DILI, january 6 2022 (TATOLI)– The National Logistics Center (NLC) will import 5.000 tons of rice from Vietnam to Dili, by the end of February 2022.
President of the National Logistic Center (NLC), Jervazio Cardoso de Jesus da Silva said the total rice acquired from Vietnam was 5.000 tons, of which $4 million was allocated for rice procurement.
The government allocated a total of $4 million for the procurement of 5,000 tons of rice, so the rice stock will be supplied by a national company and will arrive in Dili by the end of February 2022,” Da Silva told Tatoli at his office Bebora Dili.
Executive Director of NCL, Jacinto Paijo said the procurement of rice was to meet domestic food needs, so it was necessary to import rice from both countries, Vietnam and Thailand.
However, Paijo said, currently the Government is prioritizing the procurement of local products for national consumption, saying it is based on the policy of the VIII Constitutional Government, to contribute to the diversification of the country’s economy.
“CLN has been responsible for buying local products to help the community in terms of the economy as well as helping them consume nutritious food apart from imports from abroad,”
NLC has procured local products consisting of Corn, Soybeans, Peanuts, Green Beans, Rice, and Red Beans, to be stored in various warehouses in three municipalities; Baucau, Natarbora, and Tibar.
“In the Baucau warehouse we store 1,049,914 tons of local mixed products, 978,914 tons in the Natarbora and Tibar warehouses with 1,330,670 tons totaling 3,359,594 tons of mixed local products,” he said
Paijo added that, the government has spent up to 12 million USD for the procurement of these local products from local farmers, thus helping around 36,730 local farmers who sell their products to the government.
Paijos, encourages all Timorese to continue working and improve the quality and quantity of their products, adding that the government will continue to procure local food products for national consumption, and reduce food imports from abroad.
Journalist: José Belarmino de Sa
Editor: Nelia B