This new Healthcare Waste Management Facilities including design, collection, and burial of three hazardous healthcare waste streams aimed to mitigate adverse impacts from the disposal of healthcare waste to the environment, hospital staff, waste workers and the community.  

The Charge d’Affairs of the EU Delegation to Timor-Leste said: “Through our regional programme, we are proud to stand with Timor-Leste, and to enhanced understanding, skills and practice of the health workers to provide high quality of health service and scrutinise public health policies. Recent study demonstrated that proper healthcare waste management might add value by reducing the spread of the diseases and increasing the recyclability of materials instead of sending them to landfill.”

The PacWaste Plus Project is assisting 14 Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste to improve economic, social, health, and environmental benefits by enhancing existing activities and building capacity and sustainability into waste management practices. 

The project has also in partnership with the National Directorate for the Environment under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Environment and the Ministry of Health (MoH) to stop the preceding practices of burning waste in open fields adjacent to the hospital wards or collected by local waste contractors for disposal.  

Throughout the PacWastePlus activities, the programme has also assisted in developing the National Healthcare Waste Management Strategy & Implementation Guidelines for Timor-Leste one of several strategic documents developed to assist the Timor-Leste Ministry of Health to effect sustainable change in the management and treatment of healthcare waste generated in facilities across the country.

A-5-year Strategy Implementation Plan is being developed alongside the Strategy being let by the MoH staff.   PacWastePlus continues to provide technical guidance to this effort. The Timor-Leste project investment trained over 150 hospital staff in Healthcare Waste Management. Additionally, 15 MoH staff were trained to continue providing this training to hospital personnel as needed.

The project will continue to work with MoH to repair incinerators at Baucau Hospital, Maubisse Hospital and Suai Hospital in 2024 to improve human and environmental health outcomes for all Timorese.

For more information about the PacWaste Plus program investment, visit www.pacwasteplus.org