United Nations in Timor-Leste

The Sustainable Development Goals are a global call to action to end poverty, protect the earth’s environment and climate, and ensure that people everywhere can enjoy peace and prosperity. These are the goals the UN is working on in Timor-Leste:

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20 September 2021

The future of work and the ‘new normal’

United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste, Roy Trivedy, shares his reflections about the impacts of COVID-19 and its ‘new normal’ on the workforce, work conditions, and labour markets. This has huge implications for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. The UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Liu Zhenmin, often says that ‘future of work is in fact the future of the world’, I recalled this when last week I participated in a rich, fascinating and insightful webinar organised by UNDESA and UNDP that brought together colleagues from the UN family including ILO and others to discuss the Future of Work. The meeting explored many of the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected work in different countries and sectors of economies worldwide. We heard about how millions of workers are experiencing increased levels of job insecurity, as many businesses have folded, resulting from the disruption of markets and other factors. We learnt about how the ‘gig economy’ has grown and now forms an important part of peoples’ livelihoods, especially those working in certain service industries. We heard how for some, this has created new opportunities to work (and often more flexibly), while for others, it has impacted their abilities to enjoy ‘decent work’, stability and effective protection in the workplace. Participants noted that unlike a few decades ago, it is now becoming rare for individuals to work for one company or corporation throughout their working lives. Most people change jobs frequently and the ability to adapt and flexibly apply one’s skills has become a necessary part of the ‘new normal’. A salient feature of the ‘new normal’ has been the way in which workplaces worldwide have embraced and encouraged ‘remote working’. This has resulted in some benefits for workers (e.g., reducing commuting time, allowing people to have more flexibility about when they work and in some places, opened new work opportunities outside of major cities etc.). But it has also exposed considerable challenges (including increased levels of ‘workplace isolation’, mental stress and difficulties in protecting workers rights). Participants noted how in some places, the pandemic has affected people working in care professions and accentuated the importance of effective social protection policies. For some of the most vulnerable groups of people, including those who are unemployed, ‘unskilled workers’, those with long-term illnesses, people working in informal sectors, the elderly and people with disabilities, the changing nature of work often accentuates and deepens inequalities and vulnerabilities. Participants also stressed how digital skills have become an integral requirement in many types of jobs. We discussed how automation and AI (artificial intelligence) is impacting on different sectors, including by offering ‘labour saving’ opportunities in certain industries/sectors (eg some manufacturing industries) but also displacing certain types of traditional jobs and industries, including in farming and seasonal agricultural work. The webinar also focused on the impacts of the climate crisis and environmental sustainability on working patterns. Participants noted many immediate impacts, as well as emerging and potential changes that will become even more evident in future for businesses, employers and employees as the world strives to move towards greater carbon neutrality. The presenters stressed that the impacts of the above changes are not uniformly affecting industries, sectors, economies, countries and individuals. Different changes are taking place depending on different contexts and the impacts are different for different groups of people (men/women, those working in the formal sector, those working informally, professionals, casual workers etc..). One lesson from the discussion was the need for government’s, political leaders, the UN and others to do more to prioritise and find effective ways of strengthening the skills base, flexibility and adaptability in workforces. Improving digital skills and investing more resources now to strengthen the abilities of people is crucial for preparing the future workforce. This needs to start with early childhood development and must ensure that all children have the best start in their lives. Countries like Timor-Leste, must use the post-pandemic period to improve nutritional standards to support better learning, boost the quality of education, strengthen numeracy and literacy skills, invest more in vocational training, digitalisation and skills development now. We have to prepare young people for the types of future employment opportunities that will emerge over the next decade and beyond. We must use every opportunity now to significantly boost investment in these areas. A second lesson that was emphasised was the need for governments and others to improve social protection measures. The pandemic has increased inequalities worldwide. There are many studies that show that improvements in social protection generate positive results in terms of economic growth. One of the recent ones is INVESTMENTS IN SOCIAL PROTECTION AND THEIR IMPACTS ON ECONOMIC GROWTH commissioned by InTouch Credit Union (ITUC). The ITUC report based on research from 8 countries in four continents shows: Investments in social protection positively affect employment opportunities. An investment of 1 per cent of GDP in social protection has a positive effect on rising employment, with a multiplier effect between 0.1 and 1.1 in the eight case studies. In most cases, the employment gains are greatest for women – which underlines the positive role that social protection can play in reducing gender inequalities in the labour market. The analysis also shows that social protection investments increase the overall employment supply. Indeed, the existing evidence shows that social protection plays an important part in helping otherwise liquidity-constrained households to cope with adverse shocks. Households are better able to smooth consumption and thus rely less on negative coping strategies, such as the sale of assets and the withdrawal of children from school. This means that households may, for example, engage in more risks in terms of innovation and invest more in human capital, facilitating longer job search activities. The simulations indicate that social protection investments induce an increase of labour demand, especially in labour-intensive economies and typically in the economies where agriculture is the most important sector and where domestic sectors are more interlinked. Total tax revenues increase with investments in social protection. The analysis shows that by investing in social protection, fiscal revenues increase, making social protection funding less dependent on external sources. Investment of 1 per cent of GDP in social protection has a positive effect on total government tax revenues: between 0.6 per cent and 3.5 per cent in the eight case studies. There is therefore strong evidence for governments and others to work together to boost social protection. As the world recovers from the pandemic, we must grasp opportunities to strengthen social protection measures. A third key lesson that I drew from our discussions was for all of us (governments, private sector, institutions and individuals) to find effective ways of reducing, re-using, recovering and recycling products. For many of us, changing consumption and production patterns is an essential and vital part of contributing to more sustainable lifestyles – a change that can improve the future for all. Let’s not miss the opportunity to make the necessary changes now!

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03 November 2020

From where I stand: “I’m hoping that things will get better so I can have my job back.”

"Starting from this month, I won’t go to work. My family and I are sad that I can’t earn money anymore to help the family and pay for my nephews and nieces’ education. After high school graduation in 2011, I wanted to pursue a university degree, but then I realized that I could never afford it. So I decided to work and sustain myself and my family. During the past year, I’ve been working as a domestic worker in a household in the capital, Dili, and live with my employer. I got the job through the non-governmental organization Working Women’s Centre Timor-Leste (WWCTL), which supports employment opportunities, training and advocacy for domestic workers. Now with the State of Emergency, I’ve been asked to take a one-month break to go back to my family as part of COVID-19 prevention efforts. The WWCTL manager had a discussion with my employer, and I was informed just one night before that I would have to return to my village the next morning. I was told that I could return to work on April 27, when the State of Emergency is over. However, with more positive COVID-19 cases registered, it is not certain if I’ll be allowed to go back by the determined time. I’ll just wait for the call, and I’m hoping that things will get better so I can have my job back. Otherwise, I’ll stay at home to help my family look after our kiosk to earn some money. Being home with my sisters and the kids has been fun, but it’s hard to make money at this time. People who work in offices continue to work from home and earn their salary regularly, but domestic workers cannot. I wish we could have a salary during emergency times, because we work many hours and on the weekends too. Some of my domestic worker colleagues are still working. Only five of us have been asked to take a one-month break due to COVID-19. My friend and I helped our three friends with transport back to their homes because unlike us, they didn’t receive their salaries when they were asked to stop in the middle of the month. I wish all employers could treat their employees equally." Ana Paula Soares was born to a family with limited income in Ermera, a municipality in central Timor-Leste. Her parents and her eldest sister have died. She now is staying in her village in Ermera with her two other sisters and their families while waiting to be called back to work. UN Women, under its Women’s Economic Empowerment Programme, collaborates with the Working Women’s Centre Timor-Leste to help domestic workers affected by the COVID-19 crisis. This work promotes United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5, on Gender Equality, and Goal 8, on Decent Work and Economic Growth.

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03 November 2020

UN Women's Camille Wauters: We see how positive these changes have been for the whole society

Camille Wauters has been with UN Women since 2008. She started working in Niger as a UN Volunteer for UN Women as Economic Empowerment Officer and then continued working in Palestine. She has been working at the Timor-Leste Country Office since 2014, where she managed the Gender Mainstreaming programme and later the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) programme. Let’s hear more about her work with UN Women Timor-Leste: What are your reflections over the past 5 years on changes in gender equality and WPS in Timor-Leste? Many changes are happening. Because the country was born struggling for independence, which was linked to human rights and gender equality, the country is very vibrant and one of the few I have seen that is advancing very strongly on gender equality. Of course, it has its ups and downs. Because there are strong women’s advocacy groups, a lot of advances have been made, especially on the legal side. There is a quota for women in parliament, but also at the village level. There is strong advocacy for more women in the security sector, which has led to the National Action Plan on WPS, approved in 2016. This has really brought a change within the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Interior, where there are currently three women and three men who are Director Generals, involved in very high-level decision-making. What do you think makes UN Women a unique organization? You’re with a group of people that are really committed to their work, who really believe that change can happen and that we are there to make it happen. Working for UN Women, you work with government partners at a very high-level of decision-making, so you are able to work alongside your colleagues to bring change within the country on a macro level through policy changes and laws. We see how positive these changes have been for the whole society. What have you enjoyed most about working with UNW in Timor-Leste? Working with the team and with our colleagues and partners. I have enjoyed learning from partners, seeing how committed and professional they are and seeing the changes we can make. For example, within the Ministry of Interior, working with the National Directorate of Community Conflict Prevention, there is a strong partnership with UN Women. Our strong mutual trust leads us to developing something quite unique as we are working on strengthening and institutionalizing a gender-responsive approach to mediation. This new approach will leave more space for women to speak up on community conflict prevention and resolution. I believe this is going to bring about profound change in Timor-Leste, where women are traditionally not allowed to speak out in community conflict resolution practices. I have also learned a lot from the women and men I have been working with, especially at the municipal level. Because a lot of work is focused at the national level with our institutions, when you start working at the municipal level, it’s incredible to see how committed they are and how they are bringing change in their communities with very few means. What are your aspirations for gender equality advocates in Timor-Leste? To continue the work. I think as Timor-Leste has such a long history of working on advocacy and fighting unjust causes, there are some very strong advocates for gender equality – both women and men – who I know will take it forward. I hope we will hear more voices from the municipal level. There have been a lot of gains at the national level, especially in parliament and governance, where women have made significant strides. However, more support is needed at the municipal level, and that’s where the next big decisions are going to be taken, especially as there is a decentralization process that is going to happen in Timor-Leste. We need to support them, and I think this type of work is really important.

