The Secretary of State for Promotion of Women’s Socio-Economy (SEM) Veneranda Lemos Martins said from 2008 to 2014, most of 339 women beneficiary groups funded by the public transfer fund by the then Secretary of State for the Promotion of Equality (SEPI) for business development most of have not demonstrated success.
The Secretary of State added the IV constitutional of government through SEPI funded these groups in the rural areas so they could develop business to help strengthen the family’s economic sustainability.
“There were 339 beneficiary groups but when we conducted the assessment, we found out that only 82 groups had some successful,” said SE Lemos recently during a Women National congress organized by international NGO Paz y Dezarollo organization (PyD), at Delta Nova, in Dili.
Meanwhile, she added that during the VI constitutional government, SEM decided to stop the public transfer funds and to assess the impact of the assistance to the beneficiary groups and so far some 62 women’s groups despite getting the funds have not conducted any activities.
“We have the names of some groups that after receiving the funds just disappeared,” she said. “We can call this misuse of funds and a kind of corruption.”
She added that the group names are known but it is difficult to seek them out because they no longer exist and they are remote.
The President of Commission F (health, education, culture, veteran affairs and gender equality) MP Virgilio da Costa Hornai urged competent institutions to investigate the use of the execution of funds allocated out of the public transfer fund.
“There should be an in-depth investigation that makes groups accountable because they used Sate money,” said MP Hornai.
Meanwhile the Executive Director of Alola Foundation (FA) Alzira Reis agreed that there is a need for a serious investigation into the matter to make the groups accountable.
“This issue should remind the state institutions to really know beneficiary groups because otherwise many groups will disappear with the funds after getting them and won’t implement anything with the money,” said Director Reis.
