Meeting of the Council of Ministers of September 21st, 2018
Presidency of the Council of Ministers
Eighth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers of September 21st, 2018
The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and approved the continuation of the duodecimal regime during the month of September to ensure the payment of salaries and other expenses, bearing in mind that the General State Budget (OGE) for 2018 is still under review by the President of the Republic awaiting promulgation. This measure still falls within the scope of the amounts transferred from the Petroleum Fund last August, so it will not be necessary to request further authorization from the National Parliament.
The Council of Ministers reviewed a presentation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation concerning the exchange agreement between the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and the Government of Japan for the extension of economic cooperation under the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) through the Japan Development Scholarships (JDS) project. The JDS is a program of Japanese cooperation initiated in 1999, which has already been implemented in 15 countries with the aim of supporting the development of human resources. The members of the Government discussed the implementation policy, the programming and the priority study areas for the program, according to national priorities.
The acting Minister of Finance, Sara Lobo Brites, presented to the Council of Ministers the possible scenarios for the budget limit for fiscal year 2019. The Government decided that the OGE for 2019 will have a budget limit of 1.35 billion US dollars. The members of the Government also discussed the timetable for preparation and the national priorities for the 2019 Budget. The document will be submitted until November 8.
The Council of Ministers approved an authorization to the Minister of Defense, Filomeno da Paixão de Jesus, to sign the agreement between the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and the Government of Japan for education and training activities in the areas of humanitarian technical assistance and assistance operations in the case of catastrophes.
It was also presented to the Council of Ministers the report of Timor-Leste's exploratory support mission to the elections of November 18, 2018, in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, presented by Tomás do Rosário Cabral, Special Representative of the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste to the Republic of Guinea-Bissau to support the organization of the elections. The Timorese delegation, led by the Special Representative, visited Guinea-Bissau from 3 to 15 September to meet with local authorities to verify the existing conditions and identify the needs for the organization of voter registration and the holding of free and democratic elections.
Finally, the Council of Ministers approved the proposal for a Government Decree, presented by the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Dulce de Jesus Soares, on the remuneration supplement for officials and agents of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport working on the implementation of national tests and exams. The approved Government Decree determines the value of a dollar and fifty cents for any extra hour worked from Monday to Friday and of two dollars and fifty per hour on weekends. ENDS
