DILI, 29 august 2024 (TATOLI)—Former Prime Minister of Portugal for the period 2002-2004, José Manuel Durão Barroso, who currently serves as President of the Global Alliance for Vaccines (GAVI), expressed his intention to support Timor-Leste in the health sector.
The former Portuguese PM conveyed this to reporters after meeting with his homologue, Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, at the government office on thursday to convey GAVI’s activities so far and support for Timor-Leste.
“We also talked specifically about GAVI; I am the President of GAVI; the distribution that we do and what we help for Timor-Leste in this section, especially in HPV, which must be fought; cervical cancer in adolescent girls; the contribution that we provide, such as financial support for the provision of the health system,” he said.
The GAVI President also met with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and agreed on several concrete points for future cooperation with the aim of combating any epidemic and with the aim of immunization, as well as the role of GAVI in vaccine distribution.
GAVI, or the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, was founded in 2000 in response to the challenges faced by low-income countries in accessing vaccines. In the late 1990s, many children in developing countries did not receive the necessary immunizations, with almost 30 million children not fully vaccinated. GAVI aimed to address this problem by providing better access to vaccines.
In his meeting with Prime Minister Xanana, José Manuel Durão Barroso recalled Timor-Leste’s struggle for independence and was very satisfied that the country is an independent country that has its own challenges in development.
“We analyzed various issues from health, education, to cooperation also with my country and Portugal. I am not here to represent the Portuguese government, but what is clear is that I am interested in everything that can happen between Portugal and Timor, namely the part about teacher training, about the justice system, and it has been a very useful and interesting exchange of opinions,” he said.
He also listened to the opinion of the Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmão, his analysis of the situation in the Asian region from the perspective of Timor-Leste’s accession to ASEAN and on Timor-Leste’s position in the international community.
During his stay in Dili, the former Portuguese Prime Minister also met with the President of the Republic, José Ramos Horta, and was touched by the way the President welcomed him to Timor-Leste, making it a very productive visit.
Journalist: Camilio de Sousa
Editor: Rafael Ximenes de A. Belo
