Alumni Awards 2019

KIRAN BHUJUN 

Kiran is Director of Tertiary Education and Scientific Research at the Ministry of Education in Mauritius. In this role Kiran’s work is instrumental in driving forward the government’s vision for higher education while being fully involved in the drafting of policies and strategies to promote scientific research.  

Kiran believes that his Law degree at University of London provided him with the opportunity to interact with a diverse group of international students, which helped to shape his ideas as well as build a strong international network.

With the announcement of free Higher Education in Mauritius, Kiran’s role and legal background is key. 

ALEXANDER OKOLO

Alexander is a Lecturer and Programme Coordinator at Middlesex University Mauritius. His passion for Applications Development keeps him involved in several IT project-based endeavours at the University. He has been instrumental in shaping the Campus’s technology-led approach to enhance processes as well as overall staff and student experiences.

Alexander credits his Middlesex University Mauritius education with his initiatives in technology driven improvements, highlighting the University’s ethos which is not only grounded on acquiring knowledge but proactively leveraging opportunities for its application.

Alexander instils the same innovative mind-set with his students and looks forward to them creating products of value in their respective communities. 

MARIE VALERIE UPPIAH

Marie is a Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Mauritius. Her field of specialisation is International Trade Law with a particular focus on Law of the Sea and Ocean Governance. Her research work has been published by internationally recognised publication houses. Her publications are being used by local, regional, as well as international institutions to promote the use and development of marine spatial plans by Coastal States.

Marie believes that her studies as well as meeting people from all over the world while studying at Birmingham City University has helped her achieve such  professional success in her career.

PRAKASH KUMAR 

Prakash is a Transportation Engineering Professional, with a focus on Urban Transport and Railways Engineering. Prakash believes his contribution towards the country and community through the Urban Transport projects cannot be quantified in numbers. The projects he has worked on will serve generations.  At present, he is working as the Interface & Coordination manager for implementation of the largest infrastructure project in the country i.e Metro Express Project in Mauritius. 

Prakash believes that his degree in engineering from Imperial College London has strengthened his knowledge, skills and equipped him with the qualities required by the best industries worldwide.

DR. AMAL BHOLAH

Dr. Amal Bholah is a medical doctor who is passionate about technology. He founded the Smart Health project which aims to make healthcare services more accessible, affordable and efficient. Amal's work has received various international recognition including being one of the Top 3 start-ups for the European Telemedicine Innovation Competition. 

Amal made his career jump from a clinician to an entrepreneur during his study at the University of Edinburgh. He acquired multi-disciplinary skills, leading a team focused on bringing innovative health technological solutions to complex health issues.

Amal is aiming to transform healthcare institutions with technology to enhance the delivery of healthcare services. 

RISHI NURSIMULU

Rishi is the founder of Dukesbridge, the largest chain of private schools in Mauritius. Upon return to Mauritius, after a career as an Investment Banking Director focusing on Mergers & Acquisition in London, Rishi was moved by the significant gap between fees charged by international schools and the affordability of the local community he grew up in. 

Despite no teaching background, Rishi’s business skills acquired at London School of Economics & Political Science and his determination to give  back to his community through high quality education, led him to establish nine affordable English medium schools from scratch within a period of four years. 

ILRSHAAD GOOLAMALLY

IT Personality of the Year 2014 and winner of the Mandela Washington Fellowship 2015, Ilrshaad is an award winning Technopreneur. He implemented the Youth Employment Programme (YEP), Women Back to Work (BTW) and Dual Training Programme (DTP) which have been instrumental in decreasing the skills mismatch and unemployment especially on a national level. He also introduced the first free interactive public online job portal www.mauritiusjobs.mu for the Government in order to combat the high youth unemployment rate in Mauritius. The UK experience at Middlesex University has provided Ilrshaad with the life skills and qualities required to be a leader with good communication capabilities.  

LEOPOLD JOSEPH CHRISTOPHER 

Christopher’s recognition of the challenges which prevail in the food sector in Rodrigues, has resulted in positive innovations. His determination and passion for food brought to life a flour production and a canning food business.

Christopher believes his experiences acquired from the University of Nottingham have provided him with the tools and confidence necessary to tackle food business-related issues, merging both food science and management.

Through the canning enterprise, Walali Co Ltd., Christopher is now on the path of making Rodriguan foods known to the world but also building  an environmentally sustainable system to further benefit the fishing community. 

DEEGESH MAYWAH

Deegesh’s passion has always been to seek ways to develop ethical programmes to address society’s most pressing issues. One issue has been how to integrate disabled people into society through the creation of employment and holistic empowerment. He helps  employers and managers to fully accommodate an inclusive working culture.

Deegesh strongly believes that exposure to the UK culture and the academic rigor of the University of Northampton helped him on this journey. He is now in the process of up scaling his programme to reach out to other commonwealth countries to have better integration of disabled people at all the levels of society.

NITISHAH NAUGAH 

Nitishah is a leading speech and language therapist in Mauritius, working with children and adults who have speech, language and communication difficulties. She has led various projects in developing education and holistic rehabilitative services for Special Education Needs (SEN) schools.

Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh (UK) equipped Nitishah with the qualities and skills needed to address the needs of people from different linguistic backgrounds: carrying out assessments, client-centred therapeutic interventions and training sessions - with parents, caregivers and educators. 

Nitishah believes in making a difference in people’s lives and is thus actively involved in projects related to empowering vulnerable groups.