The Secretary of State for the Council of Ministers and

Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste

Díli, April 25, 2012

Timor-Leste National Procurement Commission

A further step in the implementation of the Timor-Leste Strategic Development Plan has been achieved with a signing ceremony held yesterday at the Ministry of Finance finalizing an important contract to strengthen the National Procurement Commission. The Prime Minister and a number of Ministers were present on this important occasion.

With the development of quality infrastructure as a priority of Timor-Leste’s 20-year development plan, significant expenditure by the state on a number of large projects will be necessary. The Gusmão Government, continuing its commitment to transparent and effective public expenditure, has been working to set up and strengthen the necessary institutions to ensure the efficient and accountable implementation of these infrastructure projects.

The National Procurement Commission, the National Development Agency and the Major Projects Secretariat have been set up with managers and staff including some of Timor-Leste’s best and brightest. These institutions, together, are to make sure that what is built meets the needs and aspirations of the Timorese people.

Because the National Procurement Commission is still a young institution charged with the very serious responsibility of best practice procurement of large projects, high quality international support has been secured to support and strengthen the commission. This support has now been formally contracted to the highly regarded procurement firm Charles Kendall and Partners, a firm that has worked in over 100 countries around the world and has a reputation for transparency and integrity in post conflict nations.

The Prime Minister, His Excellency Xanana Gusmão closed the signing ceremony saying that by strengthening Timor-Leste’s National Procurement Commission “the company will help to make sure that our major infrastructure projects are of good quality, provide value for money and are managed with transparency, professionalism and integrity.”