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Timor-Leste
EXAMPLES OF OUR IMPACT
- With USAID support, more than 5,000 citizens have received legal aid services, and some 1,600 cases have been resolved since 2002, significantly reducing the burden on the formal justice system.
- USAID has linked farmers to markets across the country. Many rural households now receive cash for a wide range of crops, including specialty vegetables, herbs, candlenuts, cloves and vanilla.
- USAID-supported health programs in Timor-Leste have assisted in reducing the fertility level from 7.8 children in 2003 to 5.7 in 2009.
USAID/EAST TIMOR SITE
timor-leste.usaid.gov
CONTACTS
Mission Director
Rick Scott
Department of State/USAID
8250 Dili Place
Washington, DC 20521-8250
Shauna Malliski
Tel: (202) 712-1874
E-mail: smalliski@usaid.gov
USAID projects focus on improving the health of mothers and children. (Photo: Mauricio Borges, USAID Timor-Leste)
Overview
In 2002, Timor-Leste became the first new nation of the millennium, after 24 years of Indonesian occupation and two years of UN administration. Since then, the people of Timor-Leste have worked diligently and with courage to establish strong, democratic institutions and a viable economy. Although the country remains Asia's poorest, it has significant natural resources and revenues from offshore gas and oil reserves, which it manages with international support. USAID works with the Government of Timor-Leste, rural communities, and international partners to implement programs that focus on promoting lasting stability through sustainable development.
Programs
Economic Growth
The percentage of people living in poverty in Timor-Leste rose from 40 percent in 2001 to nearly half the population in 2010. Underemployment is widespread, especially in rural areas, where 80 percent of the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture. USAID's programs seek to reduce poverty by improving private sector performance, particularly in the agricultural sector, providing agribusiness training, and improving agricultural productivity. USAID seeks to expand its replicable models for the successful transfer of skills to men and women in rural communities across the country. USAID is also helping Timor-Leste's government develop a functioning land titling and registration system to lay a foundation for private investment and mitigate conflict.
Governing Justly and Democratically
Timor-Leste has conducted free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections three times, and will hold elections in 2012. However, the young nation continues to face serious challenges as it strengthens its fledgling democracy. These include weak and politicized institutions of governance, severe inadequacies in the justice system, and a widespread absence of reliable public information. USAID programs work to strengthen the justice and accountability institutions and expand access to justice. USAID programs also promote the independence and professionalism of the media. In addition, USAID supports the government’s decentralization policy by improving the ability of local authorities to respond to communities' needs and by working with civil society organizations to improve service delivery.
Investing in People: Health and Education
Health indicators for Timor-Leste are among the worst in Southeast Asia but are generally improving. The 2009 Demographic and Health Survey, funded by USAID, showed encouraging improvements in infant and child mortality rates. However, maternal and newborn mortality ratios continue to indicate major problems, and there has been little improvement in nutrition indicators. USAID programs work with the Ministry of Health to support its Basic Services Package, which includes focused interventions at district health facilities, as well as at community and household levels to improve maternal, neonatal, and child health. In addition, U.S. assistance supports the Ministry of Health with the implementation of its National Reproductive Health Strategy, expanding knowledge of family planning methods, including child spacing.
USAID is increasing access to clean water and sanitation, with plans to bring clean water to 45 percent of residents in targeted areas by the end of 2011. The project combines infrastructure development, behavior change, and local governance into a comprehensive approach to build sustainable water and sanitation systems in some of the country's most remote communities. Clean water and better sanitation reduce many waterborne diseases.
To meet the demands of a growing nation and a new democracy, the Government of Timor-Leste is aware that its youth and new professionals need more advanced skills. USAID’s strategy focuses on equipping new entrants to the workforce, as well as seasoned workers, with the necessary tools to improve the environment for entrepreneurs, enhance access to regional and global markets, and increase production with new technologies. USAID's higher education program will provide academic and technical degrees, and short-term technical training.
Millennium Challenge Corporation Threshold Program
Timor-Leste’s three-year, $10.5 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Threshold Program is designed to improve the country’s performance in two policy areas measured by the MCC: (1) controlling corruption and (2) improving access to immunization. The program will reduce corruption by building a network of functioning and effective anti-corruption institutions and actors. It will also increase immunization coverage in districts with the lowest immunization rates by improving access to services through community mobilization, strengthened logistics management, and better service delivery systems in Timor-Leste.
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