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While we acknowledge the significant efforts that have led to the decrease of maternal
mortality in Timor-Leste between 1990 and 2015 according to the evaluation of the
Millennium Development Goal on improving maternal health, we all know that the task is
far from being finished, and more efforts are needed in the next fifteen years to further
decrease it along with our commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. 
In addition, we welcome the current focus on the survival of newborns, especially in the
very early period of life, since their survival and the interventions to ensure it are very much
linked to those of their mothers.
The findings of the recent Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (EmONC) Needs
Assessment reveal a country-wide deficit in facilities capable of delivering all life saving
signal functions. This single evidence leads to the present EmONC improvement Plan of
Action for the years 2016 to 2019, in line with the targets of the National Reproductive
Health Strategy, and the Health Sector Development Plan
I like to urge all relevant health staff to look carefully into the recommendations of the
present Plan of Action and to contribute to its success from the first to the fourth year.
We also thank our development partners for their contribution, whether technical, material
or financial, so that we can proudly and jointly assess our expected progress at the end of
the Plan.