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14 April 2021

10,000 displaced families seek refuge in evacuation centers as floods destroy homes in Timor-Leste

Humanitarian workers continued rescue missions to remote locations in Timor-Leste using excavators and cranes, as death toll from recent flash floods reached 46, and many still reported missing by local authorities. Families relied on the generosity of their neighbours to seek temporary shelter in the few houses left standing after the devastating floods and landslides. An estimated 10,000 people were left homeless. Impassable roads and power blackouts engulfed the country hindering relief efforts in the island nation. Anna Dosantos Lucia, a 39-year-old mother of seven from Lemonara in Dili, currently hosted at Balide Catholic Church parish hall -- one of the 19 evacuation centers set-up by the Government of Timor-Leste, had to wait for three days before she received support from local authorities. Since April 4, the roads to the mountainous Lemonara area -- usually about 25 minutes drive from the capital’s central business location -- was unreachable and had the main bridge in the area broken. The Government of Timor-Leste through the Secretariat of State for Civil Protection together with other ministries is leading humanitarian response to the affected people supported by UN agencies and development partners. Roy Trivedy, UN Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste reiterated UN agencies and partners continued support to the people and Government of Timor-Leste as the country recovers from the floods amidst COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions. The coordinated efforts will aid in the identification and overall management of the evacuation facilities, evacuation and transportation of vulnerable groups, and provision of essential services like health services through the Ministry of Health. “I have never seen such destructive floods in my life. I have lost my items and money. I have received help from neigbours who have hosted me and my family for the last three nights,” says Anna Dos Santos. Before her evacuation, Anna was living with her husband -- a cleaner in Dili. She was forced to leave him behind with her four older children currently under their care, as evacuation was prioritized for those with the greatest need. “My first priority is to rebuid our house. My husband is trying to rescue some of our belongings. I would like to request support to repair our house and pay for school fees for our children. “I have two children in college, one in senior highschool and the other in junior highschool still in our care. “It is hard for me to say when I will leave this place since I don’t have a house. If I leave this place, I will still go back to my neighbours,” explained Anna. If Amandina Santina Lopes Guteres, a 32-year-old mother of two, had her say, she would prefer to go back to her home village in Bacau municipality rather than stay at the center – curently hosting about 150 internally displaced persons (IDPs) including women and children. “I have no option but to hope that there will be no more rains. The kitchen area of my house is totally destroyed and most of the house will need major repairs before I can move in. It is currently not safe. “I fear that it will be totally destroyed if the rains continue,” added Amandina. A recent study conducted by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Population Funds (UNFPA) and other UN agencies on Social-Economic Impact Assessment (SEIA) of COVID-19 in Timor-Leste recommends the need for intergrated policies and responses that coordinate between crisis response, health, gender equality among other aspects. The floods in Timor-Leste has worsened the livelihoods of many families still struggling with challenges of COVID-19 pandemic. “We hope that the Government can remember us as we try to restore our lives,” Imaculada Daconceicao, a 28-year-old mother of three expectantly said. “The Government need to repair our roads and rebuild the bridge in Lemorana. We do not have clean water and also the community need Government support at the moment. Some of us are also sick and need medical supplies,” said Amandina. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and UN agencies was among the first responders to support families at the evacuation centers in Timor-Leste -- donating hygiene and sanitary items like sanitary napkins in one set known as “Dignity Kits” to meet basic hygiene needs. UNFPA has also facilitated the trasportation of midwives from health centres to evacuation centers -- providing critical services to pregnant women and new mothers. “We are sincerely suddened by the devastation caused by the floods to families and deeply extend our condolences to the families and Government of Timor-Leste for the lives lost. “We remain committed to working with the Government of Timor-Leste and our partners to prevent gender-based violence in emergencies and provide support to survivors. “We are particularly concerned about health of vulnerable groups like pregnant mothers and we are currently availing mobile maternity clinics to help save lives of mothers and babies especially in emergency situations and provide dignity kits to meet their basic needs,” said Dr Domingas Bernardo, UNFPA Assistant Country Representative in Timor-Leste. For more information contact: Suleiman Okoth Communications and Programme Support Specialist
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Timor-Leste UN House, Caicoli Street
Dili, Timor-Leste Mobile: +670 75169796
WhatsApp: +254 780534026 Email; okoth@unfpa.org

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Speech

17 June 2021

UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR ROY TRIVEDY AT LAUNCHING CEREMONY OF TIMOR-LESTE FINANCIAL INCLUSION REPORT 2020

[As delivered] Governor Abraao De Vasconselos, staff of the BCTL and all Distinguished guests thank you for inviting me to join in the launch of the Timor-Leste Financial Inclusion Report 2020 and for allowing me to make a few remarks this morning. I would like to start by Congratulating the Central Bank of Timor-Leste and all the partners who have been involved in preparing this publication. This third Financial Inclusion Report shows the strong progress that has been made in Timor-Leste over the past two years. The Report contains updated information about the supply of financial services in the country and summarizes the results of the ‘demand’ for financial services from different groups of people in the country. The Report brings together in one place a lot of vital information about financial services in the country – what has been achieved and areas where further progress is required. I want to convey my appreciation and thanks to everyone involved in putting together this very informative and elegant report. I would like to focus my remarks on the progress that has been achieved and areas where I think it may be useful for us to dig deeper to make further and faster progress on financial inclusion in Timor-Leste. However before coming to that, I would like to share with you a bit about my personal interest in financial inclusion and my experience of why it matters. My family emigrated to the UK from Kenya when I was around 10 years old. My father was a trained accountant and worked as a Company Secretary. My mother was aged around 40 years when we moved from Kenya. Before we arrived in the UK my mother had always worked at home as a ‘housewife’ she spoke very little English and had missed most of her schooling (because of early marriage). When we moved to the UK, my family could not live easily on just my father’s salary and so my mother had for the first time in her life find formal employment. At that time in the late 1960s and early 1970s it was possible to find ‘low skilled’ jobs in factories where we lived. My mother therefore started working in a local factory. Initially for the first 5 years, each Friday my mother used to handover her week’s earning to my father (who would manage the family’s finance) and in return my father would give some of the cash back to my mother so that she could purchase food and other items that the family needed. After several years of this, it soon became apparent to all of us that despite my father and mother’s earnings, the family was not able to build up any significant savings. It was at that time that my brother and I (both in our teens) persuaded my mother to open a Building Society account. Initially, my father was very displeased about why my mother had opened a separate account – he argued very strongly for continuing the practice of having just one bank account for the family (that he controlled). But with the support of her children my mother kept the account and rather than handing over all her weekly wage to my father, started saving part of her earnings. Many years later, my father was the first to admit that my mother had done the right thing. She managed to save thousands of pounds and used her savings to support the family… This experience helped change my family’s economic situation and that experience of opening a bank account (or Building Society account) was instrumental in shaping my commitment to the issue of financial services. That is why I am a passionate supporter of financial services. I believe they can not only support the development of individuals and families but also contribute to the development of nations! So what does this Report tell us? Firstly it makes the point that understanding market dynamics and client needs is essential for financial inclusion. People won’t use digital services if they do not understand those services or the services are too expensive. Different groups of people have different needs. Women and young people have different financial needs to men and retired people, so will require different financial products. Those living here in Dili will have different needs in turn to those living in rural areas. So financial service products need to be adapted to respond to the very specific needs of clients in the country. Without a nuanced understanding of the demand for financial services, it’s difficult to create the right savings, credit, insurance or payment products that meet people’s needs and help them improve their lives or grow their businesses, and achieve their goals. So one of the values of this Report is that it helps government and other service providers gain a better understanding of the needs of Timorese people with regard to financial services and products. The Report provides vital information on access, usage and quality of the financial services and products currently available. The Report highlights several important facts that can now be used by stakeholders to plan their future actions in accelerating financial inclusion in the country such as: The significant improvements on access points: increased coverage in Sucos, and for the first time, all Administrative Posts (states) are covered by at least one type of financial service access point; The impressive growth of e-wallet services with more than 3,000 agents and 86,000 registered clients in 2020; The modernization of the National Payments System: interoperability of ATMs and connect e-wallet services to banks, allowing clients to transfer money from bank accounts through their e-wallet accounts; The moderate increase in usage of bank services; The implementation by Timorese Government and the BCTL of a Credit Moratorium Program in 2019 to support the economy and in particular businesses and households affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. The launch by BCTL of “Digital Village” awareness campaign to promote digital financial services among Timorese in rural and urban areas. Additionally, the Report makes good use of data gathered during as part of the first ever demand side survey in the country, conducted by BCTL with support from The Asia Foundation. The Report makes clear that there are many positive things here for us all to build on. The global experience shows that good financial services are essential for the development of economies and can contribute to the wellbeing of families regardless of where people live or which sectors of the economy they work in. The Report also makes a very important point about the need to improve financial literacy in Timor-Leste. Despite the fact that about 64% of Timorese adults, overwhelmingly salaried employees, own an account with a formal financial institution (banks, ODTIs). Due to lack of awareness and knowledge a large proportion of Timorese are unable to access formal financial services that meet their needs and provide them means to create sustainable livelihoods opportunities, making better choices, taking better decisions in investment, food security, health outcomes and other aspects of their daily life. The Report shows that more efforts are needed to focus on digital and financial literacy and customer awareness in terms of products, services, and eligibility criteria to improve access to formal financial services. This suggests that there is scope for service providers to step up their financial literacy programmes and focus on customer education, making it an integral part of their outreach strategies. But its also points to BCTL’s role as an initiator and coordinator of digital and financial literacy programmes in the country to ensure an effective and efficient approach. Ultimately, the promotion of financial inclusion is a collective responsibility. Government plays an important role in regard to creating a favourable enabling environment; the private sector plays an important role through technological innovation and tailored business models; development partners have a role in emphasizing the importance of access to finance through their engagements; and civil society plays a role by providing support, knowledge and oversight. I hope this report will bring together these various stakeholders in accelerating access to financial services in Timor-Leste. The UN family, and particularly dedicated agencies such as UNCDF, stand ready to work together with the Government and Central Bank of Timor-Leste, and indeed all partners to help achieve BCTL’s financial inclusion vision “To create an inclusive financial system that brings the benefits of financial services to all, including unbanked people and communities, towards the objectives of reducing poverty and enhancing shared prosperity”, and help achieve the country’s SDGs objectives. Thank you

