Media Releases
- 10 of August of 2022Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 10th, 2022Presidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 10th, 2022
The Council of Ministers met, at the Government Palace, in Dili, and approved two draft Decree-Laws, presented by the Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Taur Matan Ruak and by the Vice-Minister of the Interior, António Armindo.
The first Decree-Law refers to the professional status of the personnel with police functions in the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL – Portuguese acronym). The decree-law aims to provide the PNTL with a professional statute for its staff, with the perspective of improving the working conditions for the respective staff, aiming, on the one hand, to elevate the motivational framework and the self-esteem of the PNTL police officers, reinforcing their ability to face the growing responsibility, demand and need for efficiency in the provision of public security services, corresponding to the level of demand of the Timorese society, increasingly informed, complex and demanding, and, on the other hand, adapting them to the new social reality and the challenges of the country and the world today.
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The second Decree-Law aims to amend the remuneration scheme of the PNTL. The purpose of this amendment is to comply with the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 24 of Decree-Law No. 2/2022, of January 12th, which approved the PNTL remuneration scheme, in which the State committed to increasing the basic remuneration of the PNTL members by 15% in 2023. In addition to the planned increase in basic remuneration, the decree-law is also updated, taking into account the amendment to the Organic Law of the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL) approved in the meantime, and also the need to introduce a more precise wording to facilitate the interpretation of some of the articles contained in the version of the diploma currently in force.
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Also approved was the draft Government Resolution, presented by the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Armindo Maia, and the Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, Abrão Saldanha, for the establishment of the National Sports Festival. The creation of this festival is intended to congregate the Timorese population and unite it, to celebrate sporting activity, with the inherent promotion of physical activity and the encouragement of sport in its various modalities, within the plan of physical education and in the categories of traditional, recreational, inclusive and high competition sport. The festival aims, ultimately, to be a way to promote among young people, as well as the rest of the population, the importance of sport and physical activity, and its social, economic, political and public health benefits. It will be an annual event whose structure, timing and format will be defined, also annually, by the Ministry responsible for sports.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Government Resolution, presented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Adaljiza Albertina Xavier Reis Magno, approving the agreement between the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and g7+, on the amount, purpose, and use of the subsidy to be granted by the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste to this intergovernmental organization. With this agreement, signed between the two parties last March 21st, 2022, aiming to contribute to the g7+ activities, the Government allocates, between 2022 and 2027, the amount of US$ 1.000.000 (one million American dollars) per year. This grant is to be used for the promotion of cooperation between member states and to finance the operating expenses of the g7+ and the organization of the annual ministerial meeting.
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Lastly, the Council of Ministers decided to approve the procurement procedures, by international public tender, to carry out public contracts for the construction of the irrigation schemes of Laivai, in the Municipality of Lautém and Galata, in the Municipality of Baucau, according to the project presented by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Pedro dos Reis. The Galata irrigation project will cover an area of 600 hectares and will benefit 750 families. The Laivai irrigation project will cover an area of 300 hectares, which includes 176 hectares of existing rice fields, and will benefit 434 families. END
- 10 of August of 2022The government of Timor-Leste extends its solidarity to South KoreaPresidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Dili, August 10th, 2022
The government of Timor-Leste extends its solidarity to South Korea
On behalf of the people of Timor-Leste, the Government extends condolences to the families and friends of the victims of flooding caused by the heaviest rains to hit Seoul, the South Korean capital, in 80 years.
Since Monday midnight local time, heavy rains began to fall in Seoul and neighbouring cities, causing the death of at least eight people and hundreds of people to be evacuated.
The torrential rains caused extensive material damage to buildings, vehicles, roads, and other infrastructure, triggering landslides, forcing power outages and disrupting rail and subway services.
