Meeting with representative of the World Food Programme (WFP)
The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, met today, June 15, 2020, with the Representative and Director of the World Food Program (WFP) of the United Nations in Timor-Leste, Dageng Liu and with the WFP Emergency Coordinator, Ashley Rogers, at the Government Palace in Dili.
During the meeting there were discussions about the humanitarian aviation service, organized by WFP and which began yesterday, June 14, that connects Timor-Leste to the organization's logistics center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This flight will bring weekly medical equipment to Timor-Leste and allow the movement of humanitarian professionals from the various agencies present in the country, to support the response to COVID-19.
The head of the WFP in Timor-Leste also expressed the organization's readiness to support the Government in the process of distributing rice purchased from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, to compensate for the possible shortage during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers stressed that it is essential to ensure that the distribution of food does not jeopardize or cause negative effects on local production and private sector activity, given that the market remains stable, with no reduction in the amount of existing goods and without significant increase in inflation.
The meeting was also an opportunity to discuss the ongoing WFP projects and the Government's priorities in the area of nutrition and food diversification, as well as in the development of human resources for effective management and continuity of these programs. The importance of strengthening the agroforestry and fisheries sectors for improving the country's food and nutritional security was also highlighted.
The Minister also explained that the preparation of the contingency plan for the post-state of emergency is underway, which will guide the measures to be adopted in the prevention and fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, once the state of emergency ends.
Also addressed at the meeting, was the economic recovery plan, which is being prepared by the committee led by former Finance Minister Rui Gomes and which will continue this first phase of combating the harmful effects of COVID-19 on the national economy, with the Government's focus on stabilizing the economy.
