesise evidence and provide new insights that can provide the
basis for crafting comprehensive policies that would prevent and address skill mismatch and its
consequences to the ICT sector. This study also provides data that are the most crucial prerequisites
to supporting timely, effective and evidence-based skills-match policies.
5
6
pattern of skills as well as Athe future
Study evolution
on Labour ofinthe
Shortage the ICT manpower
ICT/BPO sector in landscape
Mauritius
in Mauritius. This would help develop strategies and policies to reduce the
mismatch between demand and supply of labour in the ICT sector. Some
2. Aims and objectives of the study

implications are drawn for the demand for particular skills.
The objectives were:

The aim of the survey was to measure and understand the current state and pattern of skills as
1.
welltoasassess theevolution
the future currentofsituation of labour
the ICT manpower shortage
landscape in the ICT
in Mauritius. Thissector;
would help develop
strategies and policies to reduce the mismatch between demand and supply of labour in the ICT
2. to identify
sector. the immediate
Some implications are drawnand future
for the specific
demand skills requirements;
for particular skills.
3. to identify the profile of employees required by employers; and
The objectives were:
4. to make recommendations for policy makers to devise strategies to
1. reduce
to assess
thethe currentmismatch
labour situation ofin
labour
the shortage in the ICT sector;
ICT sector.
2. to identify the immediate and future specific skills requirements;
3. to identify the profile of employees required by employers; and
This4. survey
to makealso determines forthe
recommendations demographic
policy characteristics,
makers to devise skillstheand
strategies to reduce labour
mismatch in the ICT sector.
competencies of ICT Professionals in Mauritius and assesses the critical ICT
skills
Thisneeded by the
survey also ICT sector.
determines The main characteristics,
the demographic indicators collected from
skills and the survey
competencies of ICT
Professionals in Mauritius and assesses the critical ICT skills needed by the ICT sector. The main
include:
indicators collected from the survey include:
Size and growth of ICT manpower in Mauritius;
Size and growth of ICT manpower in Mauritius;
Profile (e.g. education, skills) of ICT manpower;
Profile (e.g. education, skills) of ICT manpower;
ICT
ICT skills in demand;
skills in demand;
Labour turnover of ICT manpower;
Labour turnover of ICT manpower;
Training expenditure of ICT manpower; and
Training expenditure
Recruitment hurdles. of ICT manpower; and
Recruitment hurdles.
The definition of the ICT sector is according to the recommendations of the Global Partnership on
Measuring ICT for Development of the United Nations.
The ICT sector consists of manufacturing and services industries whose products capture, transmit or
display data and information electronically
It includes related activities of Manufacturing, Wholesale and retail trade, Communications,

Business services (such as call centres, software development, website development and hosting,
multimedia and IT consulting and disaster recovery).
Since 2008 Education in IT is excluded from the ICT sector definition.
Source: Statistics Mauritius, Economic and Social Indicators-ICT - 2010
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2.1. Contribution of the ICT sector to the economy
In 2010, value added at current prices generated by the ICT sector was Rs 16 941 million, under the
shadow of a global downturn, 14.1 percent higher than the figure of Rs 14 851 million in 2009.
The real growth rate was 13.1 percent same as in 2009. In 2010, around 46 percent of value
added of the sector was generated by activities of telecommunications, 11 percent by wholesale
and retail trade and 43 percent by the remaining activities. The number of large establishments
7
operating in the ICT sector was 139 in 2010, representing an increase of 3.7 percent over the 2009
figure of 134. Employment in those establishments increased by 3.8 percent to 12 826 in 2010 from
12 360 in 2009.
Table 1: Development ICT Index, 2008-2010
Category Index
2008 2009 2010
ICT Access 4.24 4.74 5.12
ICT Use 1.03 1.50 1.67
ICT Skills 6.63 6.67 6.73
ICT Development Index 3.44 3.83 4.03
Source: Economic and Social Indicators Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) statistics Statistics 2010, Statistics
Mauritius
The ICT Development Index (IDI) which measures countries progress towards becoming information
societies improved to 4.03 in 2010 for Mauritius from 3.83 in 2009 and ranked 69th. Mauritius was
ranked first among African countries followed by Seychelles (Rank 71st).

2.2. Enrolment in ICT and ICTrelated courses
Enrolment in ICT at secondary and tertiary level has increased over the years.
Table 2: Enrolment in ICT and ICT-related courses, 2006-2010
Educational level 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Students examined in ICT

at School Certificate level
Number 4,177 4,571 4,624 4,636 5,241
Percentage 25 26 26 27 26
Students examined in ICT
at Higher School Certificate level
Number 822 920 933 952 977
Percentage 10.2 10.8 10.5 10.0 10.0
Tertiary education1
Students enrolled in ICT
or an ICT- dominated field
at tertiary level
Number 3,971 3,700 3,448 3,475 3,694
Percentage 12.0 10.6 8.9 8.5 8.3
1
Includes also distance education and institutions abroad, and relates to school years 2006/2007 to 2010/2011
Source: Annual Survey in Primary and Secondary Schools in March, Mauritius Examination Syndicate (MES) and Tertiary Education
Commission (TEC)
Source: Economic and Social Indicators Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) statistics Statistics Mauritius 2010
8
In order to be competitive in the globalising knowledge economy, we need to invest in innovation

systems. Mauritius needs to turn its production towards more value-added segments and
knowledge-intensive products and services which will imply greater dependency on access to
new technologies, knowledge and skills. And, with the parallel processes of globalisation and
localisation, the local availability of knowledge and skills is becoming increasingly important.
There is therefore a pressing need to nurture our unique assets and circumstances, particularly
in developing knowledge-based industries. As key sources of knowledge and innovation, higher
education institutions are central to this process and the quality of graduates coming out of these
institutions has to be of high level for Mauritius to maintain a competitive edge.
2.3. TEC Graduate Tracer Study 2011
The Graduate Tracer Study 2011 covers the two biggest tertiary education providers in the country
namely the University of Mauritius (UoM) and the University of Technology, Mauritius (UTM), which
together account for over three quarter of degree graduates produced locally.
The survey targeted a random sample of 3 453 full-time degree graduates (1 515 male and 1 938
female) from the UoM (3 103) and the UTM (350), out of a graduate population of 7 188 over the
period 2006 to 2010. The sample comprised about 50 percent of the graduates stratified by cohort
and programme, gender and place of residence, from a list obtained from these institutions which
provided details of names and addresses of graduates by field and year of graduation, encompassing
some 95 programmes. The list of ICT courses and ICT related courses are displayed at Table 3.
Table 3: Graduates in Full Time Employment, distributed by Programme of Study and Cohort (%)
Field of Study 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Total

1. Accounting minor Information Systems - - 100 - - 100
2. Accounting with Information Systems 100 100 100 87.5 - 95
3. Business Economics with Information Systems - 100 100 80 80 90
4. Business Informatics 100 100 100 - - 100
5. Business Information Systems 100 100 100 100 - 100
6. Computer Science & Eng 100 100 100 100 - 100
7. Computer Science with Multimedia 100 - - - - 100
8. Computer Science with Network security - 100 100 - - 100
9. Electronics & Computer Science 100 - 100 100 - 100
10. Information Systems - 100 100 90 60 89.7
11. Information Technology 100 83.3 67 100 100 92
12. Information Technology Enabled Services - - 83 33.3 - 66.7
13. Mathematics with Computer Science 75 100 100 100 75 88.9
14. Mgt with Information Systems - 100 83 66.7 100 86.7
15. Statistics with Computer Science - 100 100 100 100 100
(Source: Graduate Tracer Study of UoM/UTM 2011 - Graduates Labour Market Experiences)
Among those persons having an ICT degree or a degree in an ICT-related field, more than 75
percent have secured a job and are active ICT professionals. However those who followed the
programme in Information Technology Enabled Services faced major difficulties.
9
Global competitiveness report 2011/2012 - Higher education and training indicator
Indicator Value Rank/142
5th pillar: Higher education and training
Secondary education enrolment, gross % 87.2 71
Tertiary education enrolment, gross % 25.9 81
Quality of the educational system 4 50
Quality of math and science education 4.1 63
Quality of management schools 3.9 87
Internet access in schools 4 75
Availability of research and training services 4 76
Extent of staff training 4.3 40
The ranking for the quality of the educational system was 50 but internet access at schools was
pitched at 75.
Pravind at Ceridian
Pravind started his career as a Payroll agent in 2004. Throughout the years, he climbed the
career ladder and today he is in a management position.
He has been subjected to continuous learning through the different processes that he has been
involved in for customers based in UK, US and Canada. The nature of the industry has offered
Pravind the opportunity to travel to different countries and explore different cultures. The
BPO industry being very dynamic and to accommodate this changing environment, Pravind
went through training and coaching for self-development which has helped him grow with
the company.
Today, Pravind manages a team of 100 people.
10
Ceridian
Ceridian started its operations in 2000 with 10 employees. Today it employs some 700 people
associates (including 7 expatriates) in ITO (software development, software testing, and
support), FAO (finance and accounting outsourcing) and BPO (payroll, tax services, healthcare
claims processing, HR admin, EAP). Ceridian plans to grow to 1,000 associates by 2014 given
the high demand from UK and US. Labour turnover is in the tune of 11 percent. It serves clients
in US, UK and Canada. At present, off-shoring is becoming more and more apparent from
Europe and US.
Its ITO operation has 45% of its workforce comprising primarily of degree holders. Its BPO
operation comprises 50% of its employees with a mix of HSC, diploma and degree holders. FAO
comprises less than 5 % with a mix of HSC, diploma and degree (many are ACCA students).
Fresh graduates require some 6 months to reach an acceptable level of performance and be
productive.
As a matter of fact, no major problem is faced for recruitment in FAO and BPO whereas ITO is
experiencing serious labour shortage since all companies worldwide are looking for resources,
where salary of employees are competitive. In ITO, some skills sets are more scarce such as
Java and Oracle amongst others. People need to have knowledge in more than one technology.
In the same vein, Ceridian has recently launched their learning centre in partnership with
NIIT (a world leader in training). Due to the lack of competencies on the market today it
is distorting the market value for such professional, resulting in high salaries. This makes
Mauritius less competitive compared to other emerging markets.
In order to meet demand of employers at any point in time, supply should exceed demand
implying that we should create talent surplus. Enrolment at the universities in IT should at
least treble. It is noted with concern that the enrolment rate in IT is reducing year over year at
Mauritius universities. We could start converting people with technical degrees (mathematics,
science, engineering) into IT engineers, however we need to enhance enrolment for technical
subjects at schools and universities. It is also believed that the universities are very rigid about
reviewing their curriculum. There is a need to improve the perception of people regarding its
image to make the sector attractive. Parents do not want their kids to work at non-standard
hours and are not familiar with the sector.
Additionally, many people have technical skills in ICT but lack customer management skills and
other soft skills which is a matter of serious concern when working internationally. Attitude
issue of the workforce needs to be addressed at the level of schools itself. Graduates are not
hungry to learn, do not go for training on their own and they are thus not ready for prompt
absorption by the job market.
The future is challenging though there is a lot of potential. Apart from human resource, there
are telecommunications challenges as well. Training is also expensive in Mauritius and there
is a concern about levy being reduced. Our only resource being human resource, we need to
invest in world class education and training to produce people with global skills.
The company works with different time zones. Therefore logistics like transport, shopping at
night are issues to be dealt with in Mauritius. It is a huge cost to be incurred by the company.
We need to ensure to have sufficient number of graduates for future opportunities and meet
the future demand. We need also to consider that future demand will be affected by the
supply of IT professional on the market today and in the future.
The future of Mauritius is to serve the global business and our economic growth is based on
talent we build today.
11
2.4. Employment in Mauritius
Population projection 2010-2050
2.4. Employment in Mauritius
According to the World Bank population projections by country, the population
of Mauritius,
Population which
projection was 1.250 million as at December 2011, would reach its
2010-2050
peak by 2035, that is 1.367 million, and would gradually dwindle to reach
According to the World Bank population projections by country, the population of Mauritius, which
was 1.2501.322
around millionmillion
as at December
in 2050.2011,
Thiswould reach its pattern
population peak by 2035, that is 1.367
will obviously million,
have an
and would gradually dwindle to reach around 1.322 million in 2050. This population pattern will
impact on
obviously havethe labouronforce,
an impact more
the labour particularly
force, on theonactive
more particularly labour
the active labourforce,
force, as
as
depicted
depictedininFigure C. C.
Figure
1,380
1,366 1,367
1,370
1,357 1,359
1,360
1,350 1,342
1,339
Population ('000)
1,340
1,330 1,322
1,320 1,313
Figure A: Population projection 2010-2050,
1,310 Island of Mauritius
1,300
1,2901,281
1,280
1,270
2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Year
Source:Adapted
Source: Adaptedfrom
from World
World Bank
Bank online
online database
database
Figure
FigureB Bclearly projects
clearly the ageing
projects of the Mauritian
the ageing populationpopulation
of the Mauritian with an increasing
with antrend of those
increasing
above 60 and/or above 65 years and a fall in proportion of those in the active working group 15-
trend of those above 60 and/or above 65 years and a fall in proportion of those in the
59 and/or 15-64 years. This ageing population phenomenon is further amplified by a decreasing
activeinworking
trend the belowgroup 15-59
15 years and/or 15-64
population. years. any
In a nutshell, Thisfuture
ageing population
medium or long phenomenon
term strategy
with regards to the management of the Mauritian labour force will have to consider the pertinent
is further amplified by a decreasing trend in the below 15 years population. In a
issues of ageing as well as the trend in Mauritian population.
nutshell, any future medium or long term strategy with regards to the management of
the Mauritian labour force will have to consider the pertinent issues of ageing as well
as the trend in Mauritian population.
22
12
Figure B: Population pyramids by age group and gender, Island of Mauritius, 2010, 2020 & 2050
Figure B: Population pyramids by age group and gender, Island of Mauritius, 2010, 2020 & 2050
http://www.nationmaster.com/country/mp-mauritius/Age_distribution
http://www.nationmaster.com/country/mp-mauritius/Age_distribution
23
13
Highlights of the labour force, employment and unemployment as at fourth quarter 2011
The total Mauritian population aged 16 and over for the fourth quarter 2011 stood at 987 200,
with 483 800 males (49 percent) and 503 400 females (51 percent).
The total economically active population was 585 600, comprising of 365 500 males (62
percent) and 220 100 (38 percent) females.
Employment of Mauritians is estimated at 541 800 at the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to
537 700 for the same period in 2010 and 536 400 at the fourth quarter of 2009.
The unemployment rate is estimated at 7.5 percent, comprising of 4.9 percent for males and
11.8 percent for females. The unemployment rate stood at 7.2 percent for same period in
2010 and 6.3 percent in 2009.
The tertiary sector was the major employer with 63.8 percent followed by the secondary
sector 27.5 percent and primary sector 8.7 percent.
Employment in the Construction sector represented 10.2 percent of the active population in
employment and it stood at 10.7 percent for the same period in 2010.
The main characteristics of the unemployed at the fourth quarter of 2011 were:
There were 43 800 unemployed comprising 17 900 males (41 percent) and 25 900 females
(59 percent).For the same period in 2010, there were 41 600 unemployed comprising 13 100
males (31 percent) and 28 500 females (69 percent).
17 100 or about 39 percent of the unemployed were aged below 25 years. For the same period
in 2010, 15 300 or about 37 percent of the unemployed were aged below 25 years.
Some 8 600 or 20 percent had not reached the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) level or
equivalent and a further 15 900 (36 percent) did not have the Cambridge School Certificate
(SC) or equivalent. For the same period in 2010, some 9 000 or 22 percent had not reached the
Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) level or equivalent and a further 16 700 (40 percent)
did not have the Cambridge School Certificate (SC) or equivalent.
In fourth quarter 2010, 14 100 (34 percent) were looking for a first job while this figure rose
to 15 600 (36 percent) in 2011.
Employment of Mauritians increased by 600 from 536 100 in 2010 to 536 700 in 2011. It
increased by 11 300 from 524 800 in 2009 to 536 100 in 2010.
Unemployment rate stood at 7.8 percent in 2010 compared to 7.3 percent in 2009. It increased
marginally from 7.8 percent in 2010 to 7.9 percent in 2011.
14
Table A: Comparative figures, fourth quarter 2010 and fourth quarter 2011
Q4 - 2010 Q4-2011 Change

