National
Edu Ministry halts NOC for Mauritius
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) has temporarily stopped issuing ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NOC) to Mauritius-bound Nepali students.The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) has temporarily stopped issuing ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NOC) to Mauritius-bound Nepali students.
The ministry’s decision follows the recent incidents where the government had to rescue a number of students languishing in the island nation.
The MoEST has halted issuing the NOCs on the advice of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs not to send Nepali students to Mauritius, according to MoEST Spokesperson Baikuntha Aryal.
“We are aware of the recent incidents where the government had to rescue many Nepali students stranded in Mauritius. Subsequently, we asked MoFA about the situation there,” said Aryal. “Upon evaluation of the prevailing situation in Mauritius, MoFA has concluded in its report that it is unsafe to send Nepali students there.”
MoEST has denied NOC to a total of 12 applicants after MoFA advised it against issuing the NOCs.
Mauritius, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, has become a popular destination among Nepali students for higher and technical education over the past few years. Educational consultancies have been sending Nepali students, promising them of part-time jobs to help supplement their tuition fees.
According to MoEST estimates, nearly 400 students had been going to Mauritius every year. However, the government had to rescue 70 Nepali students in the last five years.
As incidents of Nepali students languishing in the country became frequent, the two ministries asked the Nepal Embassy in South Africa to study the situation and report back whether it was viable to send Nepali students there.
The embassy concluded in its report that most of the colleges there are unsuitable for Nepali students.
“The government should stop issuing NOCs to students, as most of the colleges are found not reliable as there was no mention of courses that the students had applied for on their websites,” the embassy said in it letter to MoFA.