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08 October 2021

South-South Champions: Mr. Roy Trivedy United Nations Resident Coordinator for Timor Leste

“The challenge for all of us in development is to operationalize what we believe about South-South cooperation and transform this belief to make people’s lives better. Many of the older generations really understand what South-South cooperation is, we have to ensure that the younger generation understand and embrace this.” (Roy Trivedy, September 2021) Mr. Roy Trivedy, the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste, passionately expressed his view that South-South cooperation has a significant role to play in the support that the UN System provides to programme countries and recounted several occasions where he has facilitated low-cost, people-to-people driven solutions that have been transformational. He also offered suggestions on strengthening South-South cooperation under the UN system. Please tell us about your prior engagement in South-South cooperation and why you think it matters for a country like Timor Leste. The Resident Coordinator opined that the changes that include declining Official Development Assistance (ODA) require a different development paradigm such as South-South cooperation. He said that much more has to be done beyond the money, the aid resources and the normal development discourse. “For example, how do we enable and connect the countries with shared experiences, history and culture? How do we enable people to make connections with people from neighboring countries?” he asked. Mr. Trivedy added that ODA was and still is mostly government-to-government and pointed out that human ties, historical ties, and shared experiences matter a lot when countries go through similar experiences. The UN Resident Coordinator expressed his strong belief in South-South cooperation (SSC) in the UN system. “In a country like Timor-Leste, South-South cooperation offers some of the best ways to transfer some of the development ideas in the “South Galaxy” to transform people’s lives. Mr. Trivedy further elaborated on the changes he had mentioned earlier on. “In the post- COVID era, there are two major global trends to emerge. Firstly, many countries in the Global South are transiting from low-income, least developed countries to middle income countries. As a result, the level of the official aid is declining. The COVAX facility may be an example of what will replace the ODA gap. Secondly, countries in the Global South tend to rely more on learning from their neighbours who have similar development challenges and a shared culture and history. In the case of Timor-Leste, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia as well as Portuguese speaking countries have supported practical solutions. There is a need to build up on this,” he said. The Resident Coordinator explained how the UN facilitates South-South cooperation. He mentioned that last year (2020) a new UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for Timor-Leste was launched. Every single outcome includes the element of SSC and partnership. He further suggested that the consultation process in developing the UNSDCF was a wake-up call for some colleagues in the UN team members to make a bigger difference. The UNCT decided that SSC had to be integrated in the thinking to effectively implement the framework. Mr. Trivedy said that the cooperation framework has six key areas, i.e., food security, the blue-green economy, lifelong learning, quality of health care, governance, climate change and disaster risk reduction. The UN country team has assessed how to strengthen people-to-people and South-South collaboration under each of the six areas. Mr. Trivedy shared SSC examples from his work in the UN where he had facilitated transfer of knowledge. While working as the UN Resident Coordinator in Papua New Guinea (PNG) he engaged the business community in the work to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The PNG Prime Minister had consistently challenged business leaders to help the country make faster progress on food security, water & sanitation, health, etc. The Resident Coordinator reached out to the business council and suggested that focus on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) would help the business sector to respond to the challenge and frame the opportunities for their response. In 2015 with support from UNCDF and UNDP, “Intellecap”, a company based in India was engaged to support small and medium enterprises through the UN Capital Development Fund. The Indian company studied eight key economic sectors in Papua New Guinea to be aligned to the SDGs. The report prepared from that study was accepted as transformational and the business council embraced it. In 2017, UNRC set up the SDGs business platform with its business opportunities and prospects for contributing to the SDGs with support from another Southern group called Social Cops (India). How has the UNCT in Timor Leste used South-South and triangular cooperation to respond and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic in the country? The Resident Coordinator noted that while the level of vaccination in Timor-Leste has been increasing it is still low (40% vaccinated at the time of the interview). He expounded on how the Prime Minister has made a strong commitment to ensure vaccine access to every citizen who wants to get vaccinated by the end of 2021. The major source of vaccines has been the COVAX Facility. Additionally, Timor-Leste has received vaccines from Australia, China, Korea, New Zealand and Japan. Mr. Trivedy suggested that sharing vaccines and dealing with the pandemic has to be a global effort. “It cannot just be the richer world reaching out every now and then and giving handouts to the poorer countries.” He noted that the poor countries and other developing countries also need to make sure that their people are prepared to get vaccinated. He explained how the UN country team in Timor-Leste has distilled, prepared and disseminated communication to ensure that people are well-informed and make intelligent choices on vaccination options. He added that this is based on best practices from the region and elsewhere. The UN Resident Coordinator emphasized the role of SSC in supporting medical services and facilities which are highly appreciated by the Government. There are doctors and health professionals from the Asia-Pacific region (with the majority coming from South Asia and Southeast Asia) who have made a huge contribution in Timor Leste. The UN system is one of the development partners to deliver effective support throughout this period. What would you like to see introduced or changed in the way we have been applying South-South cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region? The UN Resident Coordinator highlighted that Timor-Leste is gradually making progress towards graduation from a Least Developed Country (LDC) status within the next two and half years, and that the level of official development assistance has been declining in in the country. He suggested that it is time for the UN to help the country link up with alternative partnerships and suggested a few recommendations. The first recommendation is to build on the new UNSDCF which involves having a dedicated country-focused team that can help identify five or six transformational projects with high relevance for what Timor-Leste needs and will support for the partnership brokerage. Secondly, government-to-government collaboration, especially among the Global South, could be complemented by having a wider set of partnerships to engage with emerging non-governmental sectors, such as faith-based organizations, philanthropists and social business sectors, to bring added value from the Global South to support the work of the UNCT. The cooperative movement (agriculture) is an emerging and potential partner. He indicated that they are spearheading the use of digital finance with agricultural producers. Mr. Trivedy shared a few examples of how some low-cost initiatives can be transformational. He mentioned the Women’s Barefoot Solar Engineering Initiative or “Solar Mama Project” under which solar engineers are trained at the Barefoot College in India. He related how PNG mothers and grandmothers benefitted from the initiative. “They chose 8 to 10 women, mothers and grandmothers who are fascinated by how the solar system works, for training in India. After the training, they came back to their home countries and become role models of solar engineers in their communities. They are using solar technology for water pumps and solar lighting in the remote villages,” he said. Mr. Trivedy also mentioned that the digital structures and strong work forces are emerging in some of the Southern partners, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan. He suggested, “if we can learn from them, this will support us to achieve our operational framework and that would meet the aspirations of the government of Timor-Leste. This will help prop Timor-Leste into a solid middle-income country with happy, healthy citizens. In that way, people-to-people partnerships will flourish and create the massive transformation required in the future.” As the UN Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste, what have been the key achievements or past successes in applying South-South and triangular cooperation, how do you see South-South cooperation benefitting the country towards achieving SDGs? The UN Resident Coordinator highlighted that since his arrival in Timor-Leste in 2018, he has been partnering with the government and the private sector in the country. He noted with appreciation the support of UNOSSC to frame a partnership with the Government of India in the education sector involving UNDP and UNICEF in using mobile technology to improve the standard of teaching and learning methods. “Although it started as a small project, the outcome has struck such a strong impact that the Minister of Education intends to expand this project to every municipality of Timor-Leste. The success also encouraged the Indian Government which has expressed its eagerness to be part of the scaling up.” Further reflecting on this example, the Resident Coordinator noted, “this is an example of a small initiative which has grown and transformed the lives of people. It has given new opportunities to students, has created new bonds between these countries in the Global South”. The Resident Coordinator reflected on how the previous engagement with UNOSSC had sown the seeds for the UNSDCF. Ideas from the intended collaboration had led to the compilation of a policy paper called, “Timor-Leste’s Drivers of Growth and Sectoral Transformation[1]” in March 2021. The RC had briefed the Prime Minister on this policy paper. The Prime Minister wished for this growth strategy focusing on tourism, economy, fisheries, agro-forestry, and food processing to be taken forward, hence some of the themes were included in the UNSDCF. Do you have any upcoming proposals/ ideas/ projects incorporating South-South cooperation in Timor-Leste in the next few years? The Resident Coordinator proposed three ideas and initiatives that would be important for Timor-Leste. is the first is to support the circular economy and waste management, climate change and food security. He highlighted that a team of ministers from Timor-Leste would attend the COP 26 meeting in November 2021. The Secretary of the State for environment, a champion of environment and waste management, wishes to partner with Indonesia on circular economy and waste management. The second relates to following up on ideas from the UN Food Systems Summit 2021[2]. A very positive food system dialogue in Timor-Leste is supported by the whole UN system and the Prime Minister’s Office. One of the focus areas is food fortification with the experiences from Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and Thailand. The third idea is on strengthening the school feeding programme in Timor-Leste. Part of the value-addition from UNOSSC could be to set up the link between the countries to study how the school feeding programmes are operating in various countries in the region. After one or two years, for instance, the nutrition outcomes can be presented at a future Food Systems Summit. The Resident Coordinator suggested that learning from the Southern experiences should be inclusive of the private sector, philanthropic and social enterprises. He reiterated that sometimes it is not about the number of resources but how they are applied to make a transformational change. He also noted that waste management can be a trilateral partnership, supported by the UN between two countries or two sets of partners in different countries. In that sense, the UNCT in East Timor can work closely with UNOSSC to strengthen the capacity of the team (s) to identify one transformational project at least. How can UNOSSC facilitate your Office’s work to help scale up South-South Cooperation? In answering this question, the Resident Coordinator leaned on his passion and conviction that SSC can make a difference. “The challenge for all of us in development is to operationalize what we believe about South-South cooperation and transform this belief to make people’s lives better. The older generations often really understand what South-South cooperation is, we have to ensure that the younger generation understand and embrace this”. The Resident Coordinator suggested enhancing cooperation with UN Country Teams, and that UNOSSC could identify focal points to work with them until tangible projects materialize. He also suggested that UNOSSC could look into engaging philanthropic organizations from the Global South. “Positioning the philanthropic organizations and social entrepreneurs can [1] https://www.theigc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Policy-paper-Timor-Lestes-drivers-of-growth-and-sectoral-transformation.pdf [2] The summit was held Under the leadership of UN Secretary-General António Guterres on 23 September 2021 in New York during the UN General Assembly High-level Week. https://www.un.org/en/food-systems-summit/summit Mr. Roy Trivedy is the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Timor Leste. He has been working in Timor Leste since March 2018. He was previously UN RC and UNDP Representative in Papua New Guinea from December 2013 to December 2017. Prior to that, he worked for DFID (UK). He was Head of Civil Society Department from 2009-13 and Team Leader for the UK Government’s ‘Building our Common Future’, White Paper on international development (2009). He also worked for DFID in Tanzania, Central Asia and the Caucasus, and on peace-building and conflict resolution in various parts of Africa from 2000. Roy joined DFID after 20 years of working for non-governmental organisations in the UK, Mozambique, India and Malawi. He studied at the Institute for Development Studies, Sussex.