Q4 2011 - Q4 2010
Labour force 579 300 585 600 +6 300

Employment 537 700 541 800 +4 100
Unemployment 41 600 43 800 +2 200
Unemployment rate (%) 7.2 7.5 +0.3
Seasonally adjusted unemployment rate 8.1 8.4 +0.3
Table B: Employment and unemployment - Year 2010 & 2011, Island of Mauritius
Year 2010 Year 2011 Change
Employment 536,100 536,700 +600
Unemployment 45,200 46,100 +900
Unemployment rate (%) 7.8 7.9 +0.1
Figure C: Labour market, 4th quarter 2011, Island of Mauritius
Activity rate
59.3%
Unemployment rate
7.9%
15
ators Information
A Study on and
LabourCommunication
Shortage in the ICT/BPOTechnologies
sector in Mauritius (ICT) statistics, 2010)
9 large establishments. The gap between male and female employment

educed2.5.
to an almostinequal
Employment distribution.
the sector
Table 4: ICT sector related figures, 2006-2010
The ICT sector employed nearly 13 000 people in 2010 (Economic and Social Indicators Information
and Communication Technologies (ICT) 1 statistics, 2010)
1 in 139 large
1 establishments.
1 The gap
2006 2007 2008 2009
between male and female employment has reduced to an almost equal distribution.
2010
2 108 116 129 134 139
tablishments in ICT sector (number)
Table 4: ICT sector related figures, 2006-2010
2 7,970 10,170 11,250 12,360 12,826
mployment in the ICT
ctor(number) 2006 1
2007 2008 2009
1 1 1
2010
Male 4,470 5,560 5,970 6,610 6,787
Establishments 2 in ICT sector (number) 108 116 129 134 139
Female 3,500 4,610 5,280 5,750 6,039
Employment in the ICT sector(number)
2
7,970 10,170 11,250 12,360 12,826
mployment in the ICT sector as a % of 2.8 3.5 3.7 4.1 4.2
tal employmentMale 4,470 5,560 5,970 6,610 6,787
alue added in the ICT sector (Rs 9,858 11,714 12,994 14,851 16,941
illion) Female 3,500 4,610 5,280 5,750 6,039
alue added in the ICT sector as a % of 5.2 5.4 5.3 5.9 6.4
DP Employment in the ICT sector 2.8 3.5 3.7 4.1 4.2
owth rate in
asthe
a %ICT
of sector (%)
total employment 13.0 15.1 13.2 13.1 13.1
1
Value added in the
2
ICT sector (Rs Million) 9,858 11,714 12,994 14,851 16,941
Revised Large establishments, that is employing 10 or more persons
rce: Economic and Social
Value added Indicators
in the Information
ICT sectorand as Communication
a % of GDP Technologies
5.2 (ICT) statistics
5.4 5.3 Statistics 2010, Statistics
5.9 6.4 Mauritius
eneral Growth
trendrateinin employment
the ICT sector (%) in the 13.0
sector 15.1
has been
13.2 increasing
13.1 13.1over the
as depicted
Revised
1
in FigureLarge 1.establishments,
2
The gap thatbetween
is employing 10 ormale and female employment
more persons
Source: Economic and Social Indicators Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) statistics Statistics 2010, Statistics
Mauritius
e ICT sector has sunk in the past few years. The total employment has
The general trend in employment in the sector has been increasing over the years as depicted in
an upward trend
Figure 1. The and in
gap between light
male of the
and female measures
employment taken
in the ICT by sunk
sector has thein Government
the past few
years. The total employment has taken an upward trend and in light of the measures taken by the
udget Government
speech 2012, it speech
and budget will offer
2012, ittremendous employment
will offer tremendous opportunities
employment opportunities for the for
youth who must be well equipped.
outh who must be well equipped.
Figure Figure 1: Trend
1: Trend in employment
in employment in the in thesector
ICT ICT sector by gender,
by gender, 20062006 2010
2010
Source: Adapted from Digest of Labour Statistics 2010 and historical series, Statistics Mauritius (2011)
Source: Adapted from Digest of Labour Statistics 2010 and historical series, Statistics Mauritius (2011)
At the beginning of 2012, the BOI had listed some 497 ICT/BPO companies that comprised both large and other
At the beginning of 2012, the BOI had listed some 497 ICT/BPO companies that comprised both large and
than large organisations.
other than large organisations.
16
2.5.1. Employment forecasts for the ICT Sector, 2011-2015
Nickell (1984) notes that industrial employment has proven notoriously difficult to model as it
is related to numerous factors such as rapid technological development, consumers patterns,
difficulties faced by employers to forecast growth, industrial structure, changes in the level of
economic activity, government programmes and policies etc.
The assessment of labour market therefore has been a critical challenge to researchers, employment
policy makers, manpower analysts and educational planners for decades, with the aim to avoid
mismatch between manpower demand and supply for labour, whether appearing as structural
unemployment or skills shortages impeding economic development.
To obtain a glimpse of the future trend in employment in the ICT Sector, a model based on linear
regression was worked out. The figures from 2006 to 2010 were obtained from the Economic
and Social Indicators Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) statistics. The number
of employees in large establishments from 2011 to 2015 has been estimated by the HRDC
and presented in Table 5. The upward trend in employment has been graphically presented in
Figure 2.
Table 5: Projected number of employees in large establishments in ICT Sector
Year Number of employees in

large establishments
of ICT Sector
2006 7970
2007 10170
2008 11250
2009 12360
2010 12826
2011 14486
2012 15676
2013 16866
2014 18056
2015 19247
17
Figure 2: Trend in employment in the ICT Sector with forecasts, 2006-2015
Assumption: The Model is based on an extrapolation of the current trend in employment over
time, assuming all the conditions or scenario remains unchanged.
Assumption: The Model is based on an extrapolation of the current trend in employment over
time, assuming all the conditions or scenario remains unchanged.
Based on the projection, employment in large establishments is expected to
Basedreach
on the19 247 by employment
projection, 2015, representing an increase of
in large establishments around 50
is expected percent
to reach from
19 247 by 2015,
representing
2010. an increase of around 50 percent from 2010.
The yearly average increase in employment is expected to lie between 7 and 13 percent.
The yearly average increase in employment is expected to lie between 7 and
13 percent.

29
18
3. Methodology
Data collection was conducted during the months of July to October 2011. With a view to achieve
the objectives of the Labour Shortage Survey 2011, the data to compile this report was captured
from both primary and secondary sources. The primary source of data was a structured survey
questionnaire sent out to various organisations operating in the ICT Sector. Quantitative data were
backed up by qualitative information obtained through face to face semi-structured interviews of
a few major long-existing players of the local industry. This also helped to confirm and complement
the findings of the survey. Secondary sources of data included figures from Statistics Mauritius and
other documents that related to the issue of skills in Mauritius.
A structured questionnaire (Annex II) was developed which comprised 4 sections with 33 questions.
A whole page was dedicated to description of the aim and objectives of the study, definitions
and interview administration details. Questions were rationally shared between closed and open-
ended ones.
Section I assembled questions related to labour shortage at sector of operation level;

Section II consisted of questions addressing labour shortage at organisation level, with particular
focus on capturing data on current and future labour requirements and on recruitment and
retention of employees in ICT firms;
Section III enlisted questions on how to reduce the skills gap and increase employment;
Section IV captured general details on each organisation surveyed.
The questionnaire was piloted in a few companies to ensure relevance of questions as well as
to eliminate any discrepancy. Thirty-nine professional interviewers and eight supervisors were
appointed to administer the structured questionnaire through face to face interviews. In order to
ensure consistency in data collection, a briefing session was carried out. This exercise also ensured
that each and every question was properly understood while answers were properly recorded
thereafter.
The list of companies operating in the ICT Sector was obtained from the Levy Grant database 2011
and the National Human Resource Development Plan 2009 database. 100 companies were randomly
selected from that database ensuring a representative sample through stratification in terms of
the number of employees. Companies that could not be contacted (because of reasons like change
of name, closure or refusal to participate) were replaced by companies of similar characteristics.
Following data collection, questionnaires were verified for completeness followed by data entry in
Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 18.0. The final database, after data cleaning and
validation comprised entries from 95 companies. The main activities of the companies included in
the final analysis are described in Table 6, on which the findings of the study are based.
19
Table 6 : Main activities of the ICT Sector in the sample
Main activity Number of Percentage Worker Specialised Professional

companies Worker Staff
Hardware Consultancy 14 15 36 172 146
ITES/BPO 35 37 107 4133 1501
Software Consultancy and supply 27 28 76 321 615
Telecommunications 13 14 66 762 452
Other computer related activities 6 6 6 81 26
TOTAL 95 100 291 5469 2740
The ICT sector comprises manufacturing activities, telecommunications services, wholesale and
retail trade and other activities such as call centres, software development, website development
and hosting, multimedia, IT consulting and disaster recovery.
Hence, the survey sample comprised firms mostly involved in call centre/BPO (35 percent) followed
by those involved in software development.
Data analyses and report writing were carried out in November and December 2011. Simple
univariate (frequency runs) and bivariate analyses (cross- tabulations) were conducted. For
questions 20 and 21, after grouping the common reasons/measures, a score of 30 was allocated to
each response ranked 1st, a score of 20 for each response ranked 2nd and a score of 10 for each
response ranked 3rd. As there were not many responses ranked 4th and 5th, they were merged
with the 3rd response for each question respectively.
For the purpose of this study, the skill level of employees has been classified into 3 broad categories
namely Workers, Specialised workers and Professional staff. A brief definition of these 3 categories
of employees appeared on the front page of the questionnaire to ensure that respondents were on
the same wavelength with regard to the different skill level of employees.
Employee classification
Employees have been classified into three (3) broad categories:
1. Worker: A worker is a labourer or non-technical staff. Their work is mostly manual and
repetitive. Examples include salesperson.
2. Specialised worker: A specialised worker requires some form of education or training to

master skills. Their work is mostly repetitive, but requires a level of skill or understanding
that is slightly more sophisticated than manual work. Examples include Tele-agent, IT
Technician.
3. Professional staff: Professional staff is more independent and perform a variety of tasks.
They require a higher level of education and/or experience to be able to fulfill their roles.
Examples include Software Engineer, Computer Network Specialist.
20
4. Findings of labour shortage
A Study on Laboursurvey
Shortage in the ICT/BPO sector in Mauritius
4.1. Sector and employment profile
4.
4.1.1. Findings of labour
Employee distribution by category shortage survey
The three categories of employees, namely, Workers, Specialised workers and
4.1. Sector and employment profile
Professional staff, were fairly well represented across the ICT firms, with the
4.1.1. Employee staff
Professional distribution
beingbyemployed
category in most of the companies (98 percent)
followed
The by Specialised
three categories workers
of employees, employed
namely, Workers,by 94 percent
Specialised of and
workers the Professional
companiesstaff,
and
were fairly well represented across the ICT firms, with the Professional staff being employed in
Workers employed by 65 percent of the companies.
most of the companies (98 percent) followed by Specialised workers employed by 94 percent of
the companies and Workers employed by 65 percent of the companies.
A stratification of the total number of employees by employee category
A stratification of the total number of employees by employee category revealed that Specialised
workers
revealed comprised the major chunk,
that Specialised representing
workers 64 percent
comprised of thechunk,
the major workforce, followed by 32
representing 64
percent of Professional staff and 4 percent of Workers (Figure 3).
percent of the workforce, followed by 32 percent of Professional staff and 4
Figure 3:3).
percent of Workers (Figure Composition of ICT sector workforce
Professional
staff
32%
Specialised
worker
64%
Worker
4%
Hence, it can be inferred that the current ICT sector workforce can be qualified
Hence, it can be inferred that the current ICT sector workforce can be qualified basically as a
basically
highly asknowledge-intensive
skilled a highly skilled knowledge-intensive
workforce. workforce.
Figure 4 gives a pictorial display of the proportion of different categories of staff per company size.
Figure
The share4 of
gives a pictorial
Workers decreasesdisplay of the
with size proportion
of the of and
organisation different
totallycategories of staff per
absent in organisations
having
companymore size.
than 50 employees.
The share ofOrganisations having between
Workers decreases with 1size
to 5 of
employees had the largest
the organisation and
share of Workers. The proportion of Specialised Workers inflated when the company size increased. It
totally absent in organisations having more than 50 employees. Organisations having
can thus be deduced that the bigger the organisation, the larger the share of specialised Worker.
between 1 to 5 employees had the largest share of Workers. The proportion of
Specialised Workers inflated when the company size increased. It can thus be deduced
that the bigger the organisation, the larger the share of specialised Worker.
33
21
Figure 4: Proportion of employee categories by size of company

Figure 4: Proportion of employee categories by size of company
4.1.2. Size of workforce of companies included in the survey

4.1.2. Size of workforce of companies included in the survey
Based on the survey outcomes, it was observed that the majority of firms in
Based on the survey outcomes, it was observed that the majority of firms in the ICT sector were
1
the ICT sector
mostly small were mostly
to medium small to medium
sized organisations as depictedsized
in Tableorganisations as ofdepicted
7. In fact, 22 percent the in
companies employed at most 10 people while 37 percent of companies employed between 11
Table to7.50 In fact, 22 percent of the companies employed at most 10 people
employees . A little more than 20 percent of companies had a workforce of more than 100
people.
while 37 percent of companies employed between 11 to 50 employees2. A little

more than 20 percent of companies had a workforce of more than 100 people.
22
Table 7: Number of companies by size of workforce and by main activities

of ICT companies included in the survey
Hardware Software Telecommunications Other Total Percentage

Consultancy ITES/BPO Consultancy computer
and supply related
activities
2-5 employees 5 0 3 0 0 8 8
6-10 employees 2 1 5 1 4 13 14
11-50 employees 5 12 12 4 2 35 37
51-100 employees 2 6 5 4 0 17 18
101-200 employees 0 7 2 2 0 11 12
201-300 employees 0 2 0 1 0 3 3
301-500 employees 0 5 0 1 0 6 6
More than 500 employees 0 2 0 0 0 2 2

Total 14 35 27 13 6 95 100
4.1.3. Terms of employment (full-time versus part-time employment)
This research provides considerable evidence to support the contention that ICT jobs are typically
full-time with relatively longer working hours. Part-time employment in this sector did not seem
to be a common practice, with three out of every four firms not employing any part-time workers.
77 percent of the organisations did not employ anyone on part-time basis and 15 percent employed
up to 9 part-time workers (Table 8).
Table 8: Percentage of part-time employees in ICT firms
Number of employees on part-time basis Percentage of organisations

None 77
1 to 9 19
10 to 50 3
Above 100 1
Total 100
4.1.4. Expatriate workers in the ICT Sector
The total number of expatriates employed by the 46 firms (representing 48 percent) was 237 and
were mostly Professional staff and Specialised Workers.
23
Table 9: Number of expatriates by employee category and main activity
Main activity Total number Specialised worker Professional

of employees Number of Number of
expats % expats %
Hardware Consultancy 354 - - 2 1

ITES/BPO 5741 23 - 63 1
Software Consultancy and supply 1012 5 - 33 3
Telecommunications 1280 40 3 58 5
Other computer related activities 113 10 9 2 2
Total 8500 78 1 158 2
Note: Percentage represents percentage of expatriates out of the total number of employees for the respective company.
Only 1 expatriate was classified as Worker.
1337 Occupation Permits were issued for Professionals by the Board of Investment (BOI) from
October 2006 to January 2012. The most recurrent job titles for which Work Permits were issued
by the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations in 2011 were:
Software Developer;
Software Engineer;
Telecommunications Technician;
Telecommunications Engineer;
IT Developer;
IT Technician;
Telecommunications Lineman;
Project Manager; and
Translator.
The number of work permits issued in the ICT Sector from 2008 to 2011 is presented in Table 10.
Table 10: Work permits issued in the ICT Sector, 2008-2011
2008 2009 2010 2011

Male 268 221 255 275
Female 61 50 69 66
TOTAL 329 271 324 341
Source: Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations & Employment, 2012
24
4.1.5. Educational Requirement in the ICT Sector
Educational qualification was not always a prerequisite to be recruited as a Worker in the ICT
sector. However, people need to be sufficiently qualified in order to be recruited as Specialised
worker and Professional staff.
The requirement to be employed as Specialised workers included university degrees, vocational

qualifications or completion of academic studies up to secondary level. Professional staff
requirement varied mainly from secondary education to post-graduate degree.
Table 11: Percentage of organisations employing different categories

of staff per minimum educational level
Minimum educational level required Percentage of organisations employing

Worker Specialised worker Professional staff
Education not important 10 - -

Incomplete primary 13 1 -
CPE passed 23 - -
Incomplete secondary 32 2 -
SC passed 19 18 1
HSC passed - 47 10
Vocational qualification 3 12 2
Professional qualification - 3 20
University diploma - 11 23
Bachelor degree - 3 31
Post-graduate - 1 13
Total 100 100 100
4.1.6. Working experience as a requirement in the ICT Sector
Budget 2012 recognises the need to facilitate the rising trend of women seeking employment
and will try to break the vicious circle for youth. No jobs without previous experience, and no
experience without a previous job.
As depicted at Table 12, nearly 40 percent of the companies surveyed were of the view that
experience was necessary for Workers whereas desirable by some 37 percent of companies. For
Specialised Worker and Professional staff, experience was definitely a pre-requisite given the
level of responsibility shouldered by these categories of employees. Yet, in the absence of people
with the required experience, companies have to do the preliminary training to fill the skills gap
in-house.
25
Table 12: Experience required per employee category
Percentage of organisations
Level of experience required Worker Specialised worker Professional staff
Definitely require 39 78 84
Depends 37 19 15
Not at all 24 3 1
Total 100 100 100
Apollo Blake
The head office of Apollo Blake is based in America. It started operating

in 2008 with 30 employees and a single American client. Today it has 300
employees and 13 high calibre clients (both American and European).
It expanded its horizon to explore the Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO)
industry in 2011. Its turnover is over MRU 100m. It is the first company
in Mauritius to do LPO for the American market. Its activities include
selling via chat, customer service (inbound customer service). LPO
represents some one tenth of the total activities.
It employs people mainly holding an HSC and SC with experience

though graduates in language are also recruited. Its labour turnover
is less than 4%. Yet, it faces difficulty in recruiting people with French
writing skills. In the event of recruitment, written test is effected to
test candidates French writing skills following which they are trained
using a customised curriculum.
Internal promotion is a practice and managers are mainly locals.

