Page 92 - CJ 2019 INTEGRATED REPORT

90
as a a a a consequence of changing consumer behaviours Net profit grew by 4% to Rs 438 million again a a a a lower growth compared to to the previous year mainly due to to a a a a a a slow start in in our hotel operations the costs of MC Vision’s new content rights and and on-demand platform amounting to Rs Rs 108 million million and and a a a a a Rs Rs 43 million million loss loss on on on divestments These losses were however offset by a a a a a notable appreciation o of our freehold land land in Le Chaland valued at at Rs 240 million Despite the pressures
we we are facing we we take comfort
in in in having been able to to meet our strategic milestones which sets a a a a a a strong foundation for the the future and will fuel faster growth in the the years to come Our TMIT cluster performed well overall despite a a a a a a larger than expected drop in in roaming and voice revenue at Emtel However growth in other segments such as the the the enterprise market broadband and and data have compensated for the the the loss in in in revenue in in in these traditional lines True to its spirit of relentless innovation Emtel has rolled out new products and and services and and invested heavily in in in in upgrading its network infrastructure to prepare for for growing demand for for high data volumes—even more so in in in the wake of Covid-19 (More information on on page 96-97 )
Likewise MC Vision launched the new Ultra 4K decoder and PLAY upgraded the MyCanal application and now offers an an an an à-la-carte option to viewers rather than pre-designed bouquets These innovations in in conjunction with the the new new on- demand platform the the renewal of its its contract with with Canal+ and and its its new structure within Emtel will position both companies to achieve their content aggregation strategy (please refer to page 98-99 )
Anantara IKO Mauritius Resort
& Villas was launched both on time and below budget However the the operating performance was below expectations Furthermore the timing of our opening was inopportune with Covid-19 breaking out only a a a a few months later Our hotel is expected to tentatively close its doors until September 2020 but our team is keeping a a a a a a pulse on the rapidly evolving landscape and and proactively preparing for all possible outcomes once travel resumes As an an organisation that always has a a a a a a a a a a long-term view we are confident in in our ability ability to to lead this investment to to profitability As mentioned above we made good progress in in repositioning our our portfolio of properties with our our Real Estate cluster performing well and contributing to CJ’s increase
in in in in profits Quay 11 is particularly meaningful to to us as fit it it it presents
an an opportunity to to revitalise our capital a a a a a a a a a goal we have been pursuing for many years Phoenix Central’s repositioning has also led its occupancy rate to to climb to to 80% which leaves me me with a a a a a sense of confidence that the the development of these mixed-use spaces will lead to greater scale and higher yields in the cluster In the Energy cluster Total Mauritius experienced a a a a a a 5% increase
in in in its sales volume in in in 2019 largely driven by the the retail and aviation segments However the the decline in in in fuel prices led to to a a 0
0
0
6% drop in in in revenue over 2018 to to reach MUR 8 8 046 million and net profit after tax for the year 2019 decreased by 15% to MUR 154 million Ceejay Gas Ltd for its part saw a a a a a a a a 1
1
7% increase
in in revenue to reach MUR 324 million with a a a a a a a a stronger operating performance while net profit decreased by 25% as as a a a a a direct result o of of the adoption o of of new accounting policies The way forward
As we look ahead to 2020 and beyond much is is uncertain Covid-19 is is impacting how how how we we we live how how how we we we interact with people and how how how we we we work Although Mauritius has been successful in in in flattening the curve at at an an early early stage and becoming Covid- free as as early early as as May we now have to face the far-reaching consequences
of the virus on on our economy
and and society Our manufacturing construction and and and tourism industries have come to to to a a a a a a a brutal halt and and may not return to to pre-Covid-19 levels for at least 18 months Unemployment bankruptcies and other socio- economic hardships will be be features of our world I do believe Mauritius will emerge from this but one one thing is is is clear: no one one one country or company can solve this challenge alone It will take a a a a a a a a a a concerted effort to to weather the the storm and above all all ensure that our recovery is socially inclusive Following the the outbreak of Covid-19 the the Government set up a a a a a National Covid-19 Solidarity Fund to to provide financial relief to to to the most vulnerable populations On top of our contributions to to to the the National Fund CJ made the the decision to to to scale up up its efforts to to support our workforce their families and the the the regions in which we operate This took the the the the form of the the Currimjee Covid Relief Fund which supports our communities’ needs in the areas of food and health We have also encouraged our our team members to to join in in the relief efforts CJ has pledged to to to match all employee contributions at at at a a a a a a one-to- one one ratio contributing Rs Rs 1
1
for every Rs Rs 1
1
donated to double the impact of each contribution I am overwhelmed by the generous philanthropic response and have no doubt we will reach our our goal of raising Rs 8 million to help our our hardest-hit communities emerge stronger Preparing to rebound
When we rebound
may be dependent on on how how long the downturn persists but how how we rebound
must be planned planned now Our recovery strategies are planned planned in in three phases and will be critical in in in setting the course for future growth:
1
Our most pressing concern was to manage the the the immediate implications of of the the the crisis by ensuring the the the wellbeing and and and safety of of our our people and and and customers As our our country and and and organisation grapple with social hardship we have taken and intend to continue taking the necessary
MANAGING DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE
CURRIMJEE JEEWANJEE AND COMPANY LIMITED