Swearing-in of the four new members of Government
The President of the Republic, Francisco Guterres Lú Olo, swore in today, March 22nd, 2022, four new members of the VIII Constitutional Government, in a ceremony that took place at the Nicolau Lobato Presidential Palace, in Dili.
The four members of the Government who took office today are Tiago Amaral Sarmento, who will lead the Ministry of Justice, Abel Pires da Silva, who will assume the position of Minister of Public Works, António Freitas, who will be the new Vice-Minister of Finance, and Júlio da Conceição “Loro Mesak”, who was sworn in as Secretary of State for the Affairs of National Liberation Combatants.
The Prime Minister, Taur Matan Ruak, began his speech by congratulating “all the candidates who participated, with mutual respect and tolerance, in this Democracy Festival” and wished “good luck to the most voted candidates who now go on to the run-off elections”.
The Head of Government took the opportunity to share “a summary of the main results achieved during his current mandate and the main challenges that collectively still lie ahead”.
Among the results obtained in the social sector, the Prime Minister highlighted the reinforcement of “investment in the modernity of the health system and infrastructures, to ensure the quality and capacity to respond to new crises and infectious-contagious outbreaks that may occur in the future. In this sector, he also mentioned the investment of “117 million for nutrition and food security to ensure healthy, long, and happy lives for our citizens.
In Education he noted “the launch of the foundation stone of the large investment in the construction of the new University City of Aileu, which is intended to house 10,000 students” and the “investment in professional training, responding to the urgent need for qualified workers, through the construction of a modern Centre of Excellence for Qualified Manpower, which will receive thousands of trainees each year”.
In terms of housing, the Head of Government mentioned the “construction of decent social housing for our population, especially among the most vulnerable families and the Veterans of the National Liberation Struggle.
Regarding the results in the economy, the tourism projects for the transformation of the current Port of Dili and Cristo Rei areas, the “registration of TAIS as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity” and the “start of oil exploration in the onshore and offshore blocks on the south coast” were highlighted.
On connectivity, the Prime Minister addressed “the construction of the new Port of Tibar, which began in 2018 and is scheduled to be inaugurated in October,” “the entry into operation of the new and modern passenger and goods transport ship, Berlin-Ramelau,” and “the construction of a modern Presidente Nicolau Lobato International Airport in Dili”.
The Head of Government also referred the “continuity and reinforcement of the Basic Basket Program”, with “an investment of 80 million dollars”, that “will certainly continue to promote the recovery of the economy” and the “results in the institutional reforms, that seeking to remove Timor-Leste from the list of Fragile States, have focused on four fundamental areas” - Public Administration Reform, Public Finance Management Reform and Tax Reform, Administrative Decentralization Reform and Judiciary Reform.
Taur Matan Ruak thanked “all the outgoing Members of Government for the dedication and commitment demonstrated in the last three years, which contributed a lot to the collective results achieved by the Government, wishing them all the best wishes for success at a personal, family and professional level”. He ended his speech with “a word of thanks to the four members of the Government that take office today, renewing the trust deposited and hoping that they may help the Government to succeed in the challenges of national development in an innovative, enterprising, loyal and constructive way”.