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11 October 2021

UNFPA supported midwives' training in Timor-Leste successful despite COVID-19 hiccups

-- successfully completed a 26-day comprehensive training on Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (EmONC) held at the National Hospital in Dili, Timor-Leste end of September. The hands-on training, that started on February 17, was suspended indefinitely due to confirmed cases of COVID-19 among 10 participants and enforced public health protocols in Timor-Leste to control the spread of the pandemic in the South East Asian nation. The course, facilitated by UNFPA, WHO, UNICEF, Australian Government through Project for Human Development (PHD), and HAI in partnership with Ministry of Health, Timor-Leste, resumed in September after the government of Timor-Leste eased restrictions on holding public meetings. “I was one of those who tested positive in the middle of the training. We had just finished 18 days and the course had to be suspended following orders from health authorities,” said Filipa de Fatima de Jesus, a midwife from Lacluta Community Health Centre in Viqueque Municipality. “I would like to recommend that more midwives from the municipalities be afforded the opportunity to attend such trainings to appropriately respond to life threatening conditions and other complications that may occur during childbirth,” added Filipa. The comprehensive training is designed to improve the ability of midwives and doctors to identify mothers at risk and provide good management and their transfer to appropriate health facilities as a way of reducing mortality rates among newborn babies and mothers. The training aims to improve skills in pregnancy-related care and knowledge to recognise and manage obstetric complications, enhance decision making and communication skills of health care service providers focusing on midwives and doctors. Timor-Leste currently has one of the highest infant mortality rates and maternal mortality ratios in South East Asia. The island nation has an infant mortality rate of 43.9 deaths per 1,000 live births and a maternal mortality ratio of 142 deaths per 100,000 live births. Dr. Sidonio Amaral, a medical doctor from Cailaco Community Health Centre in Maliana, Bobonaro Municipality noted that the knowledge he received during the training enhanced his capacity to serve his community better. “I supported and attended to three complicated cases during delivery after the course was stopped due to COVID-19, besides attending to numerous normal deliveries whenever I was needed. I successfully attended two of those cases and referred one to Bobonaro Referral Hospital. “Because I was not fully trained, on the use of vacuum extraction [a type of assisted delivery used to remove a baby from the birth canal] during delivery, I was not confident enough to attend to the third case whose mother had previously undergone a cesarean operation. “After successfully finishing this course, I am confident about identifying and attending to mothers with complications during delivery,” said Dr. Sidonio. Since 2018, UNFPA in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and other partners has provided EmONC training to over 118 participants in ten batches with each batch of trainees having between 10 to 13 participants. Such trainings can help increase quality of health care services, bring services close to newborn babies and mothers particularly among hard-to-reach communities while contributing to reduction in the number of deaths at birth. “Before the training we referred pregnant mothers with complications to specialists but this training [EmONC] has equipped us with more knowledge to attend to pregnant mothers with complications. “I am now able to identify any complications and respond appropriately,” said Estela Amaral, a midwife at Maliana Referral Hospital in Bobonaro Municipality. For more information contact: Suleiman Okoth Communications and Programme Support Specialist
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Timor-Leste UN House, Caicoli Street
Dili, Timor-Leste Mobile: +670 75169796
WhatsApp: +254 780534026 Email; okoth@unfpa.org

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30 September 2021

Servisu Futuru no ‘nova normal’

No ninia ‘nova normal’ ba forsa-de-traballu, kondisaun sira servisu nian, no merkadu traballu. Ne’e iha implikasaun boot ba realizasaun Objetivus Dezenvolvimentu Sustentável. Sub-Sekretáriu Jerál ONU ba Asuntus Ekonómiku no Sosiál, Liu Zhenmin, dala barak dehan katak ‘de faktu, servisu futuru mak mundu nia futuru’, ha’u hanoin fali ida-ne’e bainhira semana kotuk ha’u partisipa tiha iha webinar ida ne’ebé riku, fasinante no kle’an ne’ebé organiza tiha husi UNDESA no UNDP ne’ebé halibur hamutuk kolega sira husi família ONU inklui ILO no sira seluk hodi diskute Servisu Futuru/ FutureofWork nian. Enkontru ne’e esplora tiha mekanizmu barak ne’ebé pandemia COVID-19 afeta tiha ona servisu iha nasaun oioin no setór ekonómiku sira iha mundu tomak. Ita rona ona kona-ba oinsá mak traballadór sira tokon ba tokon enfrenta nivel inseguransa aas ba servisu, tanba empreza barak la opera (taka) tiha ona, hodi hamosu dezorganizasaun ba merkadu no fatór sira seluk. Ita aprende ona kona-ba oinsá ‘ekonomia jigantesku’ ne’ebé moris tiha no agora halo parte importante ida ba ema sira-nia meius ba buka moris (subsisténsia), espesialmente hirak-ne’ebé servisu iha indústria sira determinadu. Ita rona ema dehan katak, ida-ne’e kria tiha ona oportunidade foun ba servisu (no dala barak ho maneira ne’ebé fleksível liu), maibé ba sira seluk, ne’e fó tiha impaktu ba sira-nia kapasidade hodi goza ‘traballu dignu’, estabilidade no protesaun ne’ebé efikás iha servisu-fatin. Partisipante sira observa tiha katak la hanesan ona decade sira kotuk, agora ne’e dusar uitoan ba ema individuál sira atu servisu ba kompañia ida ka korporasaun ida durante sira-nia vida profisionál tomak. Ema barak liu mak sempre muda servisus/ empregu no kapasidade hodi adapta no aplika ema ida ninia abilidade ho maneira ne’ebé fleksível sai tiha ona parte ida ne’ebé presiza ba ‘nova normal’. Karaterístika markante ida husi ‘nova normal’ iha tiha ona maneira ida ne’ebé servisu-fatin sira iha mundu tomak adota no insentiva tiha ‘traballu remotu’. Ida-ne’e hamosu tiha ona iha benefísiu balu ba traballadór sira (n.e., hamenus tempu dezlokamentu, permite ema atu iha liu fleksibilidade bainhira sira servisu no iha fatin balu, loke oportunudade servisu foun iha liur sidade boot sira-nian nst.). Maibé ne’e mós espoin ona dezafius ne’ebé bele konsidera (inklui nivel kreximentu ba ‘izolamentu servisu-fatin’, estrese mentál no difikuldades hodi proteje direitus traballadór sira-nian). Partisipante sira observa tiha oinsá iha fatin balu, pandemia ne’e afeta tiha ona ema ne’ebé servisu iha profisaun kuidadu saúde nian no destaka tiha importánsia ba polítika protesaun sosiál ne’ebé efikás. Ba ema grupu balu ne’ebé vulnerável liu, inklui hirak-ne’ebé dezempregadu, ‘traballadór la kualifikadu’, hirak-ne’ebé ho moras tempu naruk ona, ema ne’ebé servisu iha setór informál sira, idozu no ema ho defisiénsia sira, natureza servisu bele muda, dala barak asentua no hakle’an dezigualdade no vulnerabilidade sira. Partisipante sira mós asentua oinsá abilidade dijitál sai tiha rekizitu integrál ida iha tipu servisu/ empregu barak. Ami diskute oinsá automasaun no IA (intelijénsia artifisiál) nu’udar impaktu iha setór oioin, inklui husi oferesimentu oportunidade sira ‘ekonomia ba servisu’ iha indústria/ setór sira determinadu (n.e. indústria manufatureira balu) maibé mós dezloka tipu empregu tradisionál determinadu no indústria sira, inklui iha servisu agríkula no sazonál iha agrikultura. Webinar ne’e mós konsentra ba impaktu sira krize klimátika no sustentabilidade ambientál iha normas servisu nian. Partisipante sira observa tiha impaktu imediatu barak, no mós mudansas ne’ebé mosu no potensiál ne’ebé sei sai to’o evidente liu iha futuru ba emprezas, empregadór no empregadu sira tanba mundu esforsa hodi avansa ba diresaun netralidade kabonu ida boot liu. Aprezentadór sira enfatiza tiha katak impaktu husi mudansas iha leten la’ós uniformemente afeta ba indústria sira, setór, ekonómiku, país no individuál sira. Mudansas oioin akontese depende ba kontekstu diferente ba ema iha grupu diferente (mane/feto sira, hirak-ne’ebé servisu iha setór formál, hirak-ne’ebé servisu informalmente, profisionál sira, traballadór temporáriu sira nst..). Lisaun ida husi diskusaun ne’e mak nesesidade ba governu ninia líder polítika, ONU no sira seluk atu halo servisu liutan hodi prioritiza no buka hetan mekanizmus ne’ebé efetivu hodi hametin baze abilidade, fleksibilidade no adaptabilidade iha forsa-traballu sira. Hadi’a kapasidade dijitál no investe tan rekursus agora hodi hametin kapasidade ema nian, importante tebes hodi prepara forsa-traballu futuru nian. Ne’e presiza atu komesa dezde dezenvolvimentu infánsia no tenke garante katak labarik sira hotu iha komesu ne’ebé di’ak iha sira-nia moris. País sira hanesan Timor-Leste, tenke uza tempu pós pandemia ne’e hodi hadi’a padraun nutrisionál para apoia aprendizajen ne’ebé di’ak liu, hasa’e kualidade edukasaun, hametin abilidade numerasia no literasia, investe tan iha formasaun profisionál, dijitalizasaun no dezenvolvimentu kapasidade agora. Ita tenke prepara ema foin-sa’e (joven) sira ba tipu sira oportunidade empregu future nian ne’ebé sei mosu durante decade tuirmai no liután. Ita tenke uza oportunidade hotu-hotu agora hodi hasa’e investimentu maka’as iha área hirak-ne’e. Lisaun daruak ne’ebé enfatiza tiha mak nesesidade ba governu sira no sira seluk atu hadi’a medidas protesaun sosiál. Pandemia ne’e aumenta tiha dezigualdade iha mundu tomak. Iha estudu barak ne’ebé hatudu katak melloramentu sira iha protesaun sosiál prodús rezultadu pozitivu iha kontekstu kreximentu ekonómiku. Ida husi hirak-ne’ebé resente mak INVESTIMENTU SIRA IHA PROTESAUN SOSIÁL NO SIRA-NIA IMPAKTU BA KREXIMENTU EKONÓMIKU ne’ebé hala’o tiha husi InTouch Credit Union (ITUC). Relatóriu ITUC ne’e bazeia ba peskiza husi país 8 iha kontinente haat ne’ebé hatudu: Investimentu sira iha protesaun sosiál pozitivamente afeta oportunidade sira empregu nian. Investimentu ida ho pursentu 1 husi PIB iha protesaun sosiál iha efeitu pozitivu ida hodi hamosu empregu, ho efeitu multipikadór ida entre 0.1 no 1.1 iha estudu kazu ualu. Iha kazu barak liu, benefísius empregu nian boot liu ba feto sira – ida-ne’ebé subliña papél pozitivu katak protesaun sosiál bele hala’o hodi hamenus dezigualdade jéneru iha merkadu traballu. Análize ne’e mós hatudu katak investimentu sira protesaun sosiál hasa’e fornesimentu empregu tomak. Loos duni, evidénsia ezistente hatudu katak protesaun sosiál hala’o papél importante ida hodi ajuda, selae uma-kain (família) sira ho restrisaun likuidés para lida ho xokes adversus. Família sira iha kapasidade di’ak liu ba konsumu, no nune’e, dependénsia menus ba estratéjia negativu, mak hanesan fa’an ativu/propriedades no hasai labarik husi eskola. Ida-ne’e signifika katak família sira bele, pur ezemplu, envolve iha risku liu iha kontekstu inovasaun no investe tan iha kapitál umanu, fasilita liután atividades buka servisu/empregu. Simulasaun sira-ne’e hatudu katak investimentu protesaun sosiál hamosu aumentu ida ba demande traballu, espesialmente iha ekonomia sira intensive ba traballu, no normalmente, iha ekonomia sira, ne’ebé agrikultura nu’udar setór importante liu no bainhira setór doméstiku interligadu liu. Totál rendimentu impostu aumenta ho investimentu sira iha protesaun sosiál. Análize ne’e hatudu katak liuhusi halo investimentu iha protesaun sosiál, rendimentu fiskál aumenta, halo finansiamentu protesaun sosiál menus dependente ba fontes esteriór. Investimentu ho pursentu 1 husi PIB iha protesaun sosiál iha efeitu pozitivu ida ba totál rendimentu impostu governu: entre pursentu 0.6 no pursentu 3.5 iha estudu kazu ualu. Ne’eduni, iha evidénsia forte ba governu no sira seluk atu servisu hamutuk hodi hasa’e protesaun sosiál. Tanba mundu ne’e rekupera husi pandemia, ita tenke kaer oportunidade sira hodi hametin medidas protesaun sosiál. Lisaun importante ida terseiru ne’ebé ha’u foti husi ami-nia diskusaun mak ba ita hotu (governu, setór privadu, instituisaun no individuál sira) atu buka mekanizmu ne’ebé efetivu hodi hamenus, re-utiliza, rekupera no halo resiklajen ba produtu sira. Barak husi ita, muda padraun konsumu no produsaun nu’udar kontribuisaun ida esensiál no vitál ba maneira moris ne’ebé sustentável liu – mudansa ida ne’ebé bele hadi’a futuru ba ema hotu-hotu. Mai, ita labele lakon oportunidade ne’e hodi halo ona mudansa ne’ebé presiza agora!

