NSDP sustains all sectors
The Prime Minister went to the Vera Cruz sub-district, Díli district, to continue the National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) consultation,
José F. X. Smith, sub-district Administrator, made it know that Vera Cruz borders, to the North with the Laulara sub-district, to the South with the sea, to the West with Dom Aleixo sub-district and to the East with the Nain Feto sub-district. Dare, Lahane Occidental, Mascarenhas, Caicoli, Vila Verde, Colmera and Motael are the sucos that compose this sub-district. This sub-district still counts with 48 villages, 32 531 inhabitants, from which 17 118 are men, 15,413 are women and 5 188 families.
The Administrator, José Smith showed concern with the fact that seven administrative suco headquarters were still unfinished, lacking potable water, sanitary installations, computers and copy machines.
The power lines distribution in the Dare and Western Lahane suco headquarters, the need for a larger number of primary and pre- high schools, as well as teachers and the development of youth talent, the establishment of a Health Centre, the opening of a working market for youth, Taibessi market construction and the traders’ capacity increase, access to bank credit, assistance to the needy and the handicap, the reconstruction of the Vera Cruz police station and access to transports were other issues referred by the Administrator.
José Smith also emphasised the plan for the future should give solutions to the lack of roads, sewers, gutters; he mentioned communications, that can stimulate investments of other companies; regarding the agriculture sector, identification of the owners of good agricultural land for seed distribution; identification of areas with touristic and historical potentialities, like the Dare mountain view, the Motael coastal areas and the shelter places used during the Japanese occupation in Western Lahane that need to be preserved and kept.
The Sucos chiefs also expressed their concerns regarding electric energy, potable water, bridges, education, the veterans issue, State properties, the MTCI brand rice distribution, the establishment of a price list for commerce, the creation of a Youth Centre and a list of people with retirement age. The real conditions of the Ai-tarak and Caicoli communities, the sewers and gutters, the need for the construction of a dam close to Maloa, the lack of roads to the Kasnafar village, the lack of human resources at sub-district level and cultural materials were other points presented by the Suco chiefs.
The Prime Minister answering to the issues presented by the Administrator and Suco Chiefs, invited all the persons present to a reflexion resorting to references used in previous consultations.
In this reflexion it is important to refer that the converging points are the State institution, by the people, the duty of the State in relation with the population’s needs, until they are able to use their own resources and capacities. The Head of Government also referred that the basic infra-structures are already reflected in the NSDP.
The Minister of Infrastructures, Pedro Lay, the Vice-Minister of Finance, Rui Manuel Hanjam, the Secretaries of State for Public Works, Domingos Caeiro, of Culture, Virgílio Smith, of Agriculture and Arboriculture, Marcos da Cruz, some staff from the local administration and the Díli district police Superintendent, Pedro Belo accompanied the Prime Minister.
