Middlesex University Mauritius recently celebrated the opening of its new Cat Hill building, as a key part of its strategic development, where the modern 2,300 m² facility has been designed to foster academic innovation, industry engagement, and student growth. The official opening took place on Friday, 19 September, attended by the Honourable Dr Kaviraj Sharma Sukon, PFHEA, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Research, along with representatives from the British High Commission, Medine, Middlesex University London, and members of the university community.
The Cat Hill building features a state-of-the-art lecture theatre fully equipped to support real-time hybrid learning. Classrooms are designed for collaborative learning and offer flexible hot-desking, allowing students to work individually or in groups and to reconfigure the space according to their needs. The campus also includes IT laboratories, an executive training room, production studios, and a cutting-edge mechatronics and robotics laboratory built to industry standards. The facility also marks the launch of new programmes, including the BEng Mechatronics & Robotics Engineering, BSc (Hons) Artificial Intelligence & Data Science, and several master’s programmes in science and engineering, providing students with hands-on experience aligned with current and future market needs.
As part of its international expansion, Middlesex University Mauritius has signed Memoranda Of Understanding (MOU) with Darajapan, Creatair, and Wings Robotics, opening opportunities for recruitment, applied research, internships, and collaboration in Japan. These partnerships reinforce the campus’s role as a centre of education and innovation in Mauritius. Since its establishment in 2009, Middlesex University Mauritius has become a recognised institution in the local education landscape.
Today, the campus welcomes over 2,000 students from 40 nationalities, providing an international learning environment. Employability remains central to the Middlesex experience, with over 99 percent of graduates employed, pursuing further studies, or starting their own business within six months of graduation.
“Cat Hill is far more than a building – it stands as a symbol of our mission. It reflects our commitment to combining British academic excellence with Mauritian realities and aspirations, while equipping the next generation of graduates to meet the challenges of an ever-changing world. This year, we are proud to welcome over 2,000 students for the academic year, consolidating our position as the largest private higher education institution in terms of both enrolments and revenue. This space offers students not only the opportunity to learn, but also to collaborate, to innovate, and to grow into professionals ready to make a difference on a global scale,” said Professor Mari Jansen Van Rensburg, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Director of the Mauritius campus.
Chief Operating Officer of Middlesex University Mauritius Dominique Arlanda, who has driven the project from its outset over the past two years, added: “The expansion of our campus marks an exciting milestone. By working closely with our colleagues at the Hendon campus, we ensured that the very best innovations and practices were brought right here to Mauritius. What began as a bold idea has now become a remarkable reality. I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to our teams and partners, whose professionalism, commitment, and dedication have been instrumental in making this achievement possible.”
On his first visit to Mauritius, CIO of Middlesex University UK James Smith, highlighted in his address the positive and tangible impact of Middlesex University Mauritius on the lives of young people, while underlining the country’s growing role as a global hub for education and research. He commended the campus’s civic engagement through its community-focused initiatives and congratulated the team on the development of new, state-of-the-art international facilities that will serve future generations.
During the ceremony, the Honourable Dr Kaviraj Sharma Sukon acknowledged Middlesex University Mauritius’s contribution to the development of higher education and the training of human capital, before unveiling the plaque for the new wing of the campus. He praised the university for its 15 years of existence and the inauguration of the Cat Hill building, while emphasising the importance of the new facilities, in particular the robotics and mechatronics laboratory, which he described as a valuable asset for students’ futures. The Minister reaffirmed the government’s commitment to positioning Mauritius as a centre of knowledge and research, announcing the introduction of a core module in artificial intelligence for all higher education students, along with new regulatory frameworks for the use of AI and micro-credentials. He further encouraged the university to continue advancing its efforts in research, innovation, and collaboration with both local and international partners.
With Cat Hill, Middlesex University Mauritius reaffirms its position as a centre of academic and technological excellence, as well as a strategic contributor to the socio-economic development of Mauritius.