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21 September 2021

Clean water flows to school in rural Timor-Leste for the first time in ten years

is helping bring water to rural schools in Timor-Leste and helping keep students safe from COVID-19 Eskola Basic Filial or EBF Zona Golgota-Baucau school has 211 students, 99 girls and 112 boys. It sits on a plateau, offering stunning views of the beaches and crystal-clear waters of the ocean in Baucau Municipality, east of the capital Dili. However, for close to a decade since it opened, the school had difficulties accessing water. Students and teachers had to use the lunch break to walk to a communal water pipeline a kilometre away, and then carry heavy buckets of water along the rocky paths back to the school. The water was used for handwashing, cleaning of the school, and even to stop the dust from blowing around during the dry season. “It is a tough choice, as staff, children and I used almost the entire break to fetch water instead of giving children time to play. But there was no choice, as water was critical to help with handwashing, sanitation, and cleanliness, and keep children safe from disease,” says Ana Floriana dos Santos Marques, the Principal of EBF Zona Golgota school. A small-grant scheme called ‘Fundu Ki’ik’ (Small Grant), launched in March 2021 by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, with funding from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and support from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is helping at least 240 schools in the 12 municipalities and special Region of Oecussi enclave improve access to clean water and help them protect children against COVID-19 and other diseases like diarrhoea. “The lack of clean water results in children falling ill and missing out on studies, and has a big impact on girls’ education when they skip classes owing to the lack of adequate facilities for menstrual hygiene management.” says H.E. Dr. António Guterres, Vice Minister of Education Youth and Sport. “This scheme will help make schools safer and provide the facilities needed in schools, and enable children to continue learning during the pandemic.” Under the scheme, selected schools are provided a maximum of USD 1,000 each to help them improve access to water, sanitation and hygiene facilities and promote a safe and secure environment for learning, including preventing the spread of COVID-19 and other diseases. To date, 74 schools have benefitted from the scheme in all municipalities. “For the first time in a decade, our school has running water and students can now have more time to play, instead of having to go and fetch water for their basic needs,” adds Principal dos Santos Marques. “Teachers also have more time to prepare lessons and support students.” Initially, people thought that it would require highly sophisticated equipment and support from engineers to install the plumbing works. However, a team effort by parents, school staff and community members has helped ensure the school now has clean running water. They purchased plumbing materials, dug a channel to divert water, installed and connected the pipeline to the main water source, the water tank and handwashing and other facilities. “The spirit of volunteerism, participation and collaboration among parents has helped make the school safer, and make our community stronger,” says Mr Francisco da Costa, one of the community members. “I am extremely happy we have water, and more importantly, can use the break to play, catch up with friends, and not have to worry about having to get water for use in the school,” says Ines Ximenes, a 12 years old child at the school. “Thanks to the Global Partnership for Education and UNICEF initiative, we can now be happy that schools such as these that did not have direct access to water can now be safer learning environments for children,” says Apolinário Serpa Rosa, Director General for Basic Education, Pre-school, and Recurrent Education. -----END----

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16 September 2021

Expert’s Take: “Advocating for women and girls’ right to education start within our homes and communities, stretching to decision-makers.”

an education of good quality appropriate to their individual abilities and should gain the necessary knowledge, capacity and skills – suitable vocation – to support themselves and their families and to participate in all areas of national development,” and the National Education Strategic Plan (2011) affirmed the commitment to achieving an inclusive education to “expand and improve comprehensive early care and education, specially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children,” however, figures and the education system in the country beg to differ. There are many barriers blocking us from fully achieving an inclusive education system, particularly infrastructure settings and learning materials suitable for different learners. In total 10 Ministries and Secretaries of State have developed a National Action Plan for people with disability but there remains a lack of full commitment for implementing the plans, despite the former president of parliament Arão Noé Amaral stating that “government has the obligation to protect persons with disabilities and not to exclude them from development plans and programmes. There is the perception that only the Ministry of Social Solidarity and Inclusion is responsible for people with disability matters, when in fact, it impacts all aspects of societal development. As a woman with disability, I am grateful to be able to access education; the issue of women and girls with disabilities being disproportionally left out of school prompted me to embark on the journey to fight for their inclusion and access to education. Previously I worked with two local organizations for people with disabilities. First with Ra’es Hadomi Timor Oan (RHTO) for three years, where through our advocacy on the accessibility of people with disability in their communities, we managed to build houses and toilet facilities at schools that are people with disability-friendly at municipality level. Aside from this, we worked closely with teachers to promote equal access to education for people with disability by connecting them to institutions that were to provide school equipment and also guide them to access and apply for available scholarships. Expert’s Take: "Halo advokasia ba feto no labarik-feto sira-nia direitu ba edukasaun hahú iha ita-nia uma-laran no komunidade nia leet, no haburas ba ukun-nain sira." Timor-Leste nia Polítika Nasionál ba Edukasaun Inkluziva (2011) iha objetivu katak nasaun nia populasaun hotu-hotu "tenke simu edukasaun ho igualdade, ho kualidade di'ak ne'ebé apropriadu ba sira-nia abilidade individuál no tenke hetan koñesimentu, kapasidade no abilidade – vokasional apropiradu - atu apoia sira-nia aan no sira-nia família no partisipa iha área hotu-hotu ba dezenvolvimentu nasionál nian," no mós iha Planu Estratéjiku Nasionál ba Edukasaun (2011) afirma sira-nia kompromisu atu alkansa edukasaun inkluzivu liuhosi "habelar no hadi'ak kompreensivu kuidadu nian sedu no edukasaun, liuliu ba labarik sira ne'ebé vulneravel liu no sira ne'ebé desfavoresidu liu," maibé, figura no sistema edukasaun iha rai-laran hatudu diferensa. Iha bareira barak ne'ebé impede ita husi alkansa sistema edukasaun ne’ebé totalmente inkluzivu, liuliu aspetu infraestrutura no materiál aprendizajen sira ne'ebé adekuadu ba alunu oin-oin. Iha totál Ministériu no Sekretáriu Estadu 10 ne’ebé dezenvolve ona Planu Asaun Nasionál ida ba ema ho defisiénsia sira maibé seidauk iha kompromisu tomak atu implementa planu sira ne'e, maske eis-Prezidente Parlamentu Nasionál Arão Noe Amaral hateten ona katak "Governu iha obrigasaun atu proteje ema ho defisiénsia sira no labele esklui sira hosi planu no programa dezenvolvimentu sira.” Iha persepsaun katak só Ministériu Solidariedade Sosiál no Inkluzaun deit mak responsavel ba ema ho defisiénsia sira, maibé loloos ne’e, asuntu ida-ne'e fó impaktu ba aspetu dezenvolvimentu sosiál hotu-hotu nian. Nu'udar feto ho defisiénsia, hau agradese tebes tanba bele hetan asesu ba edukasaun; kestaun kona-ba feto no labarik-feto ho defisiénsia sira, ne'ebé husik hela eskola, impede hau atu tuir luta ba sira-nia inkluzaun no asesu ba edukasaun. Uluk hau servisu ho organizasaun lokál rua ba ema ho defisiénsia sira. Ba dahuluk ho Ra’es Hadomi Timor Oan (RHTO) durante tinan tolu, iha ne'ebé liuhosi ami-nia advokasia kona-ba asesibilidade ba ema ho defisiénsia iha sira-nia komunidade, ami konsege harii uma no fasilidade sentina iha eskola ne'ebé mak sensivel ba ema ho defisiénsia iha nivel munisípiu. Aleinde ne'e, ami servisu hamutuk ho profesór sira atu promove asesu igual ba edukasaun ba ema ho defisiénsia sira hodi liga sira ba instituisaun sira ne'ebé mak atu fornese ekipamentu eskola nian no mós orienta sira atu hetan asesu no aplika ba bolsa estudu ne'ebé mak iha. Hafoin ida-ne'e, hau servisu hamutuk tinan lima ho Asosiasaun Defisientes Timor-Leste (ADTL), sombriña ba organizasaun ema ho defisiénsia sira iha Timor-Leste. Hau involve iha advokasia no inisiativa hasa’e kapasitasaun barak atu ajuda ema ho defisiénsia sira asesu ba oportunidade sira iha sosiedade, ne'ebé inklui hasa'e partisipasaun feto no labarik-feto sira ho defisiénsia iha área edukasaun. Ami dezenvolve programa ho naran “Klase Ekuivalente” iha tinan 2019, ne'ebé ho objetivu atu fó oportunidade ba ema adultu sira ho defisiénsia ne'ebé nunka rejista iha eskola atu asesu ba edukasaun, liuliu halo advokasia ba feto ho defisiénsia sira hodi partisipa. Importante ba ita atu foti asaun forte hodi asegura feto no labarik-feto sira ho defisiénsia iha asesu barak liutan ba edukasaun tanba bainhira sira hetan eskluisaun barak liu, ida-ne'e sai susar liu atu halai-sai husi kiak no susar atu hakbiit sira. Ida ne'e bele hahú husi ita-nia uma laran no komunidade nia leet, no haburas ba ukun-na'in sira. Liuhosi diálogu importante ho inan-aman no membru komunidade sira kona-ba asuntu ida-ne'e, ita bele kria imajen diak liu ba feto ho defisiénsia sira, iha ne'ebé sosiedade simu sira no respeita sira. Ikus liu, entidade governu hotu-hotu tenke sai na'in ba asuntu ne'ebé ema ho defisiénsia sira hasoru, liuliu feto no labarik-feto sira ho defisiénsia tanba sira iha risku ba diskriminasaun bo’ot liu. Investe no hadi'ak edukasaun inkluzivu laos deit hadi'ak númeru feto no labarik-feto sira ne'ebé ho defisiénsia iha edukasaun, maibé profesór sira mos sei treinadu no alunu sira sei sosializa atu respeita ema ho defisiénsia sira, ita sei hahú elimina bareira sira ne'ebé haketak ita nia unidade.

