DILI, 21 october 2022 (TATOLI) – The Ministry of Health distributed larvicides to the communities for the prevention of dengue in the country at the same time as preparation for the control of dengue in the upcoming rainy season, the National Director of Public Health, Frederico Bosco has said.
Bosco said the larvicides would be used by the residents to control mosquitoes indoors and outdoors.
“The larvicides have been distributed to the households in the country. For example, in Dili, we have already distributed to the communities in the administrative post of Dom Aleixo, Cristo Rei, Vera Cruz, and Na’in-Feto. Currently, we have registered 20 new cases of dengue fever,” Bosco said at Hotel Timor in Dili.
The Ministry of Health has already instructed municipal health authorities to alert the population about the prevention of the disease.
The health team has been working in partnership with the local authorities, carrying out awareness campaigns and clean-up activities, as well as distributing larvicides to the inhabitants to prevent the disease.
Bosco said the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Government of Australia introduced the Mosquitoes with Wolbachia in Timor-Leste to control and reduce the numbers of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
“We are introducing this method. We need to wait for two years to receive the results. So, we should continue with clean-up actions and other necessary activities,” he said.
Aedes aegypti is a kind of mosquito known for spreading viruses including dengue, Zika, and chikungunya.
Earlier this month, Biocentis, a Private Limited Company from London England also expressed interest to help Timor-Leste with the prevention and control of dengue fever.
Timor-Leste has registered 5,480 people infected with dengue and 57 fatalities since january.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