Employee well-being is a mantra that is lived in the organisation.
26
levels, namely the national level,
A Studysectoral
on Labourlevel andinorganisational
Shortage level.
the ICT/BPO sector in Mauritius
With a relatively high level of unemployment, they all highlighted that there
was 4.2. Labourofshortage
a problem statusin the labour market. They were willing to recruit
mismatch
people but they
Employers could not
perception findgravity
on the the right person
of labour to fillwas
shortage the vacant
gauged positions.
at three levels, namely the
national level, sectoral level and organisational level.
4.2.1. Perception about labour shortage at the national level
With a relatively high level of unemployment, they all highlighted that there was a problem of
A few questions
mismatch in the in themarket.
labour questionnaire aimedtoat
They were willing gauging
recruit people the perception
but they of the
could not find
right person
employers about to fill the vacant
labour positions.
shortage status across all sectors in Mauritius.
4.2.1. Perception about labour shortage at the national level

Notably, more than 70 percent of employers felt that Mauritius was
A few questions
experiencing labourin the questionnaire
shortage at theaimed at gauging
national the 35
level. perception
percent of felt
employers about
that it waslabour
shortage status across all sectors in Mauritius.
extremely severe compared to 59 percent who thought the situation was
Notably, more than 70 percent of employers felt that Mauritius was experiencing labour shortage
tolerable. The results are presented in Figure 5. A small proportion indicated
at the national level. 35 percent felt that it was extremely severe compared to 59 percent who
that thought
was not severe
the at was
situation all. tolerable.
On the other side, are
The results 45 presented
900 people were5.unemployed
in Figure A small proportion
indicated that was not severe at all. On the other side, 45 900 people were unemployed in the
in the third quarter of 2011 according to Statistics Mauritius. 18 percent had
third quarter of 2011 according to Statistics Mauritius. 18 percent had not reached CPE, 40 percent
not did
reached
not haveCPE,
SC. 6640 percent
percent did not
had working have SC. 66 percent had working
experience.
experience.
Figure 5:5:DoDo
Figure you agree
you that Mauritius
agree is experiencing
that Mauritius labour shortage?
is experiencing labour shortage?
How severe do you think the

labour shortage is?
39
27
4.2.2. Perception of labour shortage in the ICT sector
More than half of the respondents opined that the ICT sector was facing labour
4.2.2. shortage
Perceptionasofhighlighted
labour shortage
in in the ICT6.sector
Figure Among those who said that this sector was
More enduring
than half ofa the
labour shortage,
respondents 20that
opined percent
the ICTwere
sectorofwas
the viewlabour
facing thatshortage
this situation
as
highlighted in Figure 6. Among those who said that this sector was enduring
would persist over the next 5 years. However, 30 percent stated that it woulda labour shortage,
20 percent were of the view that this situation would persist over the next 5 years. However, 30
worsen.
percent Nearly
stated that halfworsen.
it would of theNearly
respondents
half of the expressed optimismoptimism
respondents expressed that the
thatsituation
the
situation would improve.
would improve.
Figure 6: Perception of
labour shortage at
sector level
How do you foresee this labour

shortage over the next 5 years
in your sector of operation?

4.2.3. Labour shortage within the company
4.2.3. than
More Labour
70shortage within the company
of respondents indicated a labour shortage at the national level
and more
More than than 50 percent
70 of respondents indicated
indicated such
a labour a shortage
shortage in the level
at the national ICT and
Sector. There
more than
50 percent indicated such a shortage in the ICT Sector. There appears to be a slight disconnect
appears to be a slight disconnect between perception and reality. In the ICT
between perception and reality. In the ICT sector, practically two third of the respondents stated
sector, practically
that their two
organisations third
were of the
not facing anyrespondents
labour shortage.stated that
The result their organisations
is depicted in Figure 7.
were not facing any labour shortage. The result is depicted in Figure 7.
Figure 7: Do you have labour shortage in your organisation currently?
Do you think there will be a net increase in the

number of employees by 2012 in your organisation?
40
A Afurther
further analysis in terms
analysis in ofterms
sub-sectors
of revealed that 51 revealed
sub-sectors percent of organisations
that 51 indicated
percenta of
labour shortage issue in the ITES/BPO sub-sector. In the Hardware Consultancy sub-sector, 43
organisations indicated
percent of respondents said a labour
that shortagewere
their sub-sectors issue
not in theany
facing ITES/BPO sub-sector.
labour deficit. The results In
are depicted in Figure 8.
the

Hardware Consultancy sub-sector, 43 percent of respondents said that
their sub-sectors were not facing any labour deficit. The results are depicted in
28
Figure 8.
Figure 8: Existence of labour shortage in the ICT Sector per sub-sector

Figure 8: Existence of labour shortage in the ICT Sector per sub-sector
4.3. Future labour requirement in ICT firms

4.3. Future labour requirement in ICT firms
Nearlytwo-third
Nearly two-third of
ofthe
therespondents (59 percent)
respondents stated that
(59 percent) there
stated would
that be an
there increase
would be in
anthe
number of employees in their organisations in 2012 as depicted in Figure 9 indicating their intention
increase inthis
to recruit theyear.
number of employees
This would imply furtherinopportunities
their organisations in 2012 as depicted
for job seekers.
in Figure 9 indicating their intention to recruit this year. This would imply
furtherFigure
opportunities
9: Will therefor
be ajob
netseekers.
increase in the number of employees in 2012 in organisations?
Figure 9: Will there be a net increase in the number of employees in 2012 in organisations?
Out of those who said yes, 43

percent were from ITES/BPO
sub-sector and 31 percent from
Software Development.
The top ten jobs in demand in the sample of 95 ICT companies are presented
in Table 13. Appendix I details the list of jobs. Employers, in the absence of
local capabilities, had to seek competencies from foreign countries. The work
42
permits issued by the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations were in line
with the requirements of the employers as depicted at Table 14. Demand for 29
ICT Professionals spans from entrant to specialist level jobs (such as software
The top ten jobs in demand in the sample of 95 ICT companies are presented in Table 13. Appendix
I details the list of jobs. Employers, in the absence of local capabilities, had to seek competencies
from foreign countries. The work permits issued by the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations
were in line with the requirements of the employers as depicted at Table 14. Demand for ICT
Professionals spans from entrant to specialist level jobs (such as software developers, software
engineers) to senior positions (such as senior software engineers). Of the positions named, a large
majority were programming-type positions after jobs in the ITES/BPO sub-sector. The range of
programming skills sought was extremely varied, with Java being the most popular.
Table 13: Top ten jobs that would be required, 2011-2015
No. Job title 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Qualification required
1. Tele Sales Agent 290 225 SC /HSC passed

2. Software Developer
(Inclu Java, php) 52 47 20 10 10 HSC passed/University diploma/Bachelor degree
3. Customer Care Assistant 50 HSC passed
4. Online Interviewer 5 HSC passed
5. French & English Speaker 35 Vocational qualification
6. Senior/Software Engineer 32 2 Bachelor degree
7. Accounts Officer 22 30 Professional qualification
8. No.
Call Taking
Job title
Specialist 20 2011 2012

2013
HSC2015
2014
passed Qualification required
9. 8.Computer Network
Call Taking Specialist 20
Specialist 30 20 Bachelor degree HSC passed
9. Computer Network Specialist 20 30 Bachelor degree
10. 10.Moderator
Moderator 20 20 SC/HSC passed SC/HSC passed
4.4. Labour shortage as defined by employers of the sector

4.4. In Labour
almostshortage as defined
all cases, by employers
experience was of thebefore
put sector qualifications. As far as
experience
In almost isexperience
all cases, concerned waswhich is closely
put before tied toAsspecialisation
qualifications. far as experienceand expertise,
is concerned which
is closely tied to specialisation and expertise, nearly 70 percent of the respondents
nearly 70 percent of the respondents highlighted lack of people with required highlighted
lack of people with required sufficient working experience and qualification to be the main cause
sufficient
of labour working
shortage experience
as shown and qualification to be the main cause of labour
in Figure 10.
shortage as shown in Figure 10.
Figure 10: Description of Labour shortage terms of

qualifications and past work experience
80 For 22 percent of respondents,
Percentage of respondents
70 deficit of sufficient working

60 69
experience in the field was the
50
hurdle.
40
Employers generally look for
30
professional qualifications backed
20
22 by considerable experience.
10
10
0
Lack of people with both Lack of people with Qualifications only
qualifications and past sufficient past working (certificates)
working experience experience only
Almost three-quarter of the respondents described labour shortage as a lack of

both technical and soft skills as shown in Figure 11. Employers are putting
more and more emphasis on the acquisition of soft skills besides technical
30
skills. In todays world of work, such skills make a difference to give a
working experience experience only

Almost three-quarter of the respondents described labour shortage as a lack o
both technical and soft skills as shown in Figure 11. Employers are puttin
Almost three-quarter of the respondents described labour shortage as a lack of both technical and
more and more emphasis on the acquisition of soft skills besides technica
soft skills as shown in Figure 11. Employers are putting more and more emphasis on the acquisition
skills.
of soft In
skillstodays worldskills.
besides technical of Inwork, such
todays world skillssuchmake
of work, a adifference
skills make to
difference to give give
a competitive edge to organisations.
competitive edge to organisations.
Figure 11: Description of labour shortage in terms of lack of technical and soft skills

80
60
40 75
20
14 12
0
Lack of people with Lack of people Lack of people
both technical skills with technical with soft skills
to do the job and skills to do the job (e.g attitude, team
soft skills spirit etc.)
4.4.1. Reasons for the labour shortage in the ICT sector

Lack of technical skills, wrong attitude towards work, training and education
systems that do
4.4.1. Reasons for not meet shortage
the labour the market
in thedemands
ICT sector and lack of proficiency in ICT
44 were among the main constraints put forward by the respondents.
Lack of technical skills, wrong attitude towards work, training and education systems that do
Unwillingness to work
not meet the market on shift,
demands low of
and lack wages and in
proficiency unfavourable
ICT were amongworking
the mainconditions
constraints
put seem
still forwardtobyreduce
the respondents. Unwillingness
the attractiveness of to work
the BPOon sector
shift, low wagesthe
though and ICT
unfavourable
Sector
working conditions still seem to reduce the attractiveness of the BPO sector though the ICT
isSector
governed by the
is governed Employee
by the Employee Rights andRelations
Rights and Relations Act 2008.
Act 2008. Moreare
More causes causes arein
depicted
Figure 12.
depicted in Figure 12.
Figure
Figure 12:12: Reasons for
Reasons for labour
labourshortage in the
shortage in ICT
the sector
ICT sector
People are not sufficiently proficient in technical skills 80

Training system does not meet market demands 80
People are not sufficiently proficient in ICT 78
Education system does not meet market demands 78
People do not have the right attitude toward work 73
People are not sufficiently proficient in language 63
Employees not willing to work on shift 55
People are not sufficiently proficient in numeracy 53
Employees not willing to adopt flexi time 51
People have a negative opinion about this sector 49
Employees not willing to work overtime 47
Low wages compared to other sectors 43
Not sufficient job security compared to other sectors 33

Unfavourable conditions of employment compared to other sectors 33
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
31
In general,
A Studythe majority
on Labour of respondents
Shortage in the ICT/BPOsaid that
sector their current employees (78
in Mauritius
percent of Specialised workers, 87 percent of Professional staff and 57 percent
of Worker) were satisfactorily meeting the basic skills requirements of the
4.5. Current
sector. quality and
This result is level of skills
in line with in the
theICTprevious
Sector findings where employers
expressed their
In general, the views
majority of regarding
respondents labour
said thatshortage atemployees
their current organisational level.
(78 percent of Specialised
workers, 87 percent of Professional staff and 57 percent of Worker) were satisfactorily meeting
the basic skills requirements of the sector. This result is in line with the previous findings where
65 percent
employers of companies
expressed employed
their views regarding labourWorkers,
shortage at 94 percent level.
organisational of companies
employed Specialised worker and 98 percent of companies employed
65 percent of companies employed Workers, 94 percent of companies employed Specialised worker
Professional
and 98 percent Staff. As shown
of companies in Figure
employed 13, 57Staff.
Professional percent of Workers
As shown in Figure were
13, 57 meeting
percent of
Workers were meeting the skills requirements of employers but on the other hand around 35
the skills requirements of employers but on the other hand around 35 percent
percent of employers said that this question was not applicable for the same category of employees
ofsince
employers said
they did not thatWorkers.
employ this question was not applicable for the same category
of employees since they did not employ Workers.
Figure 13: Status of skills among existing pool of skills in the ICT sector
100
87
90
78
Worker
ofrespondents
80
respondents
70 Specialised worker
60 57 Professional staff
50
Percentageof
Percentage
40 35
30
20 14
9 7
10 5 3
1 1 2
0
Meets basic requirements Does not meet basic Requires upgrade Not applicable
requirements
This study attempted to measure the importance assigned by employers to soft skills like
communications, team spirit, innovation and customer care. Besides possessing the required
technical skills in todays world of work, peoples skills are becoming pivotal. Soft skills have
lots of significance in the ICT Sector essentially for the Professional staff category followed by
Specialised worker. The survey revealed that soft skills were extremely important for the majority
of respondents (more than 90 percent for Specialised staff) as depicted in Figure 14. Soft skills
were considered least important for the Worker category of the ICT Sector given their nature of
work.
46
32
of respondents (more than 90 percent for Specialised staff) as depicted i
Figure 14. Soft skills were considered least important for the Worker categor
of the ICT Sector given their nature of work.
Figure 14: Importance attached to soft skills in the ICT Sector
Figure 14: Importance attached to soft skills in the ICT Sector
4.5.1. Scarcity Areas
The ICT is a relatively highly skilled industry. A significant number of ICT professionals do have
academic qualifications and technical capacity that provide a solid foundation to secure a job.
During the survey, employers stated that they were facing difficulties in recruiting people with:
B.Sc. Software Engineering;
Degree in IT;
B.Sc. Computer Science;
B.Sc Telecommunication & Networking; and
B.A. Languages (French, English, etc).

47
People having skills and competence in wireless technologies, web page development, security
management was also scarce. The need to recruit people with certification courses was also voiced
out but essentially with a solid combination of formal education and experience. Additionally,
employers expressed their difficulty to find people with very high technical capabilities.
Again, the scarcity areas revolve around qualifications like software engineering and degree in IT
which cascade down to occupations like software engineers/developers for which work permits
have been issued recently.
33
4.5.2. Difficulty filling jobs
Employers stated the reasons as to why it was difficult to recruit skilled labour. The top five
difficulties revolve around lack of qualified people and skilled labour, issue of brain drain, high
salary expectations, lack of trained people with relevant working experience and lack of focus
on vocational training programmes. The reasons are tabulated in Table 14 starting with the most
difficult to find.
A noteworthy index on brain drain pitched Mauritius at 77th with a score of 3.2.
Within the sector, a heightened degree of flexibility is expected from the employee. More
specifically, employees are expected to work at atypical hours given the nature of the work. The
ICT staff seemed to show no major problem in picking up and moving on, though some work still
remains to be done.
Table 14: Reasons stated by employers as to why it is difficult to recruit skilled labour in Mauritius
No. Reasons stated by employers as to why it is difficult to recruit skilled labour in Mauritius
(most cited to least cited)
1. Lack of qualified and skilled labour in some fields.

2. Brain drain. Skilled labour prefers to move abroad. Many youngsters are going abroad
to study and work. Better opportunities abroad, People going abroad for better pay.
Professionals who are highly qualified are paid higher salaries abroad.
3. High salary expectations (workforce in Mauritius is too demanding in terms of pay). Salary
expectation of skilled labour is high. They need high salary from the beginning itself.
Skilled labour demand high salary. Skilled labour cost too much. Skilled labour want too
high wages.
4. Lack of trained people with working experience. People do not give much importance to
vocational training programmes. People are more geared towards academic than technical
studies. People do not have the right qualification.
5. Skilled and qualified people prefer to work in big companies and prefer organisations that
offer good career prospect. Difficult to attract skilled people in small firms.
6. Education system does not meet market demands. Poor quality of tertiary education system.
Courses offered by educational institutions do not meet labour market requirement.
Business expectations and requirements do not match the market demands. Not enough
skilled people are being produced by training institutions. Training institutions are working
isolated from business community.
7. Graduates produced by University of Mauritius are not up to expected level. Universities
centered on academic side only. University is not providing the right modules.
8. Low remuneration proposed, They are not well paid. Skilled labour are not sufficiently
paid. The remuneration package is not attractive enough for key talents.
9. Specific skills does not exist in Mauritius. The right skills are not available.
10. There is no diversity among the employees, They are not multi-skilled.
11. A specific organisation to help the unemployed does not exist.
12. Lack of job placement in syllabus/program of study.
13. Appropriate training is not available.
14. Candidates do not possess the right attitude towards work. They lack culture
dentreprise.
15. Candidates are unwilling to work odd hours. Many people do not work during week-ends.
Mauritians are not always willing to work hard.
34
16. Conditions of work are not favourable. Working conditions are not attractive enough.
17. In some regions there is lack of skilled labour and people from other region are not ready
to move long distances.
18. Inappropriate transport system makes it difficult to recruit people all around the country.
19. Inappropriate personal profiles of skilled labour.
20. Labour turnover too high. Lack of stability from job seekers. They tend to leave after some
time.
21. Lack of confidence.
22. Lack of job security.
23. Language skill (English/French) very poor.
24. May be employers adopt inadequate recruitment strategy.
25. Mismatch between demand and supply.
26. Pool of skilled labour growing old.
27. There is high competition to recruit the best. Too much competition to recruit key
talents.
28. Employees are too ambitious.
In light of the many difficulties, a number of suggestions has been made by employers namely
to revise the tertiary level curriculum since according to them it does not meet the market
requirements, to focus on soft skills as well since youngsters seem to lack a culture dentreprise
and to conduct regular research on labour shortage so that training could be delivered depending
on market requirements. More so, the variable nature of ICT over time requires ICT professionals
to regularly redefine and reassess their roles, functions and skill requirements.
The linkages between firms, research institutions and education/training are however relatively
weak in the sector and often grieved upon by all. Partially as a response to these weak linkages,
the Government responded to both the shortages on the labour market as well as to the lack
of skilled ICT labour, by initiating the ICT Centre of Excellence which is a form of corporate
university. This centre is meant to provide fast track talent and provide effective mechanisms for
aligning company strategy and interests with labour force skill levels. Access to courses available
via the centre will also be part and parcel of the secondary employment benefits used to attract
top talent, where the labour market is being affirmed as competitive. A successful roll out could
provide a new impetus to the sector and new growth perspectives. The many proposals made by
employers to reduce mismatch of labour are elaborated in Table 15 which requires concerted
efforts of employers, associations, education/training providers and other stakeholders.
35
Table 15: Suggestions by employers regarding the measures to reduce mismatch
May be implemented mainly by HRDC

SN Suggestions by employers regarding the measures to reduce mismatch
1. Enable more job placements during studies to make students aware of the workplace
needs
2. Provide more career guidance and organise job fairs to allow job seekers know the
requirements of employers, before enrolling for higher studies to make them aware of the
employers requirement
3. Promote development of soft skills
4. Annual survey on labour shortage, survey different sectors regularly
5. Carry out TNA before setting up training programmes
6. Conduct regular surveys in sectors where there is shortage of skilled labour & labour market
requirements
7. Offer more facilities so that firms can invest in training
8. Set up appropriate training programme that meets labour market requirement
9. Set up professional training programmes in field where there is skill scarcity
10. More emphasis on vocationl training
11. Use levy grant to re-train employees
12. Training should be done according to demand forecasted jobs
13. Meeting with educational institutions
14. Evaluation of labour skills and abilities
15. More emphasis on quality of training courses rather than quantity
16. Provide more training in sectors that is short of skilled labour
17. Bring job seekers and employers on same platform
18. Ensure that training programmes being offered are up to the standard
19. Provide appropriate training using latest technology
20. Set up appropriate courses to reduce mismatch
21. Diversify skills of workers so that they can move from one sector to another. Encourage
people to be multi-skilled
22. Improve training standards
23. More training for school leavers
May be implemented by Government