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Press Release

19 October 2021

"Launch of human rights manual for the National Police of Timor-Leste"

TETUM “Lansamentu Manual Direitus Umanus ba Polisia Nasional Timor-Leste” Iha 15 Outubru 2021, Provedoria ba Direitus Umanus no Justisa (PDHJ), polísia Nasionál Timor-Leste PNTL) no Unidade asesória Direitus umanus ONU nian iha Timor-Leste lansa ona manuál formasaun Direitus umanus ba PNTL. Manuál foun ne'e halo ona revizaun substansial ba manuál uluk, ne'ebé lansa tiha ona iha tinan 2014 no ne'ebé fó ona apoiu ba programa kapasitasaun konjunta husi instituisaun hirak ne'e ba membru PNTL sira. Revizaun ne'e rezulta husi nesesidade atu inkorpora lisaun balun ne'ebé aprende ona durante tinan barak nia laran ba implementasaun programa formasaun, no mós dezenvolvimentu dadaun ne’e nian iha kuadru legál nasaun nian. Ida ne'e mós inklui seksaun foun, hanesan Estadu emerjénsia, no foka kle'an liu ba PNTL nia papél hodi vis a vis dezafiu ne’ebe grupu sira hasoru iha nasaun ne’e. Manuál foun ne'e, agora atualiza ba nesesidade no dezafiu ne'ebé durante polisia hala’o atividade iha Timor-Leste, sei hahú uza iha semana ida-ne'e, iha treinamentu ne'ebé hala'o husi loron 18-22 Outubru, iha Lospalos (munsipiu Lautem) ba funsionáriu PNTL na'in 23 (inklui feto 10). Formasaun seluk hanesan ne'e sei hala'o iha semana oin (25-29 Outubru) ba funsionáriu PNTL sira iha munisipiu Viqueque.

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Press Release

18 June 2021

In Timor-Leste, over 268,000 women and girls benefitted from EU-UN Spotlight Initiative in one year

