The Health Ministry will air condition 13 containers which are being used to store medicines which would otherwise expire in the heat.
Health Ministry hospital support work national director Horacio Sarmento da Costa said the Autonomous Service of Medicines and Health Equipment (SAMES) warehouse was not suitable to store the medicines.
Da Costa said pharmaceutical company Kimia Farma had imported 29 containers of medical supplies to Timor-Leste in the five months leading up to July this year, and as a result, storage space was in short supply.
Deputy Health Minister (management support and human resources) Maria do Ceu Sarmento Pina da Costa recognized the problem and said they were working on a solution.
“There are some medicines which must be stored at below 25 degrees Celsius,” she said.
She said the government planned to fix the old warehouse in Bebora this year so medicine could be stored there.
The deputy minister gave assurances that there was no impending medical supply shortage as supply had been assured until March 2014 and items were being purchased now.
However Member of Parliament Leonel Marcal accused the government of lacking a cohesive plan to assure the supply of medicines.
He said the medicines used currently were purchased with the 2013 budget and mass quantities were imported in 2014 while 2014 budget medical supply purchases were still undergoing a tender process.
The Commission F (education, health, culture, veterans’ affairs and gender equality) member said the distribution process was also flawed as SAMES staff had limited access to transport.
He expressed concern that the government would once more be forced to disposed of expired medicines.