1. Academic qualification should be revised. Review education system regularly to adapt to

changing labour market requirements
2. Cater for forecasted demand by training people in the required fields
3. Channel skilled labour into proper sectors
4. Conduct a study on campanies needs. Conduct surveys to assess organisations needs
5. Create innovative recruitment procedures
6. Create more job opportunities
7. Educate students about the value of manual work. Valorise all types of jobs. Give due value
to skilled
8. Emphasis on proper training through forecasting
9. Encourage people to learn more than one skills
36
May be implemented by Government

10. Encourage school leavers to go for vocational training

11. Ensure that job seekers are aware of job vacancies
12. Establish communications between employers and educational institutions. Proper
consultation between educational institutions and employers. Set up a platform where
training institutions and
13. Focus job placement in sectors experiencing labour shortage
14. Government should adopt realistic policies. Government is putting a lot of emphasis on
having 1 graduate per home. Will there be enough jobs?
15. Improve quality of education system. Improve vocational training standards. Improve
standards of universities. Provide more higher level courses to students. Courses should
not be too theoretical.
16. Improve transport system so that people can travel at night for night shift
17. Improvement in law and regulation to ensure the right person is getting the right job(Political
backing having back impact-many unqualified people having jobs)
18. Increase number of universities
19. Job counseling, Proper career guidance should be given to students
20. Make easy access for foreign students to come to Mauritius for more culture and knowledge
sharing to allow our student to open to the world challenges
21. More job placement
22. More specific training to be delivered
23. More stringent laws on job security
24. Offer higher salary. Raise salary level in the country
25. Remove the maximum age limit set for candidates applying for government job
26. Set up an organisation to be responsible of channeling unemployed
27. Set up more tertiary education institutions, vocational training institutions
28. Tailor made courses to prospective employees
29. Encourage more enhancement programme for employees
30. Re-skilling programme when organisations close down
31. Provide on the job training to allow employees enhance their existing skills
32. Offer week-end courses in sectors where there is demand
33. Encourage people to continue study after HSC
34. Encourage training and internship
35. Provide compulsory job placement during studies to allow students to be more familiar
with the job requirements
36. Provide more training to workers to make them more motivated and skillful
37. Provide more trainings and enhancement program to make job seekers multi-skilled
38. Focus on training needed by sectors experiencing shortage of skilled labour
39. Retrain skilled people to help them adapt in a diversified environment
40. Improve education and training policies
41. Provide more training to workers to make them more motivated and skillful, multi-skilled
42. Provide practical training to school leavers
43. There must be more investment in training and education
44. Increase enrollment capacities in universities and technical school
45. Introduce more subjects to students to allow them to innovate and allow them to work
with the fast moving world challenges
37
May be implemented by Employers

1. Increase minimum salary of workers. Increase salary of skilled labour

2. Collaborate with universities and government. Organise regular meeting with educational
institutions
3. Employ fresh graduates and offer them on-the-job training
4. Hire expatriates
5. More advert on available jobs
6. More training for up-skilling
7. Ongoing forecasting of manpower
8. Rebranding of companies in order to attract skilled workers
9. Recruit less foreign workers
10. Organise regular forums for regrouping employers and training institutions
11. Diversification of activities
4.6. Skills development initiatives
4.6.1. Budget allocation for training
The results of this study had painted a grey picture of the status of skills development of this
sector. Table 16 depicts the provision of training budget where 22 percent of ICT companies had
no training budget at all. 3 out of every 4 organisations allocated 1 percent or more of their
budget for training purposes. Nevertheless, another reading could be that ITES/BPO companies
may not have training budget as a caption but training could be under operation or transition
budget or knowledge transfer since eventually all ITES/BPO companies deliver product training
being a prerequisite to meet the service level agreement. Putting the lens closer, 31 percent of
companies in ITES/BPO invested 6 percent or more on training compared to only 19 percent of
companies involved in software development (7 percent for hardware consultancy and 8 percent
for telecommunications).
Table 16: Percentage of budget allocated to training by organisations in ICT
Percentage of total budget Number of Percentage of

allocated to training organisations organisations
None 21 22
Less than 1 1 1
1-3 31 33
4-5 24 25
6 or more 18 19
Of those companies that budgeted less than 6 percent for training, 36 percent said they suffer from a
labour shortage. Of those that budgeted more than 6 percent, 61 percent deplored a labour deficit
in their organisation. It should be noted here that under the Pre-Operational Training Incentive
(POTI) scheme, an advance is offered as incentive to attract investment in emerging sectors which
require a relatively high level of initial skills. The HRDC provides an advance equivalent to 50
percent of the estimated qualifying training costs during the first year of operation of firms which
are in the process of being set up.
38
4.6.2. Preferred mode for acquiring skills
The ICT companies acknowledged the importance of workplace-based training.
While the overwhelmingly preference was for on-the-job training, many attempted to address
the issue of skills in-house.
The preference for on-the-job training might be the cause of many organisations not earmarking a
training budget. As informal training, which is generally unstructured, is not generally approved/
recognised by the Mauritius Qualifications Authority (MQA), it cannot be funded through the Levy
Grant System of the HRDC. Very often small organisations do not have a training department or
lack staff to look into such matters. Seminars and overseas training were least popular in the
ICT Sector. The organisations might not also have the necessary platform to engage in e-learning
mode. The figures are presented in Table 17.
Table 17: Preference (top five) for acquiring the required skills for organisations in the ICT Sector

Most Second most Third most Fourth most Fifth most Total
preferred preferred preferred preferred preferred
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
On-the-job 40 21 18 13 3 95
In-house 17 26 23 19 3 89
Seminars 1 13 12 20 28 74
Tailor-made courses 12 14 13 10 11 60
Learnership 9 6 6 10 16 49
Degree 8 7 6 3 8 34
Diploma 6 4 2 5 9 26
Certified short courses 3 4 12 13 9 41
Overseas training 2 2 6 2 7 20
E-learning 1 2 1 5 5 13
4.6.3. Skills development initiatives
Continual learning is vital in ICT professions in order to keep pace with technical developments.
Knowledge and skills requirements evolve very rapidly and also become obsolete rapidly. Continuing
training in the ICT sector involves not only the enhancement of ICT skills and knowledge, but also
the development of managerial, organisational and interpersonal skills.
Among those who implemented skills development initiatives (representing 61 percent of

employers), a large share (86 percent) used, essentially, training as a measure to address skills
shortfall while re-training was utilised by 51 percent. Upskilling was adopted by 18 percent of
employers together with other popular initiatives. The results are presented in Figure 15.
39
a measure to address skills shortfall while re-training was utilised by 51
percent. Upskilling was adopted by 18 percent of employers together with
other popular initiatives. The results are presented in Figure 15.
Figure Figure
15: Initiatives to address
15: Initiatives skills
to address skillsshortage amongexisting
shortage among existing employees
employees in theinICT
theSector
ICT Sector
Training 53
Re-training 48
Up-skilling 34
Improve wages 32
Improve benefits(non financial) 22
Recruit new employees possessing the necessary skills 13
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
A Arecent
recentGerman
German report states that against
thethe background
of of
thethe demographic situation
as as
3
report 3 states that "against background demographic situation well
well as structural and economic change, an increasing demand for skilled labour is the emerging
as structural and economic change, an increasing demand for skilled labour is the emerging
trend, requiring people to have an ability to engage in lifelong learning. It then diplomatically
trend", requiring
notes that somepeople
schooltoleavers
have an
do "ability
not havetothe
engage in lifelong
required traininglearning".
maturity.It then diplo matically
notes that "some school leavers do not have the required training maturity".
Among the 37 percent of companies who did not have any such initiatives, 65 percent did not plan
to curb the skills shortage of existing employees. This observation was in fact not in line with the
Among themore
finding that 37 than
percent
half ofof
thecompanies who did
employers reported not
labour have However,
scarcity. any such initiatives,
enterprises did not65
structure and non-negotiable adherence to its success requirements
seem to adequately
percent did not invest
plan intoskills
curb development,
the skillsat shortage
least throughofa proper
existingplanning in the wakeThis
employees. of
throughout
new challenges.all
Onelevels
can alsoofseethe
the organisation.
lack of initiativesIn many cases,
in developing existingthe small to
employees size
meetof
observation was in fact
future skills requirements. not in line with the finding that more than half of the
organisations does not allow for such ventures. Yet, three quarter of the
employers reported labour scarcity. However, enterprises did not seem to
Arespondents
few employers in were
thestill
ICTreluctant
Sector to stated
see skillshaving
development as an extremely
a strategic powerful tool inplan
skills development the
adequately invest in skills development, at least through a proper planning in
arsenal of any organisation but then it requires unequivocal commitment and support at the highest
as shown
levels of the in Figure 16.
organisation This finding
structure is in contradiction
and non-negotiable adherence to with the result
its success that 61
requirements
the wake
throughout of new challenges. One can also see the lack of initiatives not in
percent all had levels of thedevelopment
skills organisation. In many cases, the
initiatives small
yet 75sizepercent
of organisations
had a doesskills
allow for such
developing ventures.employees
existing Yet, three quarter
to meetof the respondents
future skills in the ICT Sector stated having a
requirements.
development
strategic plan. Thisplan
skills development could be explained
as shown in Figure 16.byThis
thefinding
fact that a number of
is in contradiction withplans
the
result that 61 percent had skills development initiatives yet 75 percent had a skills development
may not be implemented as intended.
plan. This could be explained by the fact that a number of plans may not be implemented as
Aintended.
few employers were still reluctant to see skills development as an extremely
powerful tool in the arsenal of any organisation but then it requires
Figure 16: Strategic skills development
unequivocal commitment and support
plan for the at the highest levels of the organisation
organisation
3
"Ten Guidelines for the Modernization and Structural Improvement of Vocational Education and Training", Federal Ministry of Education and
Research, Berlin, 2007, pages 12 and 14.
56
4.6.4. Use of the National Training Fund (Levy Grant System)

3
Ten Guidelines for the Modernization and Structural Improvement of Vocational Education and Training, Federal Ministry of
The Levy Grant System is amongst the spectrum of training incentives
Education and Research, Berlin, 2007, pages 12 and 14.
40 available in Mauritius to facilitate training and managed by the HRDC. This

4.6.4. Use of the National Training Fund (Levy Grant System)
The Levy Grant System is amongst the spectrum of training incentives available in Mauritius to
facilitate training and managed by the HRDC. This survey found that a little more than one third
of the ICT firms did not make use of this training incentive as presented in Figure 17. These
organisations may not have a full-fledge HR department or dedicated resource person to look into
these details and ensure a proper follow-up. Others may not be aware of such incentives that
exist.
% claimed
Figure 17: Do you use the Levy Grant of the % claimed
No Figure by
System provided 17:the
Do HRDC?
you use the Levy Grant amount of the
No System provided by the HRDC? Year Number of trainees contributed amount
33%
Year 1108Number of trainees contributed
33% 2005/2006 118
2005/2006 1230 1108 118
2006/2007 111
2006/2007 1391 1230 111
Yes 2007/2008 85
Yes 2007/2008 1452 1391 85
67% 2008/2009 121
67% 2008/2009 1452 121
(Source: HRDC, 2012)
(Source: HRDC, 2012)
4.6.5. Training Needs Analysis

4.6.5. Training Needs Analysis
Nearly 70 percent of ICT enterprises (Figure 18) conducted a Training Needs
4.6.5.
Nearly Training Needs Analysis
70 percent of ICT enterprises (Figure 18) conducted a Training Needs
Analysis (TNA) thus resulting in properly planned and relevant training that is
Analysis
Nearly (TNA)ofthus
70 percent resulting (Figure
ICT enterprises in properly planned
18) conducted and relevant
a Training training
Needs Analysis that
(TNA) thusis
basedresulting
on the industry current and future requirements. Again, the HRDC
based in onproperly planned andcurrent
the industry relevant training that is based
and future on the industry
requirements. currentthe
Again, and future
HRDC
requirements. Again, the HRDC 4
provides refund as support for provides refundTraining
conducting as supportNeeds
for conducting
Analysis Training Needs Analysis
to promote
provides
to as support for conducting Training Needs Analysis4 to promote
refund training.
promote relevant
relevant training.
relevant training.
No
32% No
32%
Yes
68% Yes
Figure 18: Do you carry out any TNA 68%
Figure
before training 18: employees?
your Do you carry out any TNA
before training your employees?
4.7. Recruitment and retention of employees

The issues at hand include both skills shortage as well as lack of required
The issues at hand include both skills shortage as well as lack of required
number
The of people
issues at hand interested
include bothin joining the sector
skills shortage as well as per of
as lack previous
required findings
number ofofpeople
interested in joining the sector as per previous findings of the report. In the face of findings
number of people interested in joining the sector as per previous of
such serious
the report.
skill
In theitface of such serious skill shortages, it is expected that firms
theshortages,
report. In isthe
expected
face that firms serious
of such would implement active policies
skill shortages, it istoexpected
improve thethat
situation.
firms
wouldHowever,
implement it should be noted
active that to
policies theimprove
career route
the possible
situation.for people to join
However, it the ICT especially
should be
would
BPO implement
Sector active policies
is anyway restricted to improve
which does the sector
not make this situation. However,
attractive it should
for job seekers but be
it
notedserves
thatmorethe ofcareer route
an chappatoirepossible for people to join the ICT especially BPO
noted that the career routeforpossible
a temporaryfor job or a part-time
people to join jobthetoICTmeet current needs.
especially BPO
Sector is anyway restricted which does not make this sector attractive for are
Much money is invested in recruitment of candidates to fill up posts and various means jobused.
Sector is anyway restricted which does not make this sector attractive for job
seekers but it serves more of an chappatoire for a temporary job or a part-
seekers but it serves more of an chappatoire for a temporary job or a part- 41
time job to meet current needs. Much money is invested in recruitment of
time job to meet current needs. Much money is invested in recruitment of
A Study on Labour
4.7.1. Recruitment Shortage in the ICT/BPO sector in Mauritius
channels
Newspaper advertisements and use of the services of private recruitment
agencies topped the list. Others had recourse to informal channels, particularly
4.7.1. ofRecruitment
word channels
mouth followed by online recruitment agencies. Merely 4 percent used
the free recruitment
Newspaper service
advertisements provided
and use by the of
of the services Ministry
private of Labour and
recruitment Industrial
agencies topped the
list. Others
Relations. had recourse to informal channels, particularly word of mouth followed by online
recruitment agencies. Merely 4 percent used the free recruitment service provided by the Ministry
of Labour and Industrial Relations.
Figure 19: Most preferred method of recruitment in the ICT Sector
Figure 19: Most preferred method of recruitment in the ICT Sector
Private recruitment agencies 34
Newspapers 34
With regard to the reasons for recruitment

Networking (word of mouth) 16
difficulties, majority of those surveyed
9 considered that there is too much competition

Online recruitment agencies
among employers for applicants; whilst others
Government (Ministry of Labour & IR NEF 4 complained about demand for high salary, many
databases)
employees sought opportunities abroad. Others
Advert on own website 1
regarded the BPO Sector as having a bad image.
The challenge for this sector is now to build its
Headhunting 1
image and improve on its attractiveness in terms
1 of conditions of work and remuneration package.

