DiLI, 05 august 2022 (TATOLI) – Prime Minister, Taur Matan Ruak urges Timorese people to get tested for tuberculosis (TB) at healthcare facilities to combat the transmission of the disease.
“We currently have necessary and sufficient conditions to test and identify the cases of tuberculosis in the country. Therefore, I urge children and elders to be screened for the disease,” the Head of the Government made the call during the inauguration of the National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory (NTRL) and the Mobile Laboratory (ML), in Dili.
Ruak praised the contribution and support of international development partners in combating tuberculosis in Timor-Leste.
The representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Timor-Leste, Arvind Mathur emphasized that the Global Fund has made available a budget for the purchase of Diagnostic Medical Imaging Equipment, etc.
“The mobile laboratory will help the tuberculosis screening tests around the country. I believe it is important to invest in the National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory and the Mobile Laboratory to improve the management of the disease and eradicate it by 2025,” he added.
In addition to the inauguration of the laboratory, WHO has also provided a car and 15 motorcycles to the Surveillance Department.
Just to recall that Global Fund had already made available more than US$15 million to the Ministry of Health (MoH), with US$8.3 million going to combat the disease in Timor-Leste.
According to data from the WHO, which was revealed by the Vice-Minister of Health, Bonifácio Mau Coli dos Reis, four Timorese die every day from tuberculosis.
The same study shows that about 30-40% of tuberculosis cases go undetected, so the risk of infection in the community remains high due to multidimensional and cross-cutting causes.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
