Maria do Céu Sarmento Pina da Costa (born 14 April 1968 in Dili,

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor ( pt, Timor Português) was a colonial possession of Portugal that existed between 1702 and 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in the ...

) is an

East Timorese East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-wester ...

doctor, academic and politician. From 2015 to 2017, she was

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

. Sarmento is a member of the

National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction The National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction ( pt, Congresso Nacional de Reconstrução de Timor, CNRT) is a political party in East Timor founded by former President Xanana Gusmão in March 2007 in preparation for the 2007 parliamentary ...

(''Congresso Nacional da Reconstrução Timorense'') (CNRT).

Early life and education

From 1976 to 1982 Sarmento attended primary school, then junior high school for two years, and from 1986 to 1988 secondary school. Sarmento studied from 1989 at the Faculty of Medicine of Udayana University in Bali,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, and graduated in 1996.

Medical career

From 1996 to 2001, Sarmento worked as an assistant physician in the Medical Department of the National Hospital in Dili, which from 1999 was under the direction of the

International Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signato ...

. From 2001 to 2006, she was general assistant physician in the same hospital. Then she attended a course at the National School of Public Health in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, from February to June 2009. From 2009 to 2011 she was then Coordinator for Bilateral Affairs with Cuba, as well as Technical Assistant at the Ministry of Health of East Timor. Since 2011, Sarmento has been Deputy Dean of Academic Affairs and lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine and Medical Science of the

National University of East Timor The National University of East Timor (UNTL; pt, Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e; Tetum: ''Universidade Nasionál Timór Lorosa'e''), is a public university in East Timor, the only one of its kind in the country. Founded in 2000, as a result ...

in Dili. Sarmento was a treasurer at the East Timor Medical Association from 2000 to 2005, president in 2005, and a consultant since 2006.

Political career

In 2012, she was sworn in as Vice Minister of Health for Management, Assistance and Resources in the

V Constitutional Government of East Timor The V Constitutional Government ( pt, V Governo Constitucional, tet, V Governu Konstitusionál) was the fifth Constitutional Government of East Timor, Constitutional Government (Administration (government), administration or Cabinet (governmen ...

. After the government reshuffle of 2015, she was appointed Minister of Health in the

VI Constitutional Government of East Timor The VI Constitutional Government ( pt, VI Governo Constitucional, tet, VI Governu Konstitusionál) was the sixth Constitutional Government of East Timor, Constitutional Government (Administration (government), administration or Cabinet (govern ...

, being sworn in on 16 February. In 2017, Rui Maria de Araújo replaced Sarmento as Minister of Health in the new government.

Personal life

Sarmento is married. She is fluent in

Tetum , nativename=Tetun , states= Indonesia East Timor , speakers=, mostly in Indonesia , date=2010–2011 , ref=e18 , speakers2=50,000 L2-speakers in Indonesia and East Timor , familycolor=Austronesian , fam2=Malayo-Polynesian , fam3= Central–East ...

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

. She also speaks English.

Awards

* 2002 – Woman of the year in the field of health of Queen Entertainment Timor, Dili * July 2003 to June 2004 – Best doctor of National Hospital Guido Valadares

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarmento, Maria do Ceu Living people 1968 births Government ministers of East Timor Health ministers of East Timor 21st-century women politicians Members of the National Parliament (East Timor) Women government ministers of East Timor East Timorese physicians Academic staff of the National University of East Timor People from Dili