TV
0 10 20 30 40
A large share (82 percent) of the organisations in the ICT Sector did not face any difficulty to retain
Atheir
large share (82 percent) of the organisations in the ICT Sector did not face
people.
any difficulty to retain their people.
4.7.2. Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting new employees
4.7.2. Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting new employees
Based
Based on on recent
recentresearches,
researches, the new skills
the new
The problem does not necessarily
skills requested by the ICT firms, besides The problem does not the
necessarily lie human
with the
requested by the ICT firms, besides educational lie with quantity of our
educational degree, are often qualities of quantity of ourresources
humanbutresources
with QUALITY. but with
degree, are often
personal nature. Factorsqualities of personal
like attitudes, the nature.
QUALITY.
world-view, personal communication skills
Factors like attitudes, the world-view, personal communication skills etc. are
etc. are more important than before. The new
more
needs important than
are reflecting before. taking
the changes The new
placeneeds
within are reflecting
the ICT industry,the
but changes
also in thetaking
relationship
between the ICT and other sectors. As depicted in Tables 19 to 21, past working experience was
place within the ICT industry, but also in the relationship between the ICT and
predominantly placed before qualifications for the Worker category. The importance of educational
other sectors.
qualifications As higher
raised depicted in Tables layer
the hierarchical 19 to 21,category
of the past working
of employee.experience was
Other requirements
were mainly good placed
predominantly work attitude
beforefor Workers and Specialised
qualifications for theWorkers.
Worker category. The
59
42
Table 18: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Workers in the ICT Sector
Skills and qualities Most Second Third Fourth Fifth Total Difficulty in
preferred most most most most finding
preferred preferred preferred preferred
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Past experience 28 14 4 3 12 61 12
Work attitude 15 22 8 12 6 63 13
Educational qualification 12 5 11 13 11 51 -
Technical skills 4 7 6 7 5 31 2
Communication 8 13 16 7 6 51 6
Decision making - 1 6 8 - 16 -
ICT 1 6 8 5 8 29 2
Analytical skills - - 3 2 2 7 1
Foreign language - - 3 - 2 5 1
Management skills - - - - 2 2 -
Affiliation - - - 1 2 3 -
Table 19: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Specialised worker in the ICT Sector
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Educational qualification 43 22 7 3 8 84 7
Work attitude 8 6 11 15 24 64 6
ICT 8 9 17 9 6 51 7
Decision making 3 - 6 12 11 32 1
Management skills 2 - 3 2 1 8 1
Analytical skills 1 3 7 15 4 31 2
Foreign language 1 5 3 3 1 14 2
Technical skills - 7 12 12 14 44 7
Affiliation - 2 1 3 - 6 1
We now need to learn languages like Spanish, Italian, German
and even mandarin for Mauritius to tap a diverse range of markets

in the global competitive environment
43
Table 20: Skills and qualities employers look for when recruiting Professional Staff in the ICT Sector
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Educational qualification 51 18 4 8 5 86 10
Management skills 14 3 11 6 20 54 14
Work attitude 3 4 9 5 9 32 2
Decision making 3 12 16 17 18 65 6
ICT 3 12 7 8 3 34 2
Affiliation 1 2 5 4 2 15 -
Technical skills 1 3 7 12 8 32 1
Analytical skills 1 4 11 17 13 45 -
Foreign language - - 3 5 4 13 3
We have a generation of clever young people who

lack basic written and communication skills, not to
mention analytical talent
Moreover, relational skills (communication, team work, team management) receives increasing
importance at the higher end of the ladder.
Skills requirements for all ICT professionals are constantly changing and there is a perpetual need
for them to update their professional skills. There is a progressive hybridisation of skills taking
place in ICT professions. Business and management skills are increasingly used alongside technical
ones and indeed, technical skills seem less important in comparison to business and management
skills as ICT Professionals progress in their career.
Employers argue that employees increasingly need a combination

Too many leave university of both technical and management skills and that graduates do
without the right skills! not acquire such skills through a university degree. They also
argue that the graduates do not have management skills but
only technical skills. The challenge is to establish a stronger
link between the higher education institutions and labour market demands specific to the ICT
Sector. This is confirmed by the fact that management skills were a pre-requisite for Professional
staff.
44
Accenture Mauritius
Accenture, incorporated in 2001 started its operation in 2002 with a workforce of 10 people.
Today, it has reinforced its position with around 1200 employees in its 2 main lines of business
Technology Outsourcing and Business Process Outsourcing. It intends to grow to 2000
employees in 5 years time. Will the skills gap be filled and how?
Its main BPO activity comprises of value-adding finance/accounting processes performed by

ACCA levels 1-3. These processes include data entry, reporting and analysis where analytical
skills are essential. Clients are mostly from US and Europe. Technology Outsourcing mainly
comprises software development using technologies such as SAP and Oracle where functional
knowledge is vital (e.g. ERP packages and Business Intelligence).
Given that all its clients are based overseas, Accenture offers plenty of opportunities for
international exposure to its employees (including travel).
The company voiced out a spectrum of concerns ranging from

lack of interest of the young generation to join the ICT sector;
lack of awareness among secondary and tertiary students of career opportunities in the
ICT sector;
lack of readiness of young graduates to adapt to a professional environment and
international standards;
limited skills set of fresh graduates especially with respect to soft skills.
Every year, out of the 328 IT graduates coming from UOM and UTM, only 50% meet Accentures
requirements in terms of entry level requirements.
On top of young graduates, Accenture is also facing a very limited supply of experienced
labour in software development in the local market. Due to the growing business demand,
the company has had to recruit expatriates at higher costs to fill the gaps, but it is becoming
more and more challenging to sustain this practice in the long term.
45
ontrary to this perception, this study shed light on the fact that the ICT
ector as a whole might not be facing much difficulties in retaining skilled
4.7.3. Difficulties in retaining skilled employees
bour since the study found that 82 percent of respondents were able to retain
It is perceived that the ICT and especially the BPO sector is prone to high labour turnover or labour
heir skilled
mobilitypeople
within theas shown
sector. in has
This issue Figure 20.
been put Thisby problem
forward employers as may be they
a problem accentuated
face
with the young generation.
or the BPO sub-sector mainly as described below.
Contrary to this perception, this study shed light on the fact that the ICT Sector as a whole might
he companies faced
not be facing the following
much difficulties difficulties
in retaining skilled labour to retain
since employees:
the study found that 82 percent of
respondents were able to retain their skilled people as shown in Figure 20. This problem may be
Demand for higher pay by employees;
accentuated for the BPO sub-sector mainly as described below.
Poaching by other companies who can pay better wages;
The companies faced the following difficulties to retain employees:
Lack of career prospect;
Demand for higher pay by employees;
Many move by
Poaching abroad;
other companies who can pay better wages;
Lack of career prospect;
People do not join call centres for a career. They usually leave after 1 or 2
Many move abroad;
years. Many
People do join callcall
not join centres
centres normally
for a career.on short
They term
usually leavebasis,
after 1 they no longer
or 2 years. Many want
join call centres normally on short term basis, they no longer want to work at odd hours or
to work at odd
overtime. Therehours or overtime.
is also negative There
opinion about is also negative opinion about
call centre. call
centre.
Figure 20: Does your organisation face any difficulty in retaining skilled people?
Yes
18%
No
82%
4.8. Measures proposed to fill skills gap
Further to the numerous issues faced, employers were requested to propose measures that could
fill the skills gap. Measures cut across the education and training system and Government policies
amongst others.
46
4.8.1. Education and Training system
The industry covers a broad range of activities and hence calls for a broad range of skills. Each sub-
activity has unique characteristics and training needs. Some are more dynamic, more technology
driven while others are more labour intensive. Hence the need for training courses should be
designed with more focus on workplace skills. Many had proposed to have 50 percent theory
and 50 percent practical classes. 73 percent of respondents proposed teaching of more practical
workplace skills followed by delivery of relevant courses which would be possible only through
strong links with employers and education/training providers. Thus, apprenticeship schemes, job
placement opportunities could become compulsory in all programmes of study to be implemented
with the collaboration of employers with a view to bridge the gap between training and requirement
of employers. This suggestion has been provided by employers as a major improvement in the
system.
The need for better links with employers has also been reiterated by 60 percent of respondents.
It is vital to know the current and future needs of the industry in order to uplift the education and
training system accordingly. Training courses should therefore necessarily match the needs of the
market.
Figure 21: Percentage of respondents who ranked
their recommendations among top three
Teach more practical workplace skills and less

73
theory
Offer courses that are relevant to employer

66
demands
Education institutions should build better links

60
with employers
Improve the quality of education 53
Increase standard of education 26
Pay higher salaries to teachers and

5
lecturers/professors to boost their motivation
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
4.8.2. Government
4.8.2. Government Policies
Policies
AAbig chunk
big chunk (80(80 percent)
percent) of respondents
of respondents expressed
expressed the the need
need for effective jobfor effective
placement job
(Refer
to Figure 22). This initiative will help fill the difference between the skills required by employers
placement
and the skills (Refer
possessedto Figure
by the 22).which
applicants Thisvery
initiative willmatch.
often do not helpWhile
fill employers
the difference
would
prefer to hire
between thepeople
skillswho are trainedby
required andemployers
ready to go toand
work,the
they skills
are usually willing to provide
possessed by the
the specialised, job-specific training necessary for those lacking such skills. Most discussions
applicants which workforce
concerning todays very oftenturndo
to not match. While
employability employers
skills. Synergy would
between prefer
relevant to hire
institutions
could also catalyse such an essential element in the value chain.
people

who are trained and ready to go to work, they are usually willing to
provide the specialised, job-specific training necessary for those lacking such
skills. Most discussions concerning today's workforce turn to employability
skills. Synergy between relevant institutions could also catalyse such an 47
essential element in the value chain.
Figure 22: Policies which the Government may consider to fill skills gap
Figure 22: Policies which the Government may consider to fill skills gap
Provide more job placement opportunities 80
Facilitate synergy between Government, universities, 58

vocational training institutions and employers
Raise enrolment in vocational training 53
Improve education and training standards 51
Raise enrolment in universities and vocational training 42
Increase spending on universities and institutes 17
0 20 40 60 80
Percentage
Percentage of
of respondents
respondent
Above 50 percent of respondents pointed out that raising enrolment in

vocational
Above training
50 percent might help
of respondents to out
pointed address the enrolment
that raising skill gap.in Improving education
vocational training might
help to address the skill gap. Improving education and training standards was also suggested
and training standards was also suggested as one of the measures. The gap
as one of the measures. The gap can be partly attributed to a lack of demand for vocational
can be since
training, partlytheattributed
youth may not to find
a lack of demand
the training for their
enhancing vocational
chances training, since
of obtaining a job.the
So
much so employers felt that enough attention is not being put on vocational courses. The factors,
youth may
therefore, notsuppress
which find the thetraining
demand forenhancing
vocational their chances
training ofaddressed.
have to be obtainingThere
a job. So
is also
amuch
need tosovalorise skills in Mauritius
employers felt thatwhich is more
enough and more required
attention by employers
is not being put onto gain an edge
vocational
in this globalised competitive world.
courses. The factors, therefore, which suppress the demand for vocational
training have to be addressed. There is also a need to valorise skills in
4.8.3. Areas of HR where assistance is required
Mauritius which is more and more required by employers to gain an edge in
Finding the Right Person, for the Right Job, at the Right Time and keeping them is the greatest
this globalised competitive world.
challenge. Some organisations will not be interested in adjusting their operation. They are likely
to employ workers with lower skills and will continue to compete on pay, with the inherent
churning of their labour force. In order to become responsive to what employees want and invent
4.8.3. Areas of HR where assistance is required
creative responses to satisfy those needs, training is of utmost importance. Review of benefits and
remuneration is also pivotal if they wish to retain their staff. Weaknesses were therefore felt in
Finding the Right Person, for the Right Job, at the Right Time and keeping
the HR practices. The main HR areas where assistance were indicated by the respondents revolved
them recruitment,
around is the greatest challenge.
selection SomeHRorganisations
and retention, will not
planning, performance be interested
management, in
training
planning and TNA amongst others as depicted in Figure 23.
adjusting their operation. They are likely to employ workers with lower skills
and will continue to compete on pay, with the inherent churning of their labour
force. In order to become responsive to what employees want and invent
creative responses to satisfy those needs, training is of utmost importance.
67
48
recruitment, selection and retention, HR planning, performance management,
training planning and TNA amongst others as depicted in Figure 23.
Figure
Figure 23: Areas
23: Areas in HRin where
HR where organisations
organisations wouldlike
would liketo
tohave
have training
training and
and/ /ororassistance
assistance
Recruitment, selection and retention 57
HR planning 53
Performance management 52
Training planning 51
Training needs analysis 51
Reward management 49
Training evaluation 47
Manpower forecasting 47
Career and talent management 47
Assessment of HRD climate in the organisation 47
Succession planning 43
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Cline at Apollo Blake
Began her career in 2005 as Call Centre Agent at Euro CRM, before being promoted to Team
Leader during the same year and later to Supervisor on different contracts for French clients.
Later she joined Rogers Outsourcing Solutions as Trainer.
In 2008, she was recruited by Outremer Telecom as Trainer and a few months later was promoted
to Quality and Reporting Training Manager and was subsequently in charge of the Customer
Services team (Indian Ocean region).
Given the particular services offered by Apollo Blake in the BPO sector and the use of bilingual
communication (English and French), Cline chose to join Apollo Blake in 2010 as Trainer before
she was promoted to French Training Manager in December 2010, 5 months after she joined the
company.
68
49
4.8.4. Advice to those wishing to join the ICT sector
Across all industries, the complexity of jobs is increasing. Apart from the upgrading of the skill
level demanded in the labour market, technological and occupational changes induce shifts in the
type of skills required (Green et al. 2000). Many policy makers and experts argue that low-skilled
workers can also benefit from the changes in the demand for skills if they receive additional
training (Acemoglu & Pischke, 1999).
Lindbeck & Snower (2000) argued that, in addition, more flexible and multi-skilled workers are
required. This is also acknowledged by 62 percent of respondents who advised multi-skilling for
people to secure a decent job.
The primary concern of employers lies in finding employees with a good work ethic and appropriate
social behaviour, i.e., reliable, good attitude, pleasant appearance and good personality. It is
clear that the new recruit should also have a positive attitude to continuous learning and in this
respect, many employers also provide the necessary training to fill any skills gap. The new recruit
should show a keen interest in his personal development and training, be accountable and strive
for quality. In a nutshell, there is expectation of the right attitude from employers; 56 percent of
respondents favoured a right attitude from employees.
The pattern of development of Mauritius has led to a dramatic transformation of the economy.
Employers are also looking for specialised qualifications. Acquiring more than one degree or,
having overseas exposure was cited by less than 20 percent of ICT enterprises. Whereas excelling
in schooling was stated by some 43 percent. Yet, 62 percent of ICT companies sought multi-skilled
It is worth stating that employers were not merely looking for qualifications but
employees and almost an equal percentage advised students to choose courses that are in demand
by employers.
for skills as well. It is idealistic to have all the employability traits in an
individual but
It is worth thethat
stating latter should
employers were be prepared
not merely lookingto
for learn practical
qualifications but forskills
skills asthrough
well.
It is idealistic to have all the employability traits in an individual but the latter should be prepared
internship as pointed
to learn practical skills out byinternship
through half of the respondents.
as pointed out by half of the respondents.
Figure
Figure 24: 24: Percentage
Percentage ofofrespondents
respondents who
whoranked
rankedthe
thefollowing advices
following among
advices top three
among top three
Try to be multi-skilled as far as possible 62
Choose courses that are demanded by employers 61
Develop the right attitude 56
Learn practical skills through internship 51
Get good marks in your studies. 43
Obtain overseas education 18
Complete more than one degree. 16
0 20 40 60 80
50
5. Conclusion and Recommendation

One of the major factors limiting the growth of ICT in Mauritius and worldwide is the availability
of suitably trained and qualified personnel. Of course workforce size depends on factors other than
training factors such as attracting students (and experienced workers from other disciplines) into
the ICT industry and retaining personnel in the ICT industry through the provision of rewarding
careers. Nonetheless education/training remains a critical factor in the development of the ICT
workforce and thus to the growth of our industry.
The purpose of this study was also to go beyond usual clichs of labour shortage and to carry
out a critical evaluation of the status of ICT skills requirements from the ICT firms operating in
Mauritius.
ICT will continue to be the enabler of development and see increasing integration into all aspects of
the economy. The philosophy, therefore, behind the survey was to take the pulse of the ICT sector
in terms of labour shortage, skills requirement, skills development initiatives in response to skill
problems amongst others. One of the main objectives was also to come up with recommendations
further to which more sustainable solutions could be brought to resolve the labour shortage
dilemma.
For Mauritius to fully leverage and capitalise on the tools and opportunities provided by ICTs in
meeting the manpower planning, it is imperative that the strategic national ICT vision be built
upon vision tempered by realism; planning hinged on adequate and coherent co-ordination, and
adoption of localised solutions for localised challenges. The vision sets the stage and the agenda
has been redefined National Information &Communication Technology Strategic Plan (NICTSP) 2011
2014: Towards i-Mauritius. To realise the many projects specified in this plan, the necessary human
resources have to be available on time and every time. The Government Programme 2012-2015 has
made provision for the following initiatives namely a National Training Strategy, Skills Pledge, ICT
Academy, National Graduate Internship Scheme, National Youth Employment Programme amongst
others.
In the same vein, focus of this report has therefore been put on three strategic thrusts, within which
several policy measures are recommended, although these are not exhaustive at this stage:
1. Attract and retain a qualified workforce;

2. Build R&D and innovative capacity; and
3. Enhance the development of human capital.
51
Attract and retain a qualified workforce: Grow the Talent Pool

No. Proposed actions Description
1. Re-branding of the There is an urgent need for action to address negative

sector perceptions of ICT careers which lead many young people and
those who influence their career choices (such as parents,
- Improving Quality of
teachers, peer groups) to underestimate the opportunities
life by improving the
available in ICT and thus to turn away from considering a
perception on the ICT/
BPO Sector career in ICT/BPO.
- Employers to Developing and delivering an on-going National ICT/BPO

demonstrate clear Awareness consisting of a national communication campaign
career pathways addressing negative perceptions of ICT and highlighting
the opportunities and attractiveness of ICT careers. (Use
- Review recruitment
mobile to sensitize people, e.g send sms to reach the
strategies
young generation, facebook and other social media, clips,
- Promoting tele-working showcasing success stories)
Hand-in-hand facilities (like transport, child care and so

on) should be made available at atypical working hours to
be able to support the sector. Such facilities will help more
women join this sector.
The image and working conditions (e.g. security of employees,

working hours, food and welfare) of the ICT sector need to
be addressed to improve its attractiveness among young
people in the absence employees do not benefit from other
facilities like loans.
Employers need to demonstrate clearer career pathways

supported by intuitive and strategic staff learning to attract
youngsters to this sector.
It is highly appropriate to promote the adoption of tele-

working. Many knowledge-based work styles lend themselves
to tele-working. There is also a need to inculcate this
culture among organisations and ensure that the required
ICT infrastructure is available that support tele-working
where appropriate. Such practices reconciliate work and
family responsibilities, thus may attract more women to this
sector.
Green jobs could be promoted in this sector (e.g. laptops

using solar energy)
52
Effective Job Fairs and Career Fairs to be organised

regularly.
It is now generally acknowledged by governments, leading

2. Promote ICT as a career
industry and professional associations, employers and the
choice
education and training sector that there is an urgent need
- Catch them young for improved targeting of information and advice on ICT
(school-level mentoring courses and careers to school students. It is vital that our
of students on ICT/BPO young people develop a strong awareness along with those
Sector) who influence their careers (such as teachers/lecturers,
parents, opinion leaders).
- Educational counselling
and career guidance
Educational counselling and career guidance for students (at
young age) and opportunities for work placements should
- Sensitise of students on
ICT as a career be pursued. This can be promoted via effectively organised
job fairs, showcasing success stories, open days and other
- Create a better promotion exercises (more decentralised). ICT needs to be
understanding of ICT presented as an attractive career option through the way
professions that it is taught in schools as well.

