This paper reflects on the phenomenon of “brain drain” in Mauritius, a post-colonial country, part of the Global South. After five decades of political independence, the country’s educational systems remain structurally tethered to its colonial history with the British and French. Brain drain is not only a consequence of economic migration but also regarded as a systemic outcome of a Eurocentric curriculum that trains students for Western labour markets rather than local retention.  

The author, a Mauritian, shares through her firsthand educational experiences, along with her research methodologies, the concerns on epistemic alienation in Mauritius’s educational system, framing it within the broader context of the Global South.  The research focuses on the curriculum and approaches of Mauritians towards Eurocentric education, where the success metrics are almost exclusively Western. The dominance of the Cambridge International Examinations and the private schools' International Baccalaureate (IB) programme created an educational ecosystem where knowledge is only validated when it mirrors European standards. This study argues that the curriculum functions as a form of “epistemic alienation” where students are culturally and intellectually prepared to function in the Global North while becoming estranged from the specific development needs of their home country. As the author relocated to her home country to focus on the fieldwork of her doctoral thesis, she was welcomed with sympathies and regarded as a “failure” among her colleagues and acquaintances for returning to Mauritius after spending years abroad.

As Andreotti, V. (2011) and Smith, L. T. (2012) stated, the need to disrupt these deeply ingrained hierarchies to forge more inclusive and culturally responsive pedagogies is a must. This paper invites European educators and policymakers to reconsider their internationalisation strategies and questions how we improve sustainable education in post-colonial nations. How can we act to transform these predatory relationships into genuine, reciprocal partnerships? 

 Through an analysis of OECD financial data and international student fee structures, the study then illuminates two types of extractions, namely, financial extraction and epistemic extraction. Financial extraction reflects on Mauritian families transferring significant capital to Europe through non-EU tuition fees, which can be up to 300% higher than domestic rates. At the EDULOG international conference 2025 in Porto, Portugal, this issue was addressed but not resolved. The conference tackled the concept of internationalisation and whether international students were regarded as a profitable industry or a prevalence of academic or socio-cultural values. However, it made the author question, how is Europe aiding the Global South with internationalisation, for the migrations are taking place in search of better economic stability and as an escape from the colonial aftermath?

The epistemic extraction is depleting human capital from Mauritius. The brightest young minds are syphoned into European industries after completing their tertiary education. The average international Mauritian graduate relates to being more accustomed to European or Western work fields rather than their home country. Fanon (1963) and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1986) have emphasised the importance of reclaiming native knowledge systems and challenging Eurocentric narratives that dominate education.

The framework of this study is a synthesis of decolonial theory and academic dependency theory. It argues that colonialism didn’t end when Mauritius got independence; it moved from a political control to a mental control through the educational curriculum. Based on the work of Aníbal Quijano and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, the paper explores how students are taught the “real” knowledge that comes from Europe, which will make them “smart” and “successful”. The paper also reflects Paulin Hountondji’s extraversion theory, supported by Immanuel Wallerstein’s concept of world system theory and Ramón Grosfoguel and Walter Mignolo’s approach to decoloniality.

This study is part of ongoing doctoral research, entitled “ Disrupting colonial frameworks and legacies in art education: Pathways toward decolonial and interculturally competent pedagogy in Mauritius, a post-colonial society.” Current statistics indicate that approximately 16.4% of Mauritian tertiary students pursue their degrees abroad, a figure significantly higher than the global average. Using qualitative research methods, the paper investigates the structural driver of student mobility from Mauritius to Europe. The theoretical lens allows for the examination of the Mauritian education system not as a neutral entity, but as a structure that perpetuates Eurocentric epistemologies, thereby validating migration as a form of intellectual success. The methodology consists of three distinct phases of data collection and analysis. Firstly, a policy and curriculum document analysis is conducted using key national documents, including the Mauritius Higher Education Commission (HEC) Strategic Plan and the National Curriculum Framework curated by the Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE). The analysis focuses on identifying “Eurocentric markers”, such as the prioritisation of Cambridge International Examinations over local assessments and the specific language used to describe “world-class” standards. This aims to map how the curriculum implicitly aligns student competencies with the European labour market rather than local developmental needs. In Mauritius, the national curriculum embodies inherited colonial ideologies that privilege European histories and research traditions (Clarisse, 2023). The average Mauritian family views the British or French curriculum not as a tool of oppression, but rather as a passport. As these western systems have been in place for centuries, they benefit from a legacy of perceived stability. There is a deep-seated belief that "local" equals "mediocre", while "imported" equals "excellence". The curriculum is designed to produce global citizens, not necessarily local problem-solvers. Success is measured by how well a student can compete within the set frameworks, not by how well they understand the ecological or social realities of their country. Therefore, the system is "better" only if the goal is to match European frameworks. In order to quantify the brain drain, secondary quantitative data from two primary sources are used: UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS), to track longitudinal trends in outbound mobility ratios and OECD indicators to analyse the financial implications, specifically comparing “international student” tuition fees against domestic rates in key destination countries. This statistical mapping provides the material evidence for the argument of financial extraction.

The expected outcomes of this research frame brain drain as a success of epistemic extraversion instead of a failure of local retention. By applying the coloniality of knowledge framework, the paper explores the hidden curriculum that devalues local epistemologies, making migration the only logical step for ambitious students. Breaking this cycle requires more than just adding local content to a Western syllabus; it requires a fundamental restructuring of how we teach. As Flores et al. (2023) suggest, decolonising involves making heterogeneous ways of being and doing visible. Decolonising the Mauritian educational curriculum is not merely an academic exercise; it is an act of epistemic survival necessary to materialise alternative worlds beyond the colonial gaze. It involves thinking beyond disciplinary boundaries, discarding foundational fictions, and reevaluating concepts, values, and attitudes we take for granted. The author suggests that true internationalisation requires a rupture in this extraction model, moving towards “epistemic pluriversality”, where Global South knowledge systems are valued on their own terms, reducing the pressure to migrate for validation. The significance of this study extends beyond Mauritius. Globalisation led to cultural homogenisation, jeopardising local traditions. The research is not limited to the betterment of the Mauritian education system. It is intended to empower students to see themselves as active participants in their cultural narratives. International organisations such as UNESCO, UNAOC, and OECD, and regional organisations such as the European Union, the African Union, and ASEAN share similar goals, which are strengthening cultural understanding and promoting intercultural dialogue, cultural diversity, and education for global citizenship, but to what extent are these policies being effective? The conclusion challenges the European educational community to recognise and acknowledge their role in this dynamic.

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