Dili, 13 April

MISSION RECOMMENDS OVERALL HEALTH PROGRAM

A Joint Health Mission led by the World Bank and including representatives from AusAID, the European Union and Gulbenkian Foundation, from Portugal, concluded their three-week assessment today and agreed on a three year overall health program for East Timor.

In close consultation with the UNTAET Interim Health Authority, the mission has recommended that the program should have three components.

The first is restoring access to basic services, including immunization, health promotion, TB control and nutrition. The second is development of health policy, mainly surveys, health regulation and legislation, and which will involve an extensive consultation process. And thirdly project implementation and management.

Th program will be conducted in three phases over three years, until 2002. This first year will be focused on the first two components.

All the measures will be implemented by the UNTAET Interim Health Authority, the institutional entity that will evolve into the Department of Health of East Timor.

The estimate cost for the three years is about US$40 million, US$12 million for the first 12 months. It will be mainly funded by the International Development Association, and UNTAET trust funds.

FIRST PAYMENTS UNDER CEP MADE IN LIQUICA

The first money from the US$21 million Community Empowerment Project was handed over today to eight Bazartete sub-district villages in the Liquica district. Each of the newly selected village (suco) councils identified rehabilitation projects that are to be financed with the money channeled through the World Bank Trust Fund for reconstruction of East Timor.

The individual projects are worth up to some US$5,600 and include building roads to isolated hamlets, reconstruction of community centers destroyed last year and repair of water pipelines.

Immediately following this disbursement the villages are to select one man and one woman from the suco council to represent their village at the sub-district level. This will enable them to start the second cycle of larger projects, based on competitive proposals between community groups. The sub-district councils will receive additional training to manage funds.

Patrick Burgess, the Liquica District Administrator, congratulated the people of Bazartete adding that "this proves that the people have the ability to organize themselves and take decisions beneficial to their community."

CNRT President Xanana Gusmao and Sarah Cliffe, the head of the World Bank Office in Dili, also extended their congratulations and called on the people to insist on the transparency of the project implementation. "Do not allow the fertile ground for collusion, corruption and nepotism to develop," said Gusmao.

Next payments from the Community Empowerment Project are to be made to the other two sub-districts in Liquica tomorrow and on 18 April.