Create a better understanding of ICT professions, a better
image of the variety of ICT professions, career path for
different professions, benefits provided by organisations and
so on.
3. Create talent surplus There is a pressing need to produce a secure supply of

qualified ICT talent or even talent surplus to create readiness
- Increase enrolment of our labour force to be absorbed at any point in time
by any emerging activity in the sector. Tertiary education
- Balance between quality
and quantity institutions should make the right balance between quality
and quantity.
- Global skills
International affiliations with the local universities could be
- Individuals to ensure explored.
relevance of their skills-
set Educational/training institutions should prepare students
with a solid foundation intertwined with enough flexibility
to be easily moulded, with the capacity to learn and unlearn
through their own initiatives (to be facilitated) as well as
having the right attitude towards work.
Whilst there is, of course, an onus on individuals to ensure

the ongoing relevance of their skill-sets but high costs of
53
selffinancing ongoing skills development can be a potential

barrier to skills upgrading for some IT professionals.
Employers have an equally important role to play, especially
in an environment projected to continue for the foreseeable
future of shortages of ICT personnel.
Many have also deplored the high cost of training in

Mauritius which limits the possibilities of individuals to
afford for example more than one professional qualification/
certification.
Build R&D and innovative capacity

4. Training and Qualifications, experience and loyalty no longer guarantee
Development of career success. The market increasingly demands higher
employees competencies, in broader skill areas and a workforce
committed to, and capable of, continuous improvement.
- Skills in line with the
There is a need to develop workforce with new skills in line
change in technology
with the change in technology and other requirements of the
- Most immediate training sector to sustain its growth.
strategy
The most immediate training strategy to fill the existing gap
- Encourage enrolment for in terms of skills/jobs in demand in the sector should be
doctoral degrees developed for the following: Telemarketing agent/Call Taking
Specialist/Data Entry Operator (other languages besides
- R&D funding on ICT
English and French to be explored), Software Developer
activity should increase
(Java, php, SAP, Siebel, Oracle applications), Software
Engineer, Software Specialist and IT Technician. There is a
pressing need for certified professionals in e-business suite,
supply chain, financial, human capital management amongst
others.
Encourage enrolment for doctoral degrees, especially through

constructing and building higher education systems locally.
Under government intervention, the popularisation and
upgrading of education should build up a rich stock of human
resources and technological research and development
capability. Quality human resources provide an internal
embedded knowledge base, leading to a higher level of R&D
capacity to attract foreign investment for further innovation
in Mauritius.
The governments R&D funding on ICT activity should

increase.
54
Enhance the development of human capital

5. Professionalisation of There is a need to accelerate the move to greater
ICT professionalisation of the ICT industry, including promotion
of appropriate certification of the skills of those working in
- Towards professionalising
ICT. Companies having more certified professionals in their
the sector: e.g.
organisation benefit from privileged partnerships. It also gives
achievement of software
engineering institutes the company more possibilities to compete for international
CMMI accreditation tenders.
- Improving the quality of Such quality standards will allow companies to have a brand
product and service in for ICT services offered by Mauritius.
the ICT Sector for global
competitiveness ICT companies should be encouraged to work to obtain
accreditation like the Capability Maturity Model Integration
- Create a brand name for
(CMMI) or other standards with international organisations.
Mauritius
This will give clients even greater assurance they are
engaging an organisation with the highest levels of project
governance, quality and efficiency.
Continuous learning program could be integrated with

certification/recognition.
Courses like Dot net, ITIL, Hyper V, Cisco, MCSE should be

promoted.
Bootcamp Training -hands-on training could be organised to

accelerate learning and specialisation.
6. Pedagogical The major challenges facing higher education are how to:
transformation to
make curriculum more - Significantly raise the basic skill competencies of those
relevant to industry students entering and graduating from the system.
requirements - Increase the number of people achieving post secondary
education/training qualifications.
- Improve the synergy - Align the new curriculum and outcomes with employer
between education/ expectations.
training providers and - Increase the variety of user-friendly delivery options.
employers - Create a seamless transparent pathway from experience to
education to the skill requirements of the new economy.
- Improve the quality of
graduates from the local
universities
55
- A platform: industry Universities are a major source of new ICT professionals.

academia partnership for However, the rapid rate of technological change creates
skill enhancement challenges for universities to keep pace with the skills needed
to build and maintain new technologies. This nexus, between
- Focus on academic staff
the capabilities of universities and other higher education
quality
bodies and industry needs, relies on effective linkages and
collaborative approaches between industry and universities
to avoid misalignment in the demand and supply cycles.
The universities have privileged partnerships with professional

bodies and such collaborations should be optimised.
They can reach beyond their traditional academic and

institutional walls, become more flexible (industry-led) and
resilient, develop alternative delivery systems, grow more
knowledgeable about the new generation and become the
coalescing force behind a new broadened system of post
secondary education. The new system will continue to provide
high quality education as well as be prepared to address the
important issues of new target populations, academic and
workplace alignment, portability of qualifications, industry
employment pipelines, integrated learning systems, and
strategic alliances.
For this to happen, there is a need to put in place a dynamic

platform for interaction between education/training
providers and employers. The universities with the assistance
of the industry should develop of suitable curricula that
are responsive, flexible and appropriate to ICT industry
requirements.
Lack of talent, in general, was cited as the main barrier

to recruitment by many respondent companies coupled
with price of talent. Cooperative education programmes,
internships and uptodate curricula are needed if Mauritius
wishes to gain an edge.
Training curricula should be at par with the requirements of

the industry for better alignment to the dynamics in a local
labour market through a stronger link between the higher
education institutions and labour market demands specific
to the ICT sector and the developmental needs of society.
56
Delivery of courses by both education and training providers

at flexible working hours could be explored further especially
at late hours or after working time.
There should be focus on the academic staff quality and

competency.
Adequate personnel in ICT at primary, secondary and tertiary

levels should be available.
Emphasis on English and French at Secondary level
Emphasis on English and French at secondary level
The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) should be made

fully operational and ensure that the Credit accumulation and
transfer and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) mechanisms
are integrated.
Low level of numeracy and literacy hamper their training to

become qualified workers.
ICT infrastructure at schools could be looked into to allow

students to use web technologies, programming and so on.
Promote online courses and by distance.
7. Structured and Education and training delivery should ensure structured

extensive job placements for trainees to acquire hands-on experience in
placements
technical skills (both local and abroad). Period of placements
- Work placement as a could be increased and it could start as from Year 2 onwards.
core part of any course It is also essential to plan and scorecard job placement in
the industry.
- Project-based learning
To emphasise the importance of project-based training,
- Employers should have training providers should be given incentives for courses in
proper system in place which the project work component accounts for at least a
certain percentage of the course. The HRDC can subsidise
- Develop soft skills
training for trainees to undertake courses imparting such
skills over a number of years.
On the other hand, sensitisation of employers is important

towards the provision of structured training/placements and
ensuring that they have the necessary system in place to
subject expose the trainee to maximum of work situations.
57
Emphasis should also be put on soft skills training and ethics

to prepare the young generation to obtain an avant-gout
of the nature of work and conditions therewith. This will
enable them join the sector with a positive attitude.
Higher education programmes related to ICT should include

practice-oriented training, for a reasonable period of time,
besides a variety of teaching forms like lectures, seminars,
practical exercises and work placements. Furthermore,
specialist guest lecturers from ICT companies, ICT industry
representatives serving on advisory committees and review
panels, academic secondment to industry on short contracts
should be a general practice. This feature will render the
trainee to the ICT/BPO working environment, organisation
culture and acquaintance to some soft skills as well.
8. ICT Excellence Centres This is a public-private partnership. For professional training,

collaboration among stakeholders is vital. Given the sector is
- ICT Academy dynamic in terms of skills required by employers, this sector
could be led by employers to ensure relevance of curricula.
- Collaboration among
stakeholders is vital
The centre should act as the professional body for the
- Deliver course based on development and advancement of the ICT Sector, where the
TNA sharing of ideas and knowledge inspires, guides and promotes
excellence in curricula, teaching, research and service.
- From pre-employment to
post-employment The Centre should initiate a wide range of ICT courses
(employability skills) from pre-employment programs through
- Recognise hybrid profiles
to para-professional skill development which could:
of people
- promote multi-skilling;
- Promote certification
- ensure the availability of customised and specialised
courses
education and training that produces and upgrades skills and
knowledge;
- Promote soft skills
- promote communications (oral and written) skills in English
and French;
- ensure delivery of courses based on training needs;
- promote certification courses;
- boost non-traditional entrants to the sector;
- promote HRD practices and soft skills;
- provide technical skills to managerial staff and management
skills to technical staff;
- produce a mix of skilled and semi-skilled pool of labour by
tapping school drop-outs and grooming them to be absorbed
by various segments of the industry;
- promote entrepreneurial skills.
58
ICT professions are witnessing a wide diversification. Hybrid

profiles are growing in the emerging professions and even
in the core software professions, but these profiles are not
yet stabilised.
Training to help youngsters acquire professional qualifications

to boost their employability could be held on a regular basis.
E.g. oracle, Cisco, java, Php and so on.
An overall trend evident from the survey is the recognition

of the importance of soft skills, and the need to provide
training in the following areas for all levels of employees
(even managerial since most of them are promoted from
inside and therefore mostly proficient in technical but often
do lack the soft skills): communication skills, teamwork
skills, innovation and creativity, customer responsiveness.
As ICT professionals now work in multidisciplinary

teams dealing with complex problems, they also require
problemsolving abilities, negotiation skills and a capacity to
understand the needs of customers and project colleagues.
Respondents also expressed significant interest in the
development of the following skills: motivation, ability to work
in transverse groups, adaptability, dynamism, excellence of
techniques, honesty, negotiation skills, punctuality at work
and work attitude.
The demand for a range of soft or people skills revealed

through the survey points to the necessity of developing a
comprehensive overall strategy to meet these needs.
9. Provide incentive for To assist education/training providers in the ICT sector

training through financial incentives, special benefits to keep pace
with emerging technologies and its dynamics.
- Increase training
commitments
The survey has found that majority of the training in the
- Education/training sector are informal (which is justified by the very nature

providers to be of the sector, training is mainly inbuilt in either transition
incentivised to keep or operational cost). All stakeholders mainly the umbrella
pace with emerging institutions (MEF, MQA, Sectoral Committees of HRDC, training
technologies institutions, and others) should collaborate to develop a
mechanism where informal training could be refunded and
systemic barriers reduced.
59
- Mechanism to refund Innovative practices in the sector will help to reduce skills
informal training shortages, improve business performance, bring a diverse
range of people into the industry, improve learning for
- Systemic barriers
apprenticeships, higher and further education.
reduced
22 percent of the organisations did not have training

budget at all. The government should consider incentives to
encourage the private sector to develop and further increase
their current training commitments.
10. Transfer of knowledge Ministry of Labour and IR could put in place a mechanism
from foreign labour to to ensure constructive transfer of skills from foreign labour
local people for example work permits for selected technical skills could
contain a clause to make room for transfer of skills. Mauritius
is ranked 63rd and scored 4.8 on FDI and technology transfer
in the Global Competitiveness Report 2011/2012.
Follow-up should be done to ensure that transfer of skills has

been effected and work permits approved accordingly. Such
practices should be monitored closely.
11. ICT Skills Audit To have this repository of information, certain tasks need to
be undertaken. There is a lack of quantitative ICT workforce
- Conduct study on profile on the current size and shape of our ICT workforce as well
of ICT Professionals as the consideration of supply and demand of ICT workers in
the near future. It is essential therefore to conduct a study
- Review nomenclature of
on number and profile of ICT professionals (ICT Skills Audit)
ICT occupations
of the ICT/BPO sector. This study will help paint a picture
- Harmonise common of the ICT employees in terms of qualifications, experience,
occupations their life cycle and skills.
Data could be collected per sub-activity like ITES, BPO, Call

centres, ICT given that they are different in dynamics.
A review of the nomenclature of ICT occupations will also

be necessary to advise on the harmonisation of common
occupations and job titles. Without this intelligence, it will
be difficult evaluate the gap between supply and demand for
ICT workers.
12. Interactive platform for To develop a medium term training strategy for future skills
recruitment and skills requirement for the sector with the collaboration of all the
requirement information players of the sector. A mechanism should be developed
sharing
60
- Dynamic website for whereby employers could inform decision makers about
interaction their needs in terms of skills (e.g. an effective Labour Market
Information System).
- Employers to post their
skills needs
A dynamic website specific to the ICT sector could be created
where employers can constantly post their short term, medium
term and long term skills requirements. Improved information
on skills in demand and ICT occupations and careers are
needed by industry, employers, ICT professionals, students
and education and training providers. This information will
enhance training and career planning, course and curriculum
development, and assist government policy development.
This information would serve policy makers and education/
training providers to tune their deliverables to serve the
industry at their best at any point in time.
13. Foster public-private As already recommended in the National Human Resource

partnership Development Plan (NHRDP) 2009, a single strong industry
association (taking the model of NASSCOM in India) is vital to
- A single strong voice of
pro-actively act as a bridge to dialogue with the Government
the industry
on key front end and back end to help drive initiatives at
national, regional and international levels.
61
The recommendations in this report suggest key areas to be addressed by government, industry,
and education and training providers.
In the end, and compounding the overall picture gleaned from the survey, the predominant
prognosis appears to be that the skills situation in the ICT/BPO Sector may get worse over the
short to medium term. It cannot be emphasised enough, there is an urgent need to re-brand and
market the ICT profession so that more bright students will enrol in ICT courses and more ICT
practitioners will consistently upgrade their skills to remain relevant and valuable in this field.
More synergy is required among the education/training providers to train our youth proactively
in skills required by employers in the future. The government should urgently consider additional
incentives to encourage the private sector to develop and further increase their current training
commitments.
Eventually, it is essentially important to come up with an ICT Human Resource Development

framework developed by a national level Skills Taskforce or HR Taskforce that could be set up at
the HRDC to holistically resolve short term, medium term and long term skills needs of the sector.
This taskforce could identify opportunities for concrete, collaborative action to address skills
development challenges that are common to all sectors. It might help to determine where HRD
activities might best be directed to maximise effectiveness and prevent duplication of effort.
The case study on Mauritius in the World Economic Forums Global IT Report, entitled The Making
of a Digital Nation: Toward i-Mauritius, enumerates the milestones met in the ICT sector reform of
Mauritius. It stipulates that continued and sustained efforts to bring down the costs of international
connectivity, to improve the quality of the workforce, and promote a business-friendly environment
will further ensure that Mauritius becomes a preferred platform and solutions provider in the
global ICT/BPO realm.
62
6. References
1) Development of a Multi-Factor Set of Country-Level ICT Human Resource Capacity Indicators
UN-APCICT. 2012. Available at: http://www.unapcict.org/ecohub/resources/development-
of-a-multi-factor-set-of-country-level.
2) The Global Information Technology Report 20102011, Transformations 2.0, 10th Anniversary
Edition
3) The Global Competitiveness Report 20102011
4) Hardiness Personality, Self-Esteem and Occupational Stress among IT Professionals,

S.Subramanian and .Vinothkumar
5) Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology,

October 2009, Vol. 35, Special Issue, 48-56.
6) Tertiary Education Commission Graduate Tracer Study, 2011
7) Manpower Development in Nigeria: Conceptual and Methodological Perspectives, Omodia

Stephen Monday
8) Challenge to ICT manpower planning under the economic restructuring: Empirical evidence
from MNCs in Singapore and Taiwan Connie Zheng, Mei-Chih Hu, Science Direct, Technological
Forecasting & Social Change 75 (2008) 834853
9) White Paper Post Crisis: e-skills are needed to Drive Europes Innovation Society, Marianne
Kolding Curtis Robinson, Mette Ahorlu, November 2009
10) ICT Human Capital Development Framework by the National Human Resource Taskforce,
Malaysia, 2010
11) Labour Market Highlights 2011/12, Singapore Workforce Development Agency, Ministry of
Manpower
12) MSC Malaysia Supply-Demand Study of the ICT Industry
13) Overview of the ICT Situation and Diffusion in Thailand, ICT Manpower Development,
Somchai Suksiriserekul
63
Appendix I
Future Labour/skills requirements in the ICT Sector
No. Job title 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Qualification
1. 3D & Multimedia Designer 5 20 Bachelor degree
2. Cabling Technician 2 5 Vocational qualification
3. Call Taking Specialist 20 HSC passed
4. Computer Engineer 1 University diploma
5. Computer Network Specialist 20 30 Bachelor degree
6. Computer support officer 1 Bachelor degree
7. Computer Technician 7 1 University diploma/

Bachelor degree/Vocational
qualification
8. Correcteur/Relecteur 1 University diploma
9. Data Entry Operator 12 SC passed/HSC passed
10. Data Input Clerk 8 HSC passed
11. Database Administrator 1 2 Professional qualification
12. Electronic Technician 2 4 Vocational qualification
13. Engenieur Exploitation 1 Bachelor degree
14. Engineer 4 6 Bachelor degree
15. Gestionnaire Des Dossier 3 10 Vocational qualification

Dappel Doffre
16. Graphic Artist 2 Professional qualification
17. Graphic Designer 4 Bachelor degree
18. Hospitality Software Consultant 2 Professional qualification
19. Hotline Operator 1 HSC passed
20. IT Administrator 2 Bachelor degree
21. IT Analyst 2 Bachelor degree
22. IT Engineer 6 Bachelor degree
23. IT Manager 1 Bachelor degree
24. IT Programmer 4 2 University diploma
25. IT Security Specialist 2 Bachelor degree
26. IT Technical Developer 2 University diploma
64
No. Job title 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Qualification
27. IT Technician 8 8 Vocational qualification/