DILI, 18 June 2021: The Government of Timor-Leste, European Union (EU), United Nations (UN), civil society organisations, and partners of the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative met today to review progress, approve the 2020 Annual Report, and seek inputs on programmatic adaptations needed to address the increased risk of violence against women and girls in the wake of recovery from COVID-19 pandemic and floods. The third meeting of the National Steering Committee was virtually organised by the Secretariat of State for Equality and Inclusion and the UN Resident Coordinator's Office. The meeting brought together representatives from the line Ministries, Municipalities, EU, UN agencies together with their partner organisations, and civil society. The Spotlight Initiative started in January 2020, and has substantially contributed to preventing and responding to violence against women and girls. Over 268,000 women and girls, or 21% of the total population, have benefitted from the programme over the last year. Over 550,000 people were also reached through social media. “I would like to convey my sincere appreciation to all the efforts you all have carried out. While all of us have face various challenges due to limited movement because of by COVID-19, sanitary health fence and the recent floods, however we have made significant progress as seen in the results presented earlier. We have welcome positive feedback not only from the secretariat in New York but also from regional level. This is a great recognition to all and I believe together with UN and European Union, we will improve implementation performance in the coming period,” stated Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion, Maria José da Fonseca Monteiro de Jesus. As a result of community mobilisation, advocacy, system strengthening, and improved awareness, Gender Based Violence (GBV) reporting and response has increased considerably. The Spotlight partners supported over 3,500 women and girls in municipalities of focus who reported physical/sexual violence and sought legal help. More than 1,319 cases of GBV were also reported to justice officials – almost twice the number of cases compared to the previous year in these municipalities. In addition, 60 women and girl survivors of violence and their families were supported by the Spotlight Initiative through knowledge, information, and capacity building. Through behavioural change interventions, the programme also engaged and advocated with men and boys to become stronger agents of change. In 2020, the Spotlight Initiative worked with the Government partners, including PNTL, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Trade Union Confederation, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Associação Empresarial das Mulheres, and Secretariat of State for Vocational Training to support women and girls against all forms of violence. Over 800 Public Sector representatives were trained. Partnerships were also developed with organisations working with marginalised groups, particularly people from the LGBT community and people with disabilities, to improve their access to services. In Timor-Leste, the Initiative is being implemented by five UN agencies (ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and UN Women) in collaboration with civil society and the Government partners. The programme currently supports 22 civil society projects representing 33 partner organisations at the national level and three municipalities (Viqueque, Bobonaro, and Ermera). Over USD 2.48 million have been committed to these projects. The Spotlight Initiative also supports key Government partners through technical and financial support. The European Union Ambassador to Timor-leste said: “I am proud of the work done by the Government, the UN Agencies and the Civil Society Organisation during this first year of implementation of the Spotlight Initiative. Despite the difficult Covid19 times, many women, girls, boys, men and minority groups of society have been reached with information, training and services. GBV has not been eliminated yet, but the path has been set and the European Union continues to be strongly committed to support gender equality and women's empowerment. I know, it would be impossible to achieve this without the engagement and commitment of the Timor-Leste Government and Civil Society Organisations.” It has been globally recognised that violence is often exacerbated in emergencies and natural disasters due to disruption of services, destruction of infrastructure, displacement, and limited access to referral services. Despite the shutdowns and restrictions in response to COVID-19 and recent floods, action against GBV remains one of the highest priorities for the Government, United Nations, EU and partners in Timor-Leste. "Women and girls in Timor-Leste are under greater risk of violence during COVID-19 pandemic and as a result of the floods, making them more vulnerable. The Government and key institutions have a responsibility to help ensure that people are safe, well supported and that the fundamental rights of all, especially women, girls and vulnerable groups, are effectively protected. The UN in Timor-Leste will continue working closely with the communities, the Government, and partners to address and eliminate all kinds of violence against women and girls", noted United Nations Resident Coordinator Roy Trivedy. In response to the floods and in support of COVID-19 recovery, the Spotlight team and partners also proposed diverting some programme funds to ensure the safety of women and girls. The meeting explored redirecting over USD 500,000 from the Initiative's budget to Gender and Protection measures under Government and humanitarian partners' Joint Flood Response Plan. The proposed reprogrammed funds cover referral systems, reproductive health services and supplies, dignity kits, and psychosocial support to affected women, girls and their families. -END- Komunikadu imprensa konjuntu. Iha Timor-Leste, iha 268,000 feto no labarik-feto sira hetan benefísiu husi inisiativa Spotlight UE nian iha tinan ida nia laran, konklui ona Komisaun diretiva Nasionál. Governu, parseiru sira, Uniaun Europeia, no Nasoins Unidas kompromete atu hapara violénsia kontra feto no labarik-feto sira liuhusi revizaun ba progresu no haree ba aselera implementasaun inisiativa Spotlight iha ámbitu rekuperasaun Covid-19 no inundasaun sira foin daudaun ne'e. Dili,18 Junho 2021: Governu Timor-Leste, Uniaun Europeia (UE), Nasoins Unidas, organizasaun sosiedade sivíl, no parseiru sira husi inisiativa Spotlight ne'e hala'o sorumutuk ohin hodi halo revizaun ba progresu, aprova relatóriu anuál tinan 2020 nian, no buka input sira kona-ba adaptasaun programátiku sira ne'ebé presiza hodi hatán ba risku violénsia ne'ebé aumenta hasoru feto no labarik-feto sira iha momentu rekuperasaun husi pandemia Covid-19 no inundasaun. Sorumutuk datoluk Komisaun Pilotajen Nasionál nian ne'e kuaze organiza husi Sekretaria Estadu ba Igualdade no Inkluzaun no husi Koordenador Rezidente Nasoins Unidas nian. Sorumutuk ne'e halibur reprezentante sira husi Ministériu, munisípiu, Uniaun Europeia, ajénsia ONU sira hamutuk ho sira-nia parseiru organizasaun sira, no sosiedade sivíl. Inisiativa Spotlight ne'e hahú iha fulan-janeiru tinan 2020, no substansial kontribui ona ba prevensaun no hatán ba violénsia hasoru feto no labarik-feto sira. Liu 268,000 feto no labarik-feto sira, ka 21% hosi totál populasaun, hetan benefísiu hosi programa ne'e iha tinan kotuk. Iha mós ema na'in 550,000 liu husi média sosiál. “Ha’u hakarak hato’o ha’u nia sinseru apresiasaun ba esforsu hotu ne’ebé ita-boot sira halo ona. Maski, ita hotu hasoru dezafiu barbarak tanba limitasaun movimentu kauza hosi COVID-19, Serka Sanitária no inundasaun foin lalais ne’e, maibé ita konsege halo progresu ne’ebé signifikante tebes hanesan rezultadu ne’ebé ita haree iha aprezentasaun ohin. Ita hetan respota pozitivu la’ós hosi sekretariadu iha Nova Iorke de’it maibé mós hosi nivel rejionál nian. Ida-ne’e rekoñesimentu ida di’ak tebes no ha’u fiar katak hamutuk ho ONU no Uniaun Europeia, ita sei hadi’ak di’ak liután implementasaun programa iha periódu tuir mai,” dehan Sekretária Estadu ba Igualdade no Inkluzaun, Maria José da Fonseca Monteiro de Jesus. Nu'udar rezultadu husi mobilizasaun komunidade, advokasia, hametin sistema, no hadi'a konsiénsia, violénsia bazeia ba jéneru (vbj) relata no responde aumenta maka'as ona. Parseiru sira Spotlight nian suporta ona feto no labarik-feto sira liu na'in 3,500 iha munisípiu foku sira ne'ebé relata violénsia fíziku / seksuál no buka tulun legal. Kazu liu 1,319 husi gbv mós relata ba ofisiál Justisa sira - kuaze númeru kazu dala rua kompara ho tinan kotuk iha munisípiu sira ne'e. Nune'e mós, sobrevivente feto na'in 60 no feto violénsia nian no sira nia família hetan apoiu husi inisiativa Spotlight liu husi koñesimentu, informasaun, no kapasitasaun. Liu husi intervensaun mudansa hahalok sira, programa ne'e mós involve no halo advokasia ho mane no labarik mane sira atu sai agente ba mudansa. Iha tinan 2020, inisiativa Spotlight ne'e serbisu hamutuk ho parseiru Governu nian sira, inklui PNTL, Ministériu Edukasaun, Ministériu saúde, Konfederasaun Sindikatu, Kámara Komérsiu no Indústria sira, associariariariaria empresarial das Mulheres, no Sekretaria Estadu formasaun profisionál atu apoia feto no labarik-feto sira hasoru forma violénsia hotu-hotu. Reprezentante sektor públiku liu 800 mak hetan ona treinamentu. Parseria sira-ne'e mós dezenvolve ona ho organizasaun sira ne'ebé serbisu ho grupu marjinalizadu sira, liuliu ema LGBT sira, komunidade no ema ho defisiénsia sira, atu hadi'a sira-nia asesu ba servisu sira. Iha Timor-Leste, inisiativa ne'e implementa hosi ajénsia ONU na'in lima (ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, no UN Women) ho kolaborasaun ho sosiedade sivíl no parseiru Governu nian sira. Programa ne'e daudaun ne'e apoia projetu sosiedade sivíl hamutuk 22 ne'ebé reprezenta organizasaun parseiru 33 iha nivel Nasionál no munisípiu tolu (Viqueque, Bobonaro, no Ermera). Liu USD 2.48 milloens kompromete ona ba projetu hirak ne'e. Inisiativa Spotlight ne'e mós apoia parseiru xave Governu nian sira liuhusi apoiu tékniku no finanseiru. Embaixador Uniaun Europeia nian ba Timor-Leste dehan: "ha'u orgullu ho servisu ne'ebé Governu hala'o ona, ajénsia ONU nian sira no organizasaun sosiedade sivíl nian durante tinan dahuluk iha implementasaun inisiativa Spotlight nian. Apezarde tempu Covid19 ne'ebé difisil, ular-oan barak, labarik-feto, labarik-mane, mane no grupu minoria sira sosiedade nian hetan ona informasaun, treinamentu no servisu sira. VBJ seidauk elimina, maibé dalan ne'ebé estabelese ona no Uniaun Europeia kontinua komprometidu maka'as atu suporta Igualdade jéneru no empoderamentu feto. Ha'u hatene, imposivel atu realiza ida ne'e sein kompromisu no kompromisu hosi Governu Timor-Leste no organizasaun sosiedade sivíl sira. " Globalmente rekoñese katak violénsia dala barak akontese iha situasaun emerjénsia no dezastres naturais tanba fó perturbasaun ba servisus, destruisaun ba Infra-Estruturas, dezlokamentu, no limitasaun asesu ba servisus referénsia. Maske restrisaun no restrisaun sira ne'ebé taka ona hodi hatán ba Covid-19 no inundasaun sira foin daudaun ne'e, asaun hasoru VBJ sei sai nafatin hanesan prioridade aas ida ba Governu, Nasoins Unidas, UE no parseiru sira iha Timor-Leste. "Feto no labarik-feto sira iha Timor-Leste iha risku boot liu ba violénsia durante pandemia Covid-19 no nu'udar rezultadu husi inundasaun sira, halo sira sai vulneravel liutan. Governu no instituisaun xave sira iha responsabilidade atu ajuda asegura katak ema sira ne'e seguru, hetan apoiu di'ak no katak direitu fundamentál hotu-hotu nian, liuliu feto, labarik-feto no grupu vulneravel sira, hetan protesaun efetivu. ONU iha Timor-Leste sei kontinua servisu hamutuk nafatin ho komunidade sira, Governu, no parseiru sira atu rezolve no elimina violénsia oi-oin hotu hasoru feto no labarik-feto sira," hateten Koordenador Rezidente Nasoins Unidas nian Roy Trivedy. Hatán ba inundasaun sira no iha apoiu ba rekuperasaun Covid-19 nian, ekipa Spotlight no parseiru sira proposta ona mós atu halo diverisaun ba programa fundus balu hodi garante seguransa ba feto no labarik-feto sira. Enkontru ne'e explora fila fali osan dolar amerikanu 500,000 husi orsamentu inisiativa ne'e nian ba medida sira protesaun jéneru no protesaun nian iha Governu nia okos no parseiru umanitária sira nia planu resposta konjunta ba inundasaun. Reprograma nebee propoin ona hodi kobre sistema referénsia fundus, servisu no fornesimentu saúde reprodutiva, dignidade, no apoiu psiko-sosial ba feto, labarik feto no sira nia família ne'ebé afetadu. -END- -Remata- NOTES TO EDITORS The Spotlight Initiative, launched in September 2017, is a multi-year global partnership between the European Union and the United Nations to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls. It represents an unprecedented global effort to invest in gender equality and women's empowerment as a precondition and driver for achieving sustainable development goals. In the Pacific, the situation is particularly worrying. In some countries in the region, 76 per cent of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Most affected are marginalised women and girls facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination. In Timor-Leste, the Spotlight Initiative was launched on 5 March 2020. It is being implemented through five UN agencies (ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and UN Women), in support of the Government, and in close collaboration with the civil society, the World Health Organization (WHO), International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the UN Human Rights Advisor's Unit (HRAU). The overall vision of the Spotlight Initiative in Timor-Leste is that women and girls enjoy their right to a life free of violence, within an inclusive and gender equitable Timor-Leste. The programme is aligned to the Timor-Leste "National Action Plan on Gender based Violence (NAP GBV) (2017-2021)" and National SDG Roadmap. It contributes to the elimination of domestic violence/ intimate partner violence (DV/IPV) by responding to the needs of women and girls and addressing the underlying causes of violence against women and girls, using a multi-sectoral and intersectional approach across the ecological model. This involves strengthening and widening partnerships and solidarity across civil society, Government, media, private sector and development partners. The Initiative empowers individuals, equip institutions at national, sub-national and community levels with the policies, systems and mechanisms to prevent and respond to VAWG, and encourage the public to challenge harmful gender norms. Using innovative approaches, the Spotlight Initiative builds a social movement of diverse advocates and agents of change for gender equality and social inclusion. The Spotlight initiative deploys targeted, large-scale investments to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America and the Pacific. For more information about the Spotlight Initiative, visit https://spotlightinitiative.org

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Press Release

01 June 2021

Government of Timor-Leste and Partners Appeal for US$32 Million to Assist Flood Victims and Early Recovery

