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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers of April 3, 2019
The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and heard a presentation of the company Mura, regarding CAT-HTR, an innovative technology of transformation of plastic to oil. This technology was invented by Thomas Maschmeyer, professor of chemistry at the University of Sydney in Australia. The company Mura, owned by Armstrong Energy and Licella, owns the intellectual property to use this technology. CAT-HCR uses high pressure water and high temperatures to convert plastic waste into high value products. In this way this technology allows the reduction of plastic waste in the oceans and the reduction of the problems caused by carbon dioxide emissions caused by plastic burning, besides allowing to create a source of revenue with the transformation of this waste. For Mura, the company responsible for the project, Timor-Leste is the ideal partner for the implementation of this project, due to its geographic and social characteristics. The Secretary of State for the Environment, Demétrio de Amaral de Carvalho, will discuss the terms of a memorandum of understanding between the Government of Timor-Leste and Mura, to be later submitted for analysis by the Council of Ministers with a view to beginning studies of viability and to source eventual investors.
The Acting Minister of State Administration, Abílio José Caetano, gave a presentation to the Council of Ministers on the implementation plan for solid urban waste management in Dili. This plan was carried out based on Government Resolution 32/2016 of October 5 that approves the strategy for the management of solid urban waste in the city of Díli and in Decree-Law No. 2/2017 that approves the solid urban waste management system. The plan proposes the acquisition of container models for modern and efficient waste storage, waste collection vehicles, mobile equipment, balance and landfill equipment to improve the operational standard of the Tibar waste site. It also aims to improve the service of solid waste collection, with the change to a method of mechanical collection. Finally, the plan also aims at transforming the Tibar dump into a landfill that is controlled according to an integrated waste treatment strategy. The implementation plan for the management of solid urban waste in Díli presents the main benefits of improving the quality of the urban environment, improving health, reducing the risk of flooding, high efficiency in the collection and management of waste through international practices, creation of employment opportunities and the possibility of tourism growth through effective environmental management and maintenance.
The Acting Minister of State Administration also gave a presentation to the Council of Ministers on the implementation in Timor-Leste of the Saemaul Undong development model (SMU), created by South Korea in 1970 and which led to the economic and social development of the country. The Saemaul Undong model refers to a community development movement aimed at improving the quality of life of rural communities based on the spirit of diligence, self-help and cooperation. The implementation of the SMU in Timor-Leste could help reduce the distance between the Central Government and the communities, reduce the number of migrants from rural areas to the capital, increase opportunities at the municipal level with the use of their characteristics and potential, increase the number of available jobs and use the experience of national citizens trained in rural development.
The Minister of Social Solidarity and Inclusion, Armanda Berta dos Santos, presented the proposal for a Resolution of the Council of Ministers on the sector cooperation program between the Ministry of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security of Portugal and the Ministry of Social Solidarity and Inclusion of Timor-Leste for the period 2019-2022. The axes and priority areas established, through the analysis of the objectives and priorities agreed by the governments of the two countries, are the “democracy, rule of law and human rights” axis, with interventions in the institutional capacity building, the “human development and poverty eradication” axis with activities in social protection and inclusion and institutional capacity building and “child rights and gender equality” axis through institutional capacity building. This proposal will be reviewed at the next meeting of the Council of Ministers. ENDS