MAP opens a Diagnostics Laboratory for Animal Health
On August 2nd, the Secretary of State for Livestock, Valentino Varela, along with the President, José Ramos-Horta, and the Ambassador of Australia to Timor-Leste, Miles Armitage, opened the Diagnostics Laboratory for Animal Health, in Dili.
This laboratory is the fruit of cooperation between the Ministry for Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Australian Agency for Development (AusAID).
The National Directorate of Livestock and Veterinary, under the MAF, established this laboratory to diagnose animal diseases transmissible to humans, with the intention of being the issuer of the health certification for agricultural products and animals, required for import and export .
In his speech, the President of the Republic, José Ramos-Horta, thanked the "development partners AusAID and FAO, who worked in partnership with the Government of Timor-Leste, represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, for the effort to improve our well being, with regards to border control, preventing contamination of animal diseases in our country.
On the same occasion, the Secretary of State for Livestock, Valentino Varela noted: "the establishment of this lab brings advantages to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, especially the National Directorate of Livestock and Veterinary, since it will serve as a training and research center for technicians and veterinarians, in order to analyze the samples found in the ground, but also to students who attend the UNTL veterinary course. "
This laboratory, which cost 1,3 million U.S. dollars, had the financial support of the Biosafety Project from FAO and AusAID.