The Spokesperson of the 8th Constitutional Government, Minister Fidelis Magalhães, on behalf of the entire Government, expressed that "our deepest condolences go to the families that lost their loved ones. In these difficult days, Timor-Leste extends its solidarity to the Government and all the people of the Republic of Korea". END - 09 of August of 2022Timor-Leste expresses congratulations on the 55th anniversary of ASEANMinistry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperationmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Dili, August 9th, 2022
Timor-Leste expresses congratulations on the 55th anniversary of ASEAN
The Government of Timor-Leste, expresses warm congratulations to the member states of ASEAN and the peoples of the ASEAN on this occasion of the 55th anniversary of the founding of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations.
The Government of Timor-Leste acknowledges the commitment and contribution of all Member States to continue exploring ways to provide capacity building assistance to Timor-Leste and participation in non-policy making activities in ASEAN.
Timor-Leste looks forward to become the 11th member of this regional organization of ASEAN. ENDS
- 07 of August of 2022Government expresses solidarity with CubaPresidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Dili, August 7th, 2022
Government expresses solidarity with Cuba
The Government of Timor-Leste extends its solidarity to the Government and people of Cuba, following a major fire in fuel depots, near the city of Matanzas, in western Cuba, about 100 kilometres east of Havana.
Lightning struck a fuel storage tank on Friday, sparking a fire that spread to a second tank on Saturday, resulting in at least one death, 121 people injured and 17 people missing. More than 1,000 residents in the surrounding area were evacuated.
The two burnt tanks are part of a fuel storage area with six other tanks which are used for electricity production.
The Spokesperson of the 8th Constitutional Government, Minister Fidelis Magalhães, expressed, on behalf of the entire Government, that “at this moment our thoughts are with the people of Cuba and in particular with all those who have been personally affected by this terrible fire, and we salute those who remain determined to fight the fire in conditions of extreme difficulty and those who are supporting the populations affected by this disaster". END - 03 of August of 2022Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 3rd, 2022Presidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 3rd, 2022
The Council of Ministers met, at the Government Palace, in Dili, and approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Defence, Filomeno da Paixão de Jesus, referring to the new Superior Council for Military Defence’s Regulations.
The purpose of this diploma is to make the Superior Council for Military Defence’s Regulations compatible with the National Defence Law in force, thus revoking Government Decree no. 6/2016, of May 11th.
With this amendment, as already defined in the National Defence Law, the Superior Council for Military Defence will be integrated by Generals out of active service who have served as Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym), Deputy Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (Vice-CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym) or Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMFA – Portuguese acronym), to ensure the transition and implementation of the development objectives outlined in the strategic documents of Defence. The meeting of this Council is also mandatory in matters concerning the amendment of the organic structure of the F-FDTL, the proposals for appointment and dismissal for the positions of Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym), Deputy Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (Vice-CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym) and Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMFA – Portuguese acronym) and the F-FDTL Military Build-Up.
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The draft Law Proposal, presented by the Minister of State Administration, Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, for the fifth amendment to Law 6/2006, of December 28th, which approves the Electoral Law for the National Parliament was approved.
The purpose of this project is to incorporate in the Electoral Law for the National Parliament the innovations introduced in 2021 in the Electoral Law for the President of the Republic, to maintain the harmonization of the rules regarding the electoral process of these sovereign bodies.
Thus, the new rules on the opening hours of polling centres, the permission for journalists covering the parliamentary election to vote at the polling centre closest to where they are working, the obligation for voters to identify themselves only using valid personal identification documents, or the establishment of the election monitor position, with functions similar to those of election observers, are transposed to the Electoral Law for the National Parliament.
Some improvements have also been made to the norms, clarifying that at the national tabulation meeting, the CNE makes the final decision on invalid votes and that the elements on the ballot paper include the order number of each candidacy resulting from the drawing of lots for the lists of candidates.
