Government of Timor-Leste

The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, met, on July 8^th, 2021, with the Country Director of OXFAM in Timor Leste, Fausto (Nino) Belo Ximenes and his technical team, at the Government Palace, in Dili.

During the meeting, OXFAM officials spoke about their work in the emergency response to the population affected by the April 4^th floods and also about their perspective on the rehousing process for communities that have lost their homes.

Minister Fidelis Magalhães explained that given the two major challenges facing the country, related to COVID-19 and natural disasters, the Government divides its action between emergency intervention, recovery and reconstruction of the damages and response to the socio-economic impacts.

The Minister also mentioned that the rehousing plan for the populations affected by the floods foresees two categories of rehousing, one temporary and another permanent, because the people that live in areas where there is a higher risk of suffering the consequences of natural disasters must move to other places.

The Minister stressed that the permanent rehousing will have as a principle the duty to guarantee better conditions than before, not only in terms of security, but also in terms of access to health, education and accessibility.

The Director of OXFAM Timor-Leste asked the Government for civil society to be included in the decision process about the options for rehousing the communities and also in the population' awareness about the fight against COVID-19, especially in the dissemination of the national vaccination campaign.

Minister Fidelis Magalhães highlighted the importance of civil society organisations and their fundamental role in democracy. He also stated that the Government is always attentive to their concerns and is always available to listen to the suggestions of civil society.