Dili, TIMOR-LESTE, 01 JUNE 2021: The Government, together with humanitarian partners, officially launched a Joint Appeal to address the residual humanitarian needs for the most vulnerable affected people and assist with early-recovery efforts in Timor-Leste. The appeal requests US$32.7 million (US $8.8m for immediate needs and US$23.9 for short-term requirements) that will directly assist 65,000 people and indirectly benefit all flood-affected population. A multi-sectoral response, the appeal identifies priority activities to address critical gaps across 9 sectors: Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) and Emergency Shelter; Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH); Gender and Protection; Food Security; Nutrition; Health; Education; Early Recovery and Livelihoods; and, Emergency Logistics. The Government has allocated US$65.2 million through the Contingency Fund while the humanitarian partners including the United Nations, have so far committed US$10.7 million to support the response efforts. However, following the rapid assessments that have been completed, critical funding gaps still remain to meet the priority needs of the flood-affected communities and to kick-start the recovery process. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, H.E. Ms. Adaljiza Magno in her opening remarks stated that despite the significant efforts from the Government side to deliver the emergency needs to flood affected populations as well as increasing the contingency fund to implement short and long term programs to recover from the calamity, there are still considerable funding gap need to be filled. Therefore, H.E. Minister, on behalf of the government, calling upon for a voluntary contribution in order to help Timor-Leste to scale-up measures to recover from the catastrophic disaster. The 2021 Timor-Leste Floods Response Plan will facilitate a coordinated by the Government and the humanitarian partners focusing on the next 7 months from end- May to end-December 2021 with the aim of supporting a sustainable recovery and helping lay the foundations for ‘Building Back Better’. The plan was jointly developed by the Government of Timor-Leste with support from the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office and all humanitarian partners. A copy of the detailed Joint Appeal is available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lBoh1Cr10dTiMiG2Sh5W4OXqoDmyzEpy/view?usp =sharing. Under the Government leadership, more than 86 organisations – 9 UN agencies, 63 humanitarian partners, and 14 Ministries/Departments – will participate in the 7-month Joint Response Plan ending in December 2021. The latest official figures, show that 33,835 households have been affected by the floods across all 13 municipalities, with 44 reported fatalities. Extensive damages have been reported to houses, buildings (including health facilities and COVID-19 quarantine and isolation centres), public infrastructure and agricultural land. A total of 2,163 hectares of agricultural land have been affected, negatively impacting food security in the coming days. This disaster comes when the country has seen a surge in COVID-19 cases in recent months. The temporary displacement of people poses an increased threat to the further spread of COVID-19 and outbreak of other diseases. United Nations Resident Coordinator Roy Trivedy emphasised that “it is imperative to speed up the delivery of assistance to Timor-Leste at this critical stage to prevent further loss of lives, additional damage to essential public services and infrastructure, and to stop the spread of diseases.” He also highlighted the fact that “this tragedy has hit at a time when the country is already struggling with the dangerous situation caused by COVID19.” This Response Plan aims to directly target the humanitarian and early recovery needs of approximately 65,000 flood-affected people living with existing vulnerabilities. All flood-affected populations are expected to benefit directly and indirectly from the response, including rehabilitation of critical public infrastructure and restoration of essential services. In line with the Secretariat of State for Civil Protection’s Flood Response Strategy, the plan will prioritise support to those who remain in the evacuation centres, support the safe return and early recovery of those who were temporarily displaced and since returned to their communities. -END BACKGROUND NOTE FOR EDITOR JOINT NEWS RELEASE On 23 April, the National Parliament approved the amendment to the 2021 General State Budget to respond to the impact of COVID-19 and the flooding, which the President subsequently promulgated on 4 May. The allocation to the COVID-19 Fund increased from USD 31 million to USD 287.6 million, while the Contingency Fund allocation increased from USD 23.8 million to USD 65.2 million. Many humanitarian partners and donors have supported the flood response through humanitarian funding and/or repurposing existing resources. In solidarity with the affected people of Timor-Leste, more donors, including the private sector, have been mobilising resources in support of the flood-affected people. Over USD 10.73 million of additional humanitarian funding has been mobilised by donors, UN agencies, humanitarian partners and the private sector. The second phase of the humanitarian response, namely support to livelihoods and early recovery has started, including emergency cash-for-work initiatives, inputs schemes, and infrastructure rehabilitation and reconstruction. At the request of the Government, partners are preparing to support the Government with longer-term recovery planning through a Household and Building Damage Assessment (HBDA), a Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PNDA), and a Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM). These assessments aim to provide more comprehensive country-wide information to inform longer-term recovery and reconstruction of flood-affected households, communities, and agricultural lands. During the Emergency Development Partners’ Meeting called by the Government on 13 April, the Government and the humanitarian partners agreed on the need for a strongly coordinated floods response, under the leadership of the Government. The 2021 Timor-Leste Flood Response Plan, therefore, is positioned as a tool to facilitate a coordinated floods response by the Government and the humanitarian partners (incl. donors), focusing on the initial 9 months to address the immediate humanitarian and early recovery needs of the most vulnerable affected people. Once the findings of a more comprehensive assessment of damages and losses become available, the Government and partners may consider developing a medium-term recovery plan in line with the Government’s commitment to Build Back Better.

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Press Release

19 May 2021

United Nations congratulates the people and Government of Timor-Leste on the anniversary of the Restoration of Independence Day

Today we mark the 19th anniversary of the day the people of Timor-Leste took control of their country (‘kaer rasik kuda talin’) and charted the course of their future. With extraordinary effort and determination, the East Timorese people rebuilt their nation, consolidated peace, ushered in an era of peace, development and human rights, and became an inspiration to many other nations. Roads, homes, schools, livelihoods and public institutions were established. The first country to re-gain independence in the 21st century, Timor-Leste has matured and contributed to global peace, development, and security over the past 19 years while also safeguarding the welfare of its citizens. The United Nations has played a significant role in supporting the democratic process and sustainable development in Timor-Leste. We are proud to have stood side by side with the people of Timor-Leste in their most challenging moments and to have helped lay the foundations for a prosperous and democratic future. On behalf of the UN Country Team, I present our tribute to the people of Timor-Leste for their courage and perseverance, which you have all shown on the path to re-gaining independence. Today’s independence day is a day of pride for all. The United Nations will continue to support the people and Government of Timor-Leste through these difficult times - caused by COVID-19 and the floods. Together with the Government, the people of Timor-Leste, and all friends of the country, the UN will also continue to strive for a better, more sustainable future for all. Wishing all a happy Restoration of Independence Day. Long live Timor-Leste!

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Press Release

04 May 2021

Government of Timor-Leste, European Union, and United Nations divert USD100,000 from EU-UN Spotlight Initiative to ensure safety of women and girls during flood emergency

DILI, 04 May 2021: EU-UN Spotlight Initiative in Timor-Leste has dedicated USD100,000 by reprogramming its budget to address the risks of increased violence against women and girls during flood emergency and response. The Government of Timor-Leste, the European Union, and the United Nations, together with partners including the civil society organisations, remain committed to protecting and supporting women and girls during the humanitarian crisis caused by nonstop rains and heavy land sliding recently. According to the official estimates, more than 31,000 households have been affected across the country, 3925 people currently displaced, and 41 people have been reported dead. Evidence shows that violence is often exacerbated in emergencies and natural disasters due to disruption of services, destruction of infrastructure, displacement, and limited access to referral services. “In any natural disaster, women, girls and other vulnerable components of the society are the most affected due to pre-existing inequalities. The recent flooding in Dili and other municipalities has not only caused damage to people's homes, their belongings and public infrastructure but has recorded a total of more than 40 fatalities. The Government appreciates the reallocation of budget from the spotlight programme to support those affected, particularly women, girls and other vulnerable components", stated Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion, Maria José da Fonseca Monteiro de Jesus. In response to the humanitarian disaster in Timor-Leste and increased risk of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative has diverted USD100,000 to respond to the immediate needs of women, girls and vulnerable groups. Gender-based violence (GBV) is widely recognised as one of the most prevalent concerns in Timor-Leste, with almost 2 out of every 3 women (15-49 years) reporting having experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetime. “The dramatic flash flooding has caused extensive damages throughout the country and claimed the lives of many. Consequences have a far-reaching impact on everyone, on their health, their socio-economic wellbeing, and on their rights. Through the Spotlight Initiative our partners are shifting programming to scaling up support to civil society organisations on the front line of response, ensuring that services not only stay open but are made more accessible to groups often left behind. The European Union stands by the people of Timor-Leste at this time of suffering and remains committed to protecting and supporting women in Timor-Leste”, said the European Union Ambassador Andrew Jacobs. The redirected funding will be used to disseminate information on the prevention of GBV and the referral systems, provide psychosocial support, basic food and non-food items to women, girls, and the vulnerable people that are survivors of GBV. The reprogramming will also provide technical guidance to the rapid gender assessment of the flooding, support monitoring and evaluation activities, and strengthen the GBV emergency response in the revised National Action Plan on Gender-Based Violence (NAP GBV). “During humanitarian crises, the burden on women and girls generally increases. Their workloads, childcare and other caring and support roles within the families are often multiplied. If they are running or working in small businesses, their livelihoods are generally affected. Levels of domestic violence often increase. And they are also affected if legal systems, health and other services stop functioning normally. Governments and key institutions in all societies have a responsibility to help ensure that people are safe, well supported and that the fundamental rights of all, especially women, girls and all vulnerable groups are effectively protected”, said Roy Trivedy, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste. -END- NOTES TO EDITORS The Spotlight Initiative, launched in September 2017, is a multi-year global partnership between the European Union and the United Nations to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls. It represents an unprecedented global effort to invest in gender equality and women's empowerment as a precondition and driver for achieving sustainable development goals. In the Pacific, the situation is particularly worrying. In some countries in the region, 76 per cent of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Most affected are marginalised women and girls facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination. In Timor-Leste, the Spotlight Initiative was launched on 5 March 2020. It is being implemented through five UN agencies (UN Women, UNFPA, UNDP, UNICEF, and ILO), in support of the Government, and in close collaboration with the civil society, the World Health Organization, International Organization for Migration, and the UN Human Rights Advisor’s Unit. The overall vision of the Spotlight Initiative in Timor-Leste is that women and girls enjoy their right to a life free of violence, within an inclusive and gender equitable Timor-Leste. The programme is aligned to the Timor-Leste "National Action Plan on Gender based Violence (2017-2021)" and National SDG Roadmap. It will contribute to the elimination of domestic violence/ intimate partner violence (DV/IPV) by responding to the needs of women and girls and addressing the underlying causes of violence against women and girls, using a multi-sectoral and intersectional approach across the ecological model. This will involve strengthening and widening partnerships and solidarity across civil society, Government, media, private sector and development partners. The Initiative will empower individuals, equip institutions at national, sub-national and community levels with the policies, systems and mechanisms to prevent and respond to VAWG, and encourage the public to challenge harmful gender norms. Using innovative approaches, the SI will build a social movement of diverse advocates and agents of change for gender equality and social inclusion. The Spotlight initiative deploys targeted, large-scale investments to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America and the Pacific. For more information about the Spotlight Initiative, visit https://spotlightinitiative.org For media inquiries, please contact Marino Mouzinho, Media Adviser, Office of the Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion. Email: marinosmouzinho@gmail.com Marina Rini, Communication Officer, EU Delegation. Email:mmarina.rini@gmail.com Ahmed Saleem, Communications Officer, UN Resident Coordinator’s Office. Email: mohammed.saleem@un.org

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