Lastly, one of the main innovations of the 2021 presidential election was adopted, the parallel voting centres, although with a new configuration. Thirteen parallel voting centres will be installed in Dili, each one associated with a municipality and the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA - Portuguese Acronym), where any voter registered in a geographical unit of registration located outside the municipality of Dili, and who does not wish to vote in his/her original voting centre, can register.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, also presented by Minister Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, for the third amendment to the Organic of the Ministry of State Administration (MAE – Portuguese acronym).
This legislative initiative is related to the need to establish a line of action and coordination between the Minister of State Administration and the Executive Secretary of the Technical Secretariat of the National Programme for the Development of Villages (Sucos) (PNDS – Portuguese acronym), to allow a greater and closer follow-up of the programmes and activities executed by the PNDS and its decision making. In this context, the Technical Secretariat of the PNDS is the central service of the MAE which, under the dependence of the Minister, is responsible for the practice of material acts necessary for the exercise of attributions regarding the management of the PNDS.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Oil and Minerals, Victor da Conceição Soares, which aims to extend the validity of Decree Law 18/2022, of 19 April, which established the legal framework for granting a financial subsidy of an exceptional and transitional nature to reduce the economic impact of the increase in fuel prices to be allocated to public transport operators and purchasers of fuel for agricultural and fishing activities, until 31 October 2022. All other conditions for granting the fuel subsidy previously provided for, remain unchanged.
Given that the exceptional conditions for fuel price increases in the market remain unusually unstable, there is still a need for the Government to continue to support public transport operators and purchasers of fuel for agricultural and fishing activities, to mitigate the impact of these increases on such an important raw material for the development of the national economy, as is the price of fuel.
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The Council of Ministers decided to appoint the Minister of Petroleum and Minerals, Victor da Conceição Soares, as the representative of the State's rights, as a shareholder in the Timor-Leste’s Mining Company (Companhia Mineira de Timor-Leste, SA (CMTL)).
The draft resolution was presented by the Minister of Petroleum and Minerals. This deliberation takes into account what is defined in Decree-Law 43/2022, of June 8th, which established CMTL, and determines that the State’s rights as a shareholder are exercised through the individual designated by deliberation of the Council of Ministers, under the proposal of the member of the Government responsible for the area of mineral resources.
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The Minister of Petroleum and Minerals also presented the draft resolution, also approved by the Council of Ministers, on the approval of the name of Eliud de Jesus Gomes, as Chairman of the Board of Directors, to be elected by the General Assembly, under the proposal of the member of the Government responsible for the area of mineral resources at Companhia Mineira de Timor-Leste, SA, following the provisions of Decree Law 43/2022, of June 8th, which established CMTL.
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The Council of Ministers decided to authorize the Minister of Finance, Rui Augusto Gomes, to start negotiating with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) the specific conditions of a loan for the project to supply drinking water to the western part of Dili.
Complementary to the other ongoing projects for the improvement of the water supply in the city of Dili, the Government now intends to mobilize financial assistance in the form of loans for the improvement of the water supply to the western part of the city. Given the project's characteristics and the funding required, the Asian Development Bank appears to be the appropriate counterpart to provide the funding.
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Lastly, the Minister of State Administration, Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, gave a presentation on the proposed calendar for next year's parliamentary elections. The legislature comprises five legislative sessions and each legislative session lasts for one year, beginning on 15 September and ending on 14 September of the following year. In the case of dissolution (early parliamentary election), the elected National Parliament shall commence a new legislature, the duration of which shall be increased by the time necessary to complete the period corresponding to the legislative session in progress on the date of the election. END - 29 of July of 2022Statement on the situation in MyanmarPresidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Dili, Jully 29, 2022
Statement on the situation in Myanmar
The President of the Republic, José Ramos-Horta held a meeting today in his office with the President of the National Parliament, Members of Commission B, and the Prime Minister to discuss the dramatic worsening situation in Myanmar.