Professional qualification
28. Java Programmer 5 Bachelor degree
29. Junior Software Developer 2 University diploma
30. Layout Artist 2 Vocational qualification
31. Linux/Unix System Administrator 4 10 Professional qualification
32. Marketing Executive 1 Bachelor degree
33. Marketing Officer 5 University diploma
34. Microsoft System Administrator 4 10 Professional qualification
35. Moderator 20 SC/HSC passed
36. Motion Designer 5 20 University diploma
37. Online Interviewer 45 HSC passed
38. PHP Programmer 4 Bachelor degree
39. Project Manager 4 Bachelor degree
40. Responsable de Bureau detude 1 Bachelor degree
41. Senior Integrator 5 20 University diploma
42. Senior/Software Engineer 32 2 Bachelor degree
43. Software Architect 6 Bachelor degree
44. Software Developer 52 47 20 10 10 HSC passed/University
(Inclu. Java, php) diploma/Bachelor degree
45. Software Specialist Professional qualification
46. System Analyst 10 University diploma
47. Team Leader 2 University diploma
48. Tele Sales Agent 290 225 SC /HSC passed
49. Telemarketing agent 80 50 50 50 HSC passed
50. Tele-operator 20 HSC passed
51. Web Developer 2 5 Professional qualification
52. Webmaster 20 Professional qualification
TOTAL 646 522 74 60 60
65
Appendix II
Questionnaire ID:.......................................................
Interviewers name:....................................................
Labour Interviewers ID:........................................................
Shortage Name of contact person:..............................................
Survey 2011 Signature of contact person:.........................................
Telephone:...............................................................
Supervisor:...............................................................
Date on which interview is conducted:.............................
Aim of survey: To reduce the mismatch between demand and supply of labour.
Objectives of the survey

For each sector:
1. To assess the current situation of labour shortage;
2. To identify the immediate and future specific skills requirement;
3. To identify the profile of employees required by employers; and
4. To make recommendations for policy makers to devise strategies to reduce the labour
mismatch.
Definitions
Labour/Skill shortage: It refers to a shortfall in the number of individuals in the labour force required to
meet the demands for employment. It sometimes denotes the possible mismatch between workers and
jobs in the economy.
Skills: Skills can be described in different types and they can be split into a number of different categories.
Basic skills, such as literacy and numeracy, and generic skills, such as team working and communication,
are applicable in most jobs. Specific skills tend to be less transferable between occupations. Most
occupations use a mix of different types of skills and within each skill there are different levels of
ability. For skills to benefit the economy, they must be economically valuable. That is, they must benefit
individuals through higher wages and businesses through improved productivity.
Employees have been classified into three (3) broad categories:

1. Worker: A worker is a labourer or non-technical staff. Their work is mostly manual and repetitive.
Examples include cleaner and plantation worker.
2. Specialised worker: A specialised worker requires some form of education or training to master
skills. Their work is mostly repetitive, but requires a level of skill or understanding that is slightly
more sophisticated than manual work. Examples include seamstress, carpenter, mechanic,
maintenance staff, data entry operator, receptionist and cashier.
3. Professional staff: Professional staff is more independent and perform a variety of tasks. They
require a higher level of education and/or experience to be able to fulfill their roles. Examples
include managers, supervisors, accountants, IT staff, administrative staff and other employees
engaged in professional services.
66
8.2 Questionnaire
Section I: Labour shortage in your sector of operation
1. (a) Is your sector of activity experiencing labour shortage. Yes 1 No 2 (If No to Q1(a), go to Q4)
(b) How do you foresee this labour shortage over the next five years in your sector of operation?
Worsening 1 Improving 2 Remaining the same 3

2. How do you describe labour shortage in your sector? (Please tick only one option in each categories A
and B)
A. Lack of people with required:

qualifications ONLY (certificates) 1
sufficient past working experience ONLY 2
both qualifications and sufficient past working experience 3
Others (please specify): 4
B. Lack of people with required:

technical skills to do the job 1
soft skills (e.g. attitude, team spirit etc.) 2
both technical skills to do the job and soft skills 3
3. What are the reasons for the labour shortage in your sector of operation? For each reason, please
circle one option from: 1: Extremely important, 2: Important, 3: Not Important at all, 4: Not
required/Not applicable
Reasons 1 2 3 4

Education system does not meet market demands 1 2 3 4
Training system does not meet market demands 1 2 3 4
People do not have the right attitude toward work 1 2 3 4
People are not sufficiently proficient in language 1 2 3 4
People are not sufficiently proficient in numeracy 1 2 3 4
People are not sufficiently proficient in ICT 1 2 3 4
People are not sufficiently proficient in technical skills 1 2 3 4
Low wages compared to other sectors 1 2 3 4
Unfavourable conditions of employment
compared to other sectors 1 2 3 4
Employees not willing to work on shift 1 2 3 4
Employees not willing to adopt flexi time 1 2 3 4
Employees not willing to work overtime 1 2 3 4
Not sufficient job security compared to other sectors 1 2 3 4
have a negative opinion about this sector 1 2 3 4
Others (please specify) 1 2 3 4
67
Section II: Labour shortage in your organisation
A. Current labour requirement in your organisation
4. Please fill in the table below about the people you employ in your organisation currently.
For Minimum education level, select one option from: 0: Education not important 1:
Incomplete primary 2: CPE Passed 3: Incomplete secondary 4: SC passed 5: HSC passed 6:
Vocational qualification (e.g. NTC2 passed, NTC3 passed) 7: Professional qualification (e.g.
ACCA) 8: University Diploma 9: Bachelor degree 10: Post-graduate (e.g. MSc, PhD)
Staff Do you How many? Minimum Education level Experience required

Category employ? required (Please circle only one (Please circle one option
(Please circle) in each category) for each type of worker)

As at 31 May 2011 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Definitely require 1
Worker1 Yes 1 No 2 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Depends 2
Not at all 3
Specialised Yes 1 No 2 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Depends 2
Worker
2
Not at all 3

Professional Yes 1 No 2 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Depends 2
Staff
3
Not at all 3
5. How would you describe the existing pool of skills in your organisation per category of
employee? (Please circle one option for each type of worker)
Meets basic Does not meet Requires Underdeveloped Not

requirements basic upgrade applicable
requirements
Worker1 1 2 3 4 5
Specialised worker2 1 2 3 4 5
Professional staff3 1 2 3 4 5
68
6. Besides the technical and generic skills, how much importance would you attach to the
following soft skills (e.g. communications skills, team spirit etc)? Please circle one option
from 1: Extremely important, 2: Important, 3: Not Important at all, 4: Not required/Not
applicable
Worker Specialised Worker Professional staff
Communication 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Ability to work in 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
team
Ability to innovate 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
and create
Ability to understand 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
needs of customers
Others (please specify)
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
69
70
B. Future labour / skills requirements in your organisation
7. (a). Do you have a labour shortage in your organisation currently? Yes 1 No 2
(b). Do you think there will be a net increase in the number of employees by 2012 in your organisation? Yes 1 No 2
(c). If you are looking for labour, please list the top five job titles where there is a shortage
in your organisation in order of most acute deficiency?
For each job title, please mention the specific skills (S) and highest qualification (Q) you are looking for and the number of employees
(N) required.
N: Number to be recruited
S: Skills required: A: Highly skilled Labour , B: Skilled Labour, C: Semi-skilled Labour, D: Unskilled Labour
Q: Highest qualification required: 0: Education not important 1: Incomplete primary 2: CPE Passed 3: Incomplete secondary 4: SC passed 5: HSC passed 6:
Vocational qualification (e.g. NTC2 passed, NTC3 passed) 7: professional qualification (e.g. ACCA) 8: University Diploma 9: Bachelor degree 10: Post-graduate
(e.g. MSc, PhD)
By December 2011 By December 2012 By December 2013 By December 2014 By December 2015
Job title N S Q Job title N S Q Job title N S Q Job title N S Q Job title N S Q
1. 1. 1. 1. 1.
2. 2. 2. 2. 2.
3. 3. 3. 3. 3.
4. 4. 4. 4. 4.
5. 5. 5. 5. 5.
8. (a).Has your organisation implemented any initiatives to help address the skill shortage among
existing employees?
Yes 1 No 2 IF No go to Q8(c)
(b). If Yes to Q8 (a), what are these initiatives? (You may tick more than one option)
Training 1 Improve benefits (non financial) 4

Re-training 2 Improve wages 5
Up-skilling 3 Recruit new employees possessing the necessary skills 6
Any other initiatives?
(c). If you answered No to question Q8(a), are there any plans for such initiatives in the future?

Yes 1 No 2
9. Do you have a strategic skills development plan for your organisation? Yes 1 No 2
10. Do you use the Levy Grant Scheme provided by the HRDC? Yes 1 No 2
11. Do you carry out any TNA before training your employees? Yes 1 No 2
12. What percentage of your organisations annual budget is allocated
to skills development and training programmes? _________ (%)
13. Specify your preference (top five) for acquiring the required skills for your organisation?
(Please rank 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; 1: most important)
Preference for acquiring the required skills Rank Rank
a) On the job / mentoring (informal g) Diploma/Certificate

learning)/knowledge sharing from a University
b) In-house (company organises h) Degree from a University
the training)
c) Learnership/internship i) E-learning/Blended/
distance learning
d) Tailor-made courses j) Overseas training
e) Seminars / workshops /
short courses (Non-award) k) Others (please specify):
f) Certified short courses (award)
C. Recruitment and Retention of employees in your organisation
14. What is your most preferred method of recruitment? Please tick one option only
Newspapers 1 Government (Ministry of Labour & IR and NEF databases) 4

TV 2 Networking/word of mouth 5
Private recruitment agencies 3 Headhunting 6

71
15. Does your organisation face any difficulty in retaining skilled people? Yes 1 No 2
16. If Yes to Q15, what are the major difficulties your organisation faces to retain skilled people?
1.
2.
3.
17. In each column please rank the five most important skills and qualities you look for when
hiring new employees in your organisation? (please rank 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; 1: most important).
*Is it difficult to find? Please tick where you think it is difficult only.
Worker1 R * *Specialised Worker2 R * *Professional Staff3 R *

a a a
n n n
k k k
1. Educational qualification 1. Educational qualification 1. Educational qualification
2. Past experience 2. Past experience 2. Past experience
3. ICT, Numeracy, Literacy 3. ICT, Numeracy, Literacy 3. ICT, Numeracy, Literacy
4. Decision making & 4. Decision making & 4. Decision making &
5. Problem solving 5. Problem solving 5. Problem solving
6. Analytical skills 6. Analytical skills 6. Analytical skills (able
(able to analyse (able to analyse to analyse information)
information) information) or speaking)
7. Communication 7. Communication 7. Communication
(writing or speaking) (writing or speaking) (writing or speaking)
8. Affiliation to professional 8. Affiliation to professional 8. Affiliation to professional
association (e.g. ACCA, association (e.g. ACCA, association (e.g. ACCA,
CIPD) CIPD) CIPD)
9. Foreign language 9. Foreign language 9. Foreign language
10. Technical skills 10. Technical skills 10. Technical skills
(job specific) (job specific) (job specific)
11. Work attitude 11. Work attitude 11. Work attitude
12. Management leadership 12. Management leadership 12. Management leadership
13. Other (please specify): 13. Other (please specify): 13. Other (please specify):
18. State the qualifications where you find difficulty to recruit?(eg. BSc Forensic Science, MSc
Finance, ACCA level 1)
72
Section III: How to reduce the skills gap and increase employment?
19. (a). Mauritius is experiencing labour shortage. Do you agree? Yes 1 No 2 (If No Q 19 (a), go to Q 21)
(b). How severe do you think the labour shortage is?
Extremely severe 1 Tolerable 2 Not severe at all 3
(c). Why do you think Mauritius is experiencing a labour shortage? Please state three (3) reasons starting
with the most important one.
1.
2.
3.
(d). How do you foresee this labour shortage over the next five years in Mauritius?

Worsening 1 Improving 2 Remaining the same 3

20. State five reasons (starting with the most important one) to explain why it is difficult to recruit
skilled labour in Mauritius.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
21. State five measures that should be taken (and by whom) to reduce mismatch between demand and
supply of skilled labour? (starting with the most important)
Measures By whom? (e.g. the Government, individuals,

organisation e.g HRDC)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
73
22. What advice would you give to young Mauritians to help them find a good job? (Please rank
only three; rank 1 = most important)

Get good marks in your studies. Complete more than one degree.

Try to study overseas (if possible). Choose courses that are demanded by
employers; not just the easy or
popular courses.

Learn practical skills by volunteering/ Develop the right attitude be professional,
internship in organisations. prepared to work hard, willing to learn.

Try to be multi-skilled as far as possible. Other (please specify):
23. What changes would you recommend to the education and training system to address the skills gap?
(Please rank only three; rank 1 = most important)
Teach more practical workplace skills Require higher standards for students to pass.
and less theory.

Offer courses that are relevant to employer Education institutions should build better
demands; not just courses that links with employers so they know
are easy to teach. what skills to teach.

Improve the quality of education Other (please specify):
(course content, study materials,
teacher quality).

Pay higher salaries to teachers and lecturers/
professors to boost their motivation.
24. What laws or policies can the Government amend / develop to address the skills gap?
(Please rank only three; rank 1 = most important)

Provide more job placement opportunities. Improve education and training standards.

Raise enrolment in universities and Facilitate better communication/
vocational training. synergy between Government, universities,
vocational training institutions and employers.

Raise enrolment in vocational training. Other (please specify):

Increase spending on universities
and institutes (more teachers,
higher salaries, better facilities).
25. Which of the following areas in HR your organisation would like to have training and / or assistance?
(Please rank ; rank 1 = most important)

Assessment of HRD climate in the organisation Training planning
Recruitment, selection and retention Training evaluation
Career and talent management Succession planning
Reward management HR planning
Performance management Others, please specify:
Training needs analysis
Manpower forecasting
74
26. Any other comment:
Section IV: Organisation Details
27. Name of your organisation:...............................................................................
28. Sector of operation:

Agriculture 1 Construction 6
Manufacturing 2 Finance 7
Seafood 3 EOE 8
Tourism 4 Public Sector 9
ICT 5 Other Economic Activities 10

29. Main activity:...............................................................................................
30. What is your current job title?

General Manager 1 Operations Director or Manager 3
Human Resources Director
or Manager 2 Other (please specify) 4

31. How many full-time staff does your organisation currently employ?
1 to 5 1 101 to 200 5
6 to 10 2 201 to 300 6
11 to 50 3 301 to 500 7
51 to 100 4 Above 500 8
32. How many part-time staff does your organisation currently employ?
1 to 9 1 10 to 50 2 51 to 100 3 Above 100 4
33. Please specify the number of foreign/expatriate staff your organisation currently employs
per level.
Worker1: Specialised Worker2: Professional Staff3:
THANK YOU VERY MUCH
75
Appendix III
Number of registered professional jobseekers with ICT qualifications,
as at 6 June 2012
EIC Male Female Total
Curepipe 1 2 3
Flacq 17 4 21
Mahebourg 1 5 6
Mapou 4 6 10
Port Louis 8 5 13
Quartier Militaire 5 4 9
Quatre Bornes 4 4 8
Riv. Des Anguilles 1 5 6
Riv. Du Rempart 9 10 19
Rose Belle 9 1 10
Rose Hill 1 2 3
Triolet 6 9 13
Vacoas 1 2 3
Workfare - ESMO 6 5 11
Total 73 64 135
Source: LMI UNIT
76
Appendix IV
Number of expatriates working in the ICT Sector, as at 6 June 2012
JOB TITLE MALE FEMALE TOTAL

1. DEVELOPER 1 - 1
2. DIRECTEUR TECHNIQUE 1 - 1
3. FORMATRICE DALLEMAND - 1 1
4. TECHNICIEN DAUTOCAD POUR AS-BUILT TRAVAUX TELECOMS 1 - 1
5. 3D GRAPHIC DESIGNER 1 - 1
6. ACCOUNTANT 26 21 47
7. ADMINISTRATIVE ACCOUNTANT - 1 1
8. ANALYST / PROGRAMMER 1 - 1
9. ASSEMBLER 4 - 4
10. ASSISTANT MANAGER (BILLING) 1 - 1
11. ASSISTANT MANAGER (TECHNICAL) 5 - 5
12. ASSISTANT MANAGER(FINANCE) 1 - 1
13. AUTO CAD OPERATOR (SUPERIOR GRADE) 1 - 1
14. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR 1 - 1
15. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER 1 - 1
16. BUZZ MARKETING MANAGER 1 - 1
17. CABLE SPLICING EXPERT (SUPERIOR GRADE II) 3 - 3
18. CABLE TECHNICIAN 3 - 3
19. CALL CENTRE OPERATOR - 1 1
20. CALL CENTRE TRAINER AND QUALITY CONTROL 1 - 1
21. CAMPAIGN MANAGER 1 - 1
22. CARE - GIVER - 1 1
23. CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT 1 - 1
24. CHEQUE PRINTING TECHNICIAN 1 - 1
25. CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER 3 - 3
26. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER 1 - 1
27. CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER - 1 1
28. CHIEF TECHNICAL OFFICER 1 - 1
29. COMMERCIAL CONSULTANT 1 - 1
30. CONSEILLER PEDAGOGIQUE 2 2 4
31. CONSULTANT 1 - 1
32. CONSULTANT IN JEWELLERY 1 - 1
33. CONTRACT MANAGER 1 - 1
34. COOK 1 - 1
35. CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE 1 - 1
36. DATABASE ADMINISTRATOR 1 - 1
37. DEPUTY CHIEF EXECUTIVE / CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER 1 - 1
38. DEPUTY MANAGER (FINANCE) 1 - 1
39. DEPUTY MANAGER (TECHNICAL) 4 - 4
40. DEVELOPER 1 - 1
41. DIRECTEUR DE PRODUCTION EN TELEMARKETING HUMANITAIRE 1 - 1
42. DIRECTOR 6 1 7
43. DIRECTOR OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT CENTRE 1 - 1
44. DIRECTOR OF STUDIES - 1 1
45. DOCUMENT MANAGER - 1 1
46. EBS EXPERT 1 - 1
77

