Meeting of the Council of Ministers on April 17th, 2024
Presidency of the Council of Ministers
Spokesperson of the Government of Timor-Leste
Ninth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on April 17th, 2024
The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and, following the drafts presented by the Vice Prime Minister, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of Tourism and the Environment, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, approved the draft Decree-Law for the first amendment to Decree-Law No. 26/2016, of June 29th, on AIFAESA, I.P..
With the creation of the National Institute of Public Health of Timor-Leste, tasked with establishing a national reference laboratory to carry out specialised laboratory tests, it is imperative to optimise material and human resources, ensuring efficient coordination in executing the duties and responsibilities of both institutes. To this end, as the national reference laboratory, the National Institute of Public Health of Timor-Leste will collect samples and carry out laboratory tests relating to public health and food. At the same time, AIFAESA will be assigned the remaining inspection and monitoring responsibilities.
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The Council of Ministers decided to grant full powers to the Vice Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs of the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, to sign the Action Plan for Economic and Trade Cooperation (2024-2027), at Forum Macau, on April 22nd, 2024.
This Action Plan defines the areas of cooperation at the intergovernmental level and exchanges with international organisations, trade and investment, development, and the cultural and humanistic sector, as well as the Macau Platform and preparations for the next Ministerial Conference, with a view to boosting economic and commercial cooperation between the countries participating in Forum Macau in the best possible way.
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The Council of Ministers also instructed the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs and the Minister for the Interior to set up joint teams to carry out control and inspection actions to combat the smuggling and counterfeiting of tobacco products.
This measure considers the importance of guaranteeing the safety and quality of products, both food and non-food, and aims to combat the smuggling and counterfeiting of tobacco products. The main objectives are to ensure the protection of public health, guarantee compliance with the applicable legal and regulatory standards, and guarantee the payment of taxes and duties owed by economic agents.
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The draft Government Resolution on the Rules of Procedure of the Council of Ministers, presented by the Minister for the Presidency of the Council of Ministers in office, Adérito Hugo da Costa, was also approved.
The Council of Ministers' Rules of Procedure are an essential legal instrument for the organisation and proper functioning of the Government as a collegiate body. This instrument aims to regulate the organisation and functioning of ordinary and extraordinary meetings of the Council of Ministers, as well as regulating the legislative procedure of the 9th Constitutional Government, to establish effective coordination between the different members of the Government to the benefit of the government's actions, which are intended to be swift and efficient.
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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister for Planning and Strategic Investment, Gastão Francisco de Sousa, for the first amendment to Decree-Law No. 13/2016, of May 18th, which regulates the Infrastructure Fund.
Given the ongoing intention to increasingly comply with the rules of good governance, transparency and accountability in the acts that fulfil the Fund's objectives, this Decree-Law is intended to establish additional measures to improve the administrative efficiency of the Major Projects Secretariat, as the technical and administrative support body for the Board of Directors, and, before a decade of the Fund operating as an autonomous fund has passed, following the review carried out in 2016, to carry out a one-off review of the law that regulates it, in an attempt to bring it into line with the objectives set out in the 9th Constitutional Government's Programme. The law also clarifies that projects relating to the buildings of Timor-Leste's embassies and consular services abroad are also eligible for funding from the Infrastructure Fund.
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The Council of Ministers decided to approve the award of the contract for the rehabilitation of Municipal Roads, Package 2, Uatolari - Laisorulai, 0+000 - 22+000 (22 Km), in the Municipality of Viqueque, to Shanghai Construction Group Co., Ltd, which submitted the best bid based on the combined technical and financial evaluation.
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Following the approval of Decree-Law no. 15/2024, of March 20th, on the extraordinary procurement by direct award of a public contract for works begun without contractual formalisation, and based on the report prepared by ADN, the Council of Ministers decided to approve the works to be contracted for their continuation and completion or for payment of the work carried out and the respective expenditure.
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The Minister of Education, Dulce de Jesus Soares, gave a presentation on the results of the exams for the Teacher Candidate Pool.
The exams ran from March 15th to April 16th, 2024, to select candidates to fill 2,400 vacancies in a pool of candidates, from which future teachers can quickly be recruited since they have already demonstrated that they meet the requirements demanded by law.
Of the 11,127 exams taken, only 568 passed. The minimum required was 60 points, and an overall average of 44.4 was obtained in all the exams. A second round of exams will be held to fill the remaining vacancies.
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The Council of Ministers attended the presentation by the Vice Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Francisco Kalbuadi Lay on the Dili Marina Square project.
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Lastly, the Council of Ministers approved the theme "Hametin Instituisaun Estadu Hodi Serve Povu" (Strengthening State Institutions to Serve the People) for the May 20th, 2024 celebrations. END