The Timorese leaders reviewed the unanimous statement issued by the ASEAN Presidency and the unanimous resolution of UNSC concerning the tragic and arbitrary execution of four Myanmar civilian democracy supporters. The Timorese leaders present commended the position taken by ASEAN leaders and the UNSC and fully endorse these two statements.
Timor-Leste further appeals to the international community to continue to undertake every effort to contribute to the return of the democratic order through dialogue with all parties. ENDS
- 27 of July of 2022Meeting of the Council of Ministers on July 27th, 2022Presidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on July 27th, 2022
The Council of Ministers met, at the Government Palace, in Dili, and approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, regarding the Remuneration Supplement to public servants and agents of the Public Administration that exercise training functions in Public Administration.
This draft Decree-Law aims to establish a scheme capable of financially compensating the added responsibility and complexity of civil servants and administrative agents involved in general or specialized training. This new supplement enhances the use of the existing training capacity within the national Public Administration, thus contributing to the rationalization of national resources.
The hourly value of the trainer's supplement will be set according to the degree of functional complexity of the trainees' careers. The entity responsible for paying this supplement is the entity responsible for carrying out the training or the entity financing it.
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The draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Finance, Rui Augusto Gomes, was approved. It aims to establish the Legal Regime of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) of Diagnostic Services.
The purpose of this draft Decree-Law is to establish a legal framework specifically applicable to the PPP agreement regarding the services of laboratory and imaging diagnostics, defining a more flexible and appropriate regime for the collaboration of a private partner in the provision of public services, providing mechanisms to ensure the sustainability, risk allocation, operability and quality of services to be provided to the population, to establish a clear, fair, predictable and stable legal framework that will stimulate and attract private investment and guarantee the provision of public laboratory and imaging diagnostic services.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Government Resolution, also presented by the Minister of Finance, which sets the maximum amounts payable for the acquisition of real estate and the loss of buildings, improvements, forestry and crops and for the cessation of livestock, fishing and salt collection activities in the implementation area of the Presidente Nicolau Lobato International Airport upgrading project.
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Also approved was the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Public Works, Abel Pires da Silva, for the first amendment to Decree-Law No. 11/2006 of April 12th, regarding the establishment of the Timor-Leste’s Institute Equipment Management (IGE - Portuguese Acronyms) and approval of its Statutes.
This amendment aims to make IGE's statutes compatible with the Decree-Law on the Organization of Direct and Indirect Administration, with the Organic Law of the 8th Constitutional Government, and to grant new competencies that will allow maximizing IGE's resources, improving the public service provided by the State to its citizens.
Thus, the competencies and attributions that the IGE has been carrying out over the years in support of many situations requiring immediate intervention to restore safe road traffic and prevent flooding by cleaning and normalizing streams are now enshrined. This institution has the necessary equipment to perform these tasks, and also has the technical knowledge and experience in the field to be able to perform, as part of its duties, not only the previously planned management of heavy equipment but also roadway maintenance activities, de-silting and cleaning of rivers, streams and stabilization of banks and slopes.
With this Decree-Law, the figure of the Executive Director is established, with competence for the direction and management of IGE's services following the guidelines of its Board of Directors. It is also attributed to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of IGE the competence to approve the expenditure, authorize and approve procurement and sign contracts, by the law.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of State Administration, Miguel Pereira de Carvalho and by the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Armindo Maia, to approve the School Meals Program.
The School Meal Programme is a subsidy granted within the scope of school social action, aimed at ensuring the right to a daily meal with healthy and balanced food content, essential to the development and encourage the participation of children in preschool education and basic education, public and private, integrated into the public network of public service supply, located in the national territory, to promote their teaching and learning process. Under this programme, meals will be provided to pupils at preschool and primary education establishments, public and private, integrated into the public network of public service provision, located in the national territory.
The subsidies attributed within the scope of this Programme have the nature of public grants and take the form of a food subsidy, which is intended exclusively for the purchase of foodstuffs, and an administrative subsidy, which is intended to support expenses with administrative charges arising from the implementation of the Programme.