47. ELECTRONIC AND TRAFFIC LIGHTS COMPUTER
OPERATOR (TECHNICIAN) (GRADE II) 2 - 2
48. ELECTRONIC ENGINEER 1 - 1
49. ELECTRONICS AND TRAFFIC LIGHTS
COMPUTER OPERATOR (TECHNICIAN) 1 - 1
50. ERP SUPPORT ASSISSTANT - 1 1
51. ERP SUPPORT ASSISTANT - 1 1
52. FINANCE OFFICER 1 1 2
53. GENERAL MANAGER 1 - 1
54. GRAPHIC DESIGNER 1 - 1
55. HIGHDEAL TRANSACTIVE BILLING TRAINER 1 - 1
56. I.T CONSULTANT 2 - 2
57. I.T DEVELOPER 2 - 2
58. INTERN 1 1 2
59. INTERPRETOR - 1 1
60. IT CONSULTANT 3 - 3
61. IT CONSULTANT - SOFTWARE DEVELOPER MANAGER 1 - 1
62. IT DEVELOPER 14 4 18
63. IT ENGINEER - DATABASE ADMINISTRATOR 1 - 1
64. IT SPECIALIST 1 - 1
65. IT TRAINER & CONSULTANT 1 - 1
66. IT TRAINER AND CONSULTANT 1 - 1
67. IT TRAINING OFFICER - 1 1
68. ITEM PROCESSING CONSULTANT 1 - 1
69. LARGE SCALE SYSTEMS INTEGRATION EXPERT 1 - 1
70. LINESMAN 9 - 9
71. LOGISTICS MANAGER 1 - 1
72. MACHINE OPERATOR 1 - 1
73. MANAGER 2 - 2
74. MANAGER - APPLICATIONS DEVELOPMENT - 1 1
75. MANAGER LOGISTIC MANAGEMENT - 1 1
76. MANAGING DIRECTOR 12 - 12
77. MARKETING OFFICER - 1 1
78. MOBILE PHONE TECHNICIAN 1 - 1
79. NETWORK ENGINEER 1 - 1
80. NURSE EDUCATOR - 1 1
81. OPERATION & MAINTENANCE FOR EMTEL GSM 1 - 1
82. OPTIC FIBRE CABLE SPLICER 2 - 2
83. OPTIMIZATION ENGINEER 1 - 1
84. ORACLE APPLICATION FINANCIAL FUNCTIONAL CONSULTANT 1 - 1
85. ORACLE APPLICATION FUNCTIONAL CONSULTANT 1 - 1
86. ORACLE DATABASE ADMINISTRATOR 1 - 1
87. ORACLE TECHNICAL CONSULTANT 1 - 1
88. OUTDOOR REPAIRMAN 3 - 3
89. PIXEL ARTIST 1 - 1
90. PROJECT DIRECTOR 1 - 1
91. PROJECT ENGINEER 1 - 1
92. PROJECT MANAGER 3 - 3
78

93. RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING MANAGER - 1 1
94. REEFER TECHNICIAN 2 - 2
95. REPRESENTATIVE 1 - 1
96. RIGGER - GRADE I 6 - 6
97. RIGGER GRADE I 2 - 2
98. RUSSIAN SPEAKING ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR 1 - 1
99. SALES ACCOUNTANT 1 1 2
100. SENIOR ACCOUNTANT - 1 1
101. SENIOR IT DEVELOPER 4 - 4
102. SENIOR IT ENGINEER / CONSULTANT 1 - 1
103. SENIOR MARKETING OFFICER 1 - 1
104. SENIOR SIEBEL DEVELOPER 1 - 1
105. SENIOR SOFTWARE DESIGNER 1 - 1
106. SENIOR SOFTWARE DEVELOPER 3 - 3
107. SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER 2 1 3
108. SENIOR TECHNICAL SUPPORT ENGINEER 1 - 1
109. SENIOR TECHNICIAN 2 - 2
110. SITE AGENT 1 - 1
111. SOFTWARE DEVELOPER 5 - 5
112. SOFTWARE ENGINEER 8 1 9
113. STUDENT - 2 2
114. SYSTEMS ENGINEER 1 - 1
115. TEACHER - 1 1
116. TEAM LEAD - 1 1
117. TECHNICAL SUPERVISOR 1 - 1
118. TECHNICAL SUPPORT AND TRAINING 1 - 1
119. TECHNICIAN 1 - 1
120. TECHNICIAN GRADE I 2 - 2
121. TECHNICIAN IN AUDIOVISUAL 1 - 1
122. TECHNICIEN DAUTOCAD POUR AS-BUILT TRAVAUX TELECOMS 1 - 1
123. TELECOM LINEMAN 3 - 3
124. TELECOM LINEMAN GRADE 2 1 - 1
125. TELECOM TECHNICAL SUPERVISOR (SUPERIOR GRADE I) 4 - 4
126. TELECOM TECHNICIAN 6 - 6
127. TELECOM TECHNICIAN (SUPERIOR GRADE) 2 - 2
128. TELECOM TECHNICIAN OFC - SUPERIOR GRADE 1 - 1
129. TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEER 7 2 9
130. TRAINEE - 3 3
131. TRANSLATOR 3 3 6
132. VISITING CHAIR OF PROFESSOR IN SANSKRIT
AND INDIAN PHILOSOPHY 1 - 1
133. VISITING LECTURER 1 - 1
134. WEB DEVELOPER 2 - 2
135. WORKSHOP ASSISTANT 4 - 4
TOTAL 242 56 298
Work permits are approved subject to the training of a Mauritian counterpart

Source: LMI UNIT
79
Appendix V
ICT Statistics
Number of cellular subscribers (000) in 2010: 1190.9
Internet subscribers (000): 284.2
Table 7: Persons aged 5 years and above who can use computer by age-group and sex 2010
Age-group (years) Male(%) Female (%) Both sexes (%)
5-11 69.6 68.8 69.2
12-19 89.8 92.8 91.3
20-29 74.0 73.1 73.5
30-39 51.8 48.0 49.9
40-49 40.9 30.4 35.6
50-59 34.2 20.4 27.2
>=60 14.9 4.9 9.2
Total 54.9 47.8 51.3
Source: Continuous Multi Purpose Household Survey (CMPHS)
80
Table 8: Persons aged 12 years and above using computer and Internet by age-group, 2008 and 2010
Percentage of persons aged 12 years and above (%) using
Age-group (years) Computer Internet
2008 2010 2008 2010
12-19 77.9 85.2 42.3 58.3
20-29 47.8 61.6 34.4 50.7
30-39 30.5 38.7 18.9 28.1
40-49 24.8 29.2 14.2 19.2
50-59 19.0 23.6 12.5 17.6
>=60 4.1 6.7 3.1 5.1
Total 35.4 41.7 21.8 30.5
Souce: Continuous Multi Purpose Household Survey (CMPHS)
81
ICT Usage in education, 2006-2010
Educational level 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
1. Primary education
(i) Primary school having Internet access for students (%) 4.8 5.9 6.0 19.9 55.7
(ii) Students per computer in primary schools (Number) 163 63 38 25 27
2. Secondary education
(i) Seccondary schools having Internet access fro students for study purposes (%) 89.2 93.8 93.6 95.7 94.7
(ii) Students per computer in secondary schools (Number)1 26 26 25 22 22
(iii) Students examined in ICT at School Certificate level
Number 4,177 4,571 4,624 4,636 5,241
Percentage 25 26 26 27 26
iii) Students examined in ICT at Higher School Certificate level
Number 822 920 933 952 977
Percentage 10.2 10.8 10.5 10.0 10.0
3. Tertiary education2

Student enrolled in ICT or an ICT-dominated field at tertiary level
Number 3,971 3,700 3,448 3,475 3,694
Percentage 12.0 10.6 8.9 8.5 8.3
1
Figures for secondary level include both Academic and Pre-Vocational
2
Includes also distance education and institutions abroad, and relates to school years 2006/2007 to 2010/2011
Source: Annual Survey in Primary and Secondary Schools in March, Mauritius Examination Syndicate (MES) and Tertiary Education
Commission (TEC)
List of providers (around 130) offering ICT courses at technical and vocational level is available
on the MQA website at www.mqa.mu
List of providers (around 25) offering ICT courses at tertiary level is available on TEC website
at www.tec.mu
Information on levy grant scheme is found on the HRDC website at www.hrdc.mu
82
Appendix VII
Number of students enrolled at the University of Mauritius
Students enrolment 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
All BSc Programmes @ CSE Dept 590 615 760 924 936
All MSc programmmes @ CSE Dept 71 40 41 75 64
BSc (Hons) Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) 78 75 78 76 81
BSc (Hons) Electronics and Science 62 67 82 83 79
MSc Information and Communication Technologies 19 10 - - -
Total BSc 730 757 920 1083 1096
Total MSc 90 50 41 75 64
Source: UoM, 2012
Appendix VIII
ICT/BPO Sector Salary Survey

Highlights 2010 by Capfor Group
Sn. Job Title Average Entry Median Salary

Level Salary (Rs) (Rs)
1 Technical Team Lead/Chef de Projet Technique 29,500 39,600
2 Infrastructure Team Lead/Resp. Cellule/Administrateur 27,420 32,820
3 Senior BPO Supervisor/Chef de Plateau 20,380 32,620
4 Junior Developer/Dveloppeur Junior 16,500 18,000
5 Junior Technician/Technicien Junior 13,212 17,220
6 Junior BPO Officer/Agent BPO Junior 12,210 15,420
7 Junior Call Centre Agent/Tlconseiller Junior 6,830 8,125
8 Data Entry Operator/Oprateur de Saisie 5,000 7,009
83
84
Appendix IX - SC and HSC Results
GRADE DISTRIBUTION - COMPUTER STUDIES
SCHOOL CERTIFICATE 2007
Grade Achieved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Very Good Credit Pass Ungraded Total Pass No Examined
B 222 166 313 129 176 409 484 358 388 1027 842 330 2257 2587
8.6% 6.4% 12.1% 5.0% 6.8% 15.8% 18.7% 13.8% 15.0% 39.7% 32.5% 12.8% 87.2%
7010 Computer
G 186 114 237 106 158 355 365 270 300 856 635 197 1791 1988
Studies
9.4% 5.7% 11.9% 5.3% 7.9% 17.9% 18.4% 13.6% 15.1% 43.1% 31.9% 9.9% 90.1%
T 408 280 550 235 334 764 849 628 688 1883 1477 527 4048 4575
8.9% 6.1% 12.0% 5.1% 7.3% 16.7% 18.6% 13.7% 15.0% 41.2% 32.3% 11.5% 88.5%

Grade Achieved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Very Good Credit Pass Ungraded Total Pass
B 213 107 255 124 162 430 555 405 320 971 960 353 2604
8.18 4.11 9.79 4.76 6.22 16.51 21.31 15.55 12.29 37.29 36.87 13.56
7010 Computer
G 133 93 219 104 108 326 467 290 226 757 757 280 2020
Studies
6.58 4.6 10.84 5.15 5.35 16.14 23.12 14.36 11.19 37.48 37.48 13.86
T 346 200 474 228 270 756 1022 695 546 1728 1717 633 4624
7.48 4.33 10.25 4.93 5.84 16.35 22.1 15.03 11.81 37.37 37.13 13.69

Grade Achieved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 PASS No Examined
B 131 138 234 98 166 473 576 425 382 2241 2623
4.99 5.26 8.92 3.74 6.33 18.03 21.96 16.20 14.56 85.44
7010 Computer
G 98 103 195 109 132 372 443 324 237 1776 2013
Studies
4.87 5.12 9.69 5.41 6.56 18.48 22.01 16.10 11.77 88.23
T 229 241 429 207 298 845 1019 749 619 4017 4636
4.94 5.20 9.25 4.47 6.43 18.23 21.98 16.16 13.35 86.65

Grade Achieved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 No Examined CREDIT (1-6) PASS (1 - 8)
B 90 191 279 122 177 487 624 500 508 2978 1346 2470
3.02% 6.41% 9.37% 4.10% 5.94% 16.35% 20.95% 16.79% 17.06% 45.20% 82.94%
7010 Computer
G 69 167 234 101 171 393 478 366 284 2263 1135 1979
Studies
3.05% 7.38% 10.34% 4.46% 7.56% 17.37% 21.12% 16.17% 12.55% 50.15% 87.45%
T 159 358 513 223 348 880 1102 866 792 5241 2481 4449
3.03% 6.83% 9.79% 4.25% 6.64% 16.79% 21.03% 16.52% 15.11% 47.34% 84.89%

Grade Achieved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pass (1-8) Credit (1-6) Pass (7-8) Ungraded No Examined
B 99 177 239 92 191 468 604 585 2455 1266 1189 603 3058
3.24 5.79 7082 3.01 6.25 15.30 19.75 19.13 80.28 41.40 38.88 19.72
7010 Computer
G 90 166 187 89 157 421 453 392 1955 1110 845 287 2242
Studies
4.01 7.40 8.34 3.97 7.00 18.78 20.21 17.48 87.20 49.51 37.69 12.80
T 189 343 426 181 348 889 1057 977 4410 2376 2034 890 5300
3.57 6.47 8.04 3.42 6.57 16.77 19.94 18.43 83.21 44.83 38.38 16.79
85
GRADE DISTRIBUTION - COMPUTING

HSC 2007
A B C D E Ungraded Principal Subsidiary
Pass Pass Total
B 36 59 132 121 112 59 460 19 538
6.6% 10.8% 24.2% 22.2% 20.5% 10.9% 85.7% 3.5%
9691 Computing
G 30 58 108 100 51 27 347 8 382
7.8% 15.0% 28.0% 25.9% 13.2% 7.1% 90.8% 2.1%
T 66 117 240 221 163 86 807 27 920
7.1% 12.6% 25.8% 23.7% 17.5% 9.3% 86.6% 2.9%

HSC 2008
A B C D E Performance No.
Principal Subsidiary Examined
Pass Pass Ungraded
B 31 73 105 141 120 470 32 69 571
9691 Computing 5.4 12.8 18.4 24.7 21.0 82.3 5.6 12.1
G 34 45 75 93 68 315 8 39 362
9.4 12.4 20.7 25.7 18.8 87.0 2.2 10.6
T 65 118 180 234 188 785 40 108 933
7.0 12.6 19.3 25.1 20.2 84.1 4.3 11.6

HSC 2009

A B C D E Performance No.
Principal Subsidiary Examined
Pass Pass Ungraded
B 29 77 108 135 106 68 455 14 537
9691 Computing 5.40 14.34 20.11 25.14 19.74 12.66 84.73 2.61
G 29 58 84 114 77 38 362 11 411
7.06 14.11 20.44 27.74 18.73 9.25 88.08 2.68
T 58 135 192 249 183 106 817 25 948
6.12 14.24 20.25 26.27 19.30 11.18 86.18 2.64

86
GRADE DISTRIBUTION - COMPUTING

HSC 2010
A A* B C D E Ungraded Principal Subsidiary No.

Pass Pass Examined
B 30 10 58 105 114 111 113 428 34 575
9691 5.22 1.74 10.09 18.26 19.83 19.30 19.65 74.43 5.91
Computing G 31 11 42 70 85 95 47 334 21 402
7.71 2.74 10.45 17.41 21.14 23.63 11.69 83.08 5.22
T 61 21 100 175 199 206 160 762 55 977
6.24 2.15 10.24 17.91 20.37 21.08 16.38 77.99 5.63

HSC 2011

A A* B C D E Ungraded Principal Subsidiary No.
Pass Pass Examined
B 5 26 58 89 118 120 102 416 45 563
9691 0.9 4.6 10.3 15.8 21.0 21.3 18.1 73.9 8.0
Computing
G 1 20 42 64 79 78 57 284 24 365
0.3 5.5 11.5 17.5 21.6 21.4 15.6 77.8 6.6
T 6 46 100 153 197 198 159 700 69 928
0.6 5.0 10.8 16.5 21.2 21.3 17.1 75.4 7.4
Source: Mauritius Examinations Examinations, 2012
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A Study on Labour Shortage in the ICT/BPO sector in Mauritius

Gap Bridging Strategies

Appendix I : Skills requirement for the ICT Sector, 2011 - 2015

Table 2: Enrolment in ICT and ICT-related courses, 2006-2010 8

Table 4: ICT sector related figures, 2006-2010 16

Table 5: Projected number of employees in large establishments in ICT Sector 17

Table 6 : Main activities of the ICT Sector in the sample 20

Table 8: Percentage of part-time employees in ICT firms 23

Table 9: Number of expatriates by employee category and main activity 24

Table 10: Work permits issued in the ICT Sector, 2008-2011 24

Table 12: Experience required per employee category 26

Table 13: Top ten jobs that would be required, 2011-2015 30

Table 15: Suggestions by employers regarding the measures to reduce mismatch 36

Table 16: Percentage of budget allocated to training by organisations in ICT 38

Figure 2: Trend in employment in the ICT Sector with forecasts, 2006-2015 18

Figure 3: Composition of ICT sector workforce 21

Figure 4: Proportion of employee categories by size of company 22

Figure 5: Do you agree that Mauritius is experiencing labour shortage? 27

Figure 6: Perception of labour shortage at sector level 28

Figure 7: Do you have labour shortage in your organisation currently? 28

Figure 8: Existence of labour shortage in the ICT Sector per sub-sector 29

Figure 12: Reasons for labour shortage in the ICT sector 31

Figure 14: Importance attached to soft skills in the ICT Sector 33

Figure 16: Strategic skills development plan for the organisation 40

Figure 19: Most preferred method of recruitment in the ICT Sector 42

The report education

The Global IT Report 2010-2011-Mauritius

of employment forecasts provides forewarning information of likely shortfalls to stakeholders

1.3. Rationale of the study

2. Aims and objectives of the study

The objectives were:

It includes related activities of Manufacturing, Wholesale and retail trade, Communications,

Since 2008 Education in IT is excluded from the ICT sector definition.

Source: Statistics Mauritius, Economic and Social Indicators-ICT - 2010

2.1. Contribution of the ICT sector to the economy

Table 2: Enrolment in ICT and ICT-related courses, 2006-2010

Educational level 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Students examined in ICT

In order to be competitive in the globalising knowledge economy, we need to invest in innovation

2.3. TEC Graduate Tracer Study 2011

Field of Study 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Total

Global competitiveness report 2011/2012 - Higher education and training indicator

Indicator Value Rank/142

5th pillar: Higher education and training

Secondary education enrolment, gross % 87.2 71

Tertiary education enrolment, gross % 25.9 81

Quality of the educational system 4 50

Quality of math and science education 4.1 63

Quality of management schools 3.9 87

Internet access in schools 4 75

Availability of research and training services 4 76

Extent of staff training 4.3 40

Today, Pravind manages a team of 100 people.

Q4 - 2010 Q4-2011 Change

Labour force 579 300 585 600 +6 300

Year 2010 Year 2011 Change

Employment 536,100 536,700 +600