Minister of State and of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and

Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste

 Díli, September 4th, 2015

 

Timor-Leste to host meeting of South-East Asian Health Ministers

Next week Health Ministers and officials from the eleven nations that comprise the World Health Organization’s South East Asian Region will meet in Díli. Participants from Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste will convene at the Díli Convention Centre for the Sixty-eighth Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia.

During meetings throughout the week delegates will “set health priorities and discuss health agendas for the Region” as they consult with colleagues and WHO experts and officials, including the WHO South-East Asia Director Dr. Poonam Khetrapal Singh. Among issues to be discussed are: accelerating efforts to protect people against tobacco, advocating for health in the post-2015 Global Sustainable Development Goals, and expanding effective services with a stronger health workforce.

The Prime Minister, H.E. Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo, will open the meeting on Monday giving the inaugural address and the Minister of Health H.E. Dr. Maria do Ceu Sarmento Pina da Costa, will officially welcome the international guests.

The Regional Committee is the highest policy making body of WHO in the Region and meets annually. This is the first time that Timor-Leste has hosted the annual meeting.

Spokesperson for the Sixth Constitutional Government, Minister of State Agio Pereira noted “the Government of Timor-Leste welcomes the participants of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia to Timor-Leste.  The World Health Organization has been an effective partner over the years in Timor-Leste, assisting particularly with disease prevention and control, and we are honored to be able to host the Regional annual meeting. We look forward to interacting with Health Ministers and officials from the region to share experiences and develop better ways to serve the people of Timor-Leste to achieve our goals of healthy people, healthy communities and a healthy nation.”