The implementers of the School Meals Programme are the public and private pre-school and basic education establishments integrated into the public service supply network, located in the national territory and the community organisations, community groups or similar, namely associations without legal personality.
The amount of the subsidy granted under the School Meals Program is set at US$ 0.42 per school day and student.
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Lastly, the draft Resolution Proposal of the National Parliament for the ratification of the Millennium Challenge compact agreement, presented by the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, was also approved.
This cooperation pact, which was signed last July 19th, will be executed over five years and has a global amount of US$ 484 million.
The programme will focus on two main components, one on improving the water, sanitation and drainage system and the other on education and training. The first component aims to reduce the contamination of drinking water and groundwater, which can cause illness and impede the well-being and health of children and adults. This component includes the building of a factory to produce chemical disinfectants for the city water supply, the construction of the country's first central wastewater system, the improvement of the drainage network for the capital Dili and four neighbouring municipalities, policy and institutional reforms as well as social and behavioural changes to improve the sanitation system and water management at the household level. The second component aims to improve the quality of high school education for students by improving high school teaching and school leadership. The project will establish the country's first formal initial teacher training certification institution, the Centre of Excellence, which will provide professional training and certification for prospective and current high school teachers and leaders. Investing in teacher training will lead to better high schools, with students who will be better prepared for jobs or post-secondary education and thus improve their ability to contribute to the country's economic growth. END - 20 of July of 2022Meeting of the Council of Ministers on July 20th, 2022Presidency of the Council of Ministersmore
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on July 20th, 2022
The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and approved the draft Government Decree, presented by the Minister of the Interior, Taur Matan Ruak and Vice Minister of the Interior, António Armindo, on the daily food allowance to the Migration Service officers. This draft government decree establishes the daily value and consequent regularization of payments of this subsidy, as provided for in the Staff Regulations of the Migration Service, thus standardizing it with the value of the food subsidy provided for in the remuneration schemes of the Defence and Security Forces. The daily allowance defined in this diploma is US$ 10 (ten US dollars).
The Council of Ministers decided to authorize the Minister of Finance, Rui Augusto Gomes, to sign a Financing Agreement with the World Bank (International Development Association) regarding the Dili water supply project. The agreement aims to contract a loan in the amount of about US$ 121 million, with a 40-year maturity period, to finance a project to supply water to Dili. The programme to be developed through this funding will have a seven-year maturity and three components: the first for developing water supply infrastructure, the second for improving the institutional capacity of services in this sector and the third for improving project management.
The draft Decree-Law, also presented by the Minister of Finance, for the first amendment to Decree-Law 30/2011 of July 27th, on the conditions and procedures to be observed concerning the import of motor vehicles, was approved. More than ten years after the approval of that decree-law, there is a need to introduce more stringent conditions for importing vehicles and to control import operations more effectively, to ensure consumer and environmental protection. To this end, the present draft Decree-Law intends to add the prohibition of importing motorbikes and light passenger and mixed vehicles that do not comply with the technical conditions for circulation in national territory and to create an administrative offence system to punish non-compliance with the rules set out in the diploma. It is also intended to simplify the procedure for importing vehicles, eliminating the prior authorisation and concentrating the verification of the legal import requirements in a single moment, thus facilitating the import of vehicles following the law.
The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, presented the political-legislative options that underlie the establishment of a remuneration regime for the Chairpersons of the State's indirect administration bodies, seeking to establish aligned remunerations according to objective criteria, to ensure, as much as possible, the public interest and equal treatment for equal situations.
Lastly, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Julião da Silva, gave a presentation on Timor-Leste's application process as a member of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council for the period 2024 to 2026. If elected, this will be the first time Timor-Leste will be a member of the human rights council, contributing to the promotion of human rights through mutual respect and dialogue. Promoting and protecting human rights is a priority for Timor-Leste, both nationally and internationally. END
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