Suchergebnisse

Xanana Gusmão recently mentioned that a "Second Maubere Miracle" is underway, implying that a major political reform will soon shake the roots of Timor-Leste's public administration. Decentralization, defined in a very broad sense, has been a constitutional mandate since independence, but successive governments have failed to engage this reform despite paying lip service to its necessity. This essay reviews the options before the policy makers – both in theoretical terms (distinguishing between the various definitions of decentralization) and in the pragmatic forms that have been contemplated so far – and discusses their implications for the process of rooting a modern democracy in the country both at the intermediate, district level and at the grassroots, suku (village) level. For this purpose, the essay brings together the author's own field research and the rich literature that has emerged in the recent past, including contributions by Timorese colleagues. (auhtor's abstract)

The achievement of environmentally sustainable development (ESD) is a global challenge, essential to poverty reduction and raising living standards of rural poor worldwide. ESD requires integration of environmental management and conservation issues into development planning and policy. For Timor-Leste (TL), the world's newest nation, the challenge to achieve ESD is particularly difficult following a long history of colonialism and foreign occupation, characterized by oppression, violence, poverty and environmental degradation. TL faces a range of daunting social and economic development challenges with a budget of less than US$74 million, while simultaneously facing declining donor interest and shortfalls. Many developing counties in this situation operate on the premise of "development first, mitigation and treatment later", resulting in unsustainable development and environmental degradation. The Government of TimorLeste (GoTL) has stated its desire to avoid such an approach, enshrining environmental protection and sustainability in its Constitution, highlighting ESD in its development goals and committing to a policy of responsible and environmentally sustainable development. Yet, an assessment of the environmental institutional and legislative frameworks and development policies during the UNT AET period and since independence in 2002 tells a different story. Given the urgency of immediate humanitarian and socio-economic needs and the focus on reconstruction, it is perhaps understandable that social and economic outcomes were prioritized during the UNT AET period. However, the lack of attention to environment issues resulted in failure to incorporate ESD principles into development policy, ill-designed environmental management policies and further environmental degradation. With the shift from reconstruction to long-term development, it is essential that environment issues are incorporated into development policy. Despite GoTL's best efforts to include ESD principles into the National Development Plan (NDP) and Sector Investment Plans (SIPs), many of its environmental policies and management practices are not implemented in practice. The institutional framework is severely restricted by lack of funding, capacity and technical knowledge. The legislative framework remains in draft, meaning Indonesian and UNT AET laws remain in effect, which has implications for local ownership and enforcement. Although NGOs play an important role in environmental awareness and protection in TL, they are also only in their nascent stages. The dire need for development, combined with a lack of understanding of long term environmental effects and a lack of economic alternatives, have meant that environmental protection and management have largely been neglected. TL's environment is already in a precarious state. The following problems, needs and priorities have been identified: deforestation and land degradation requires urgent reforestation, watershed management, adoption of more environmentally friendly agricultural practices and firewood/alternative energy research; environmental baseline data is required on the status of biodiversity and fish stocks to ensure effective protection and management policies; improved watershed and water management practices to improve water quality, and to prevent erosion and the silting up of already scarce water resources; natural resources management systems at the community level; solid waste and sewerage facilities are required; environmental policies and legislation incorporating cultural practices are needed; improvement in capacity and technical knowledge of environment institutions; critical environmental impact assessments (EIAs) must be undertaken for all proposed infrastructure and investment projects; raising of environmental awareness; and increased funding for environmental institutions and programs. Further environmental degradation in TL will exacerbate poverty as land becomes less productive for food, water becomes scarce and contaminated, child mortality increases and landslides destroy homes. This situation warrants immediate and urgent action. Australia has a particular responsibility to assist TL in meeting this challenge, given our historical neglect for our neighbour, our status as OECD member, and our joint interest in the Timor Sea. However, a review of the relationships between Australia and TL demonstrates there are very few programs aimed at environment issues. Overwhelmingly, interviewees commented the Australian government is not doing near enough to assist TL in achieving ESD. Environment is not a priority area and has not received adequate attention under AusAID' s bilateral aid program, although a number of the programs outlined in this paper have indirect environmental benefits. Environment is a cross-cutting issue, requiring environmental impacts are considered in the design of all activities. Doubts remain regarding the extent to which environmental concerns are genuinely considered. At the State government level there are a number of important initiatives being implemented. Yet, it is the successes and achievements of the environmental activities of Australian NGOs, universities and community groups which are really contributing to the achievement ofESD in TL. Despite severe restrictions in funding, these activities represent a refreshing reminder of what can be achieved at the grass roots level. But there is still much to be done. A number of recommendations have been made to ensure that Australia continues to work towards meeting our responsibility to assist TL in the challenge to achieve ESD. Many of these recommendations could be integrated into existing AusAID rural development, governance and water sanitation programs. • To conclude the Timor Sea dispute in a timely and equitable manner; • Provide assistance for the management of petroleum revenue and resources; • Capacity building and promotion of good governance within environment institutions; • Assistance for environmental awareness programs; • Funding for UNDP and GoTL environmental programs, in particular the firewood survey and integrated solid waste treatment programs; • Assistance in exploration of alternative energy sources and independent review of environmental impacts of large infrastructure and investment projects; • Reforestation and watershed management; • Water testing and raising awareness of environmental health issues; • Further funding and support for Australian NGOs, universities and community programs; • Strengthening AusAID project EIAs.

Economic Diversity in Contemporary Timor-Leste analyses various economic dynamics in past and present Timor-Leste. Comprising 14 research chapters, the volume brings to the fore: 1) local, community-based economic values and arrangements; 2) community-based entanglements with a market-driven economy; 3) the colonial and postcolonial governance praxis through which a market-driven economy has permeated the country, and 4) the creative and place-based ways through which local people have responded to these transformations. The collection challenges hegemonic, market-driven analyses which characterise Timor-Leste's economy as weak, deformed and homogenised and demonstrates the myriad of socially embedded ways through which Timor-Leste's economy is diverse, richly complex and continually brought into being. To frame the analysis of these complex economic dynamics in Timor-Leste, the collection's introduction develops the concept of economic ecologies: the assemblages of institutions and their localised and historical relationships mobilised for reproducing collective life, both in its material and immaterial aspects

Government, industry, and civil society in Timor-Leste agree that the tourism sector could deliver significant and sorely needed economic growth to the country. Tourism in Timor-Leste, for now still nascent, has the potential to develop into a burgeoning industry. In June 2017, a National Development Forum entitled Sustainable and Inclusive Tourism Development in Timor-Leste, and in October 2017 a Tourism Symposium on Inclusive Tourism Development through Industry Associations and Marketing and Promotion of Timor-Leste Tourism was organized by The Asia Foundation with funding from the Australian Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (NZ MFAT) respectively. The event brought together over 100 participants who identified opportunities and challenges in strengthening tourism in Timor-Leste. Participants also agreed upon a strategic development framework incorporating three key pillars of supply, demand and partnership. Given the recent induction of Timor-Leste's 8th Constitutional Government and the momentum generated by the aforementioned National Development Forum and recent Timor-Leste Tourism Symposia, there is much shared optimism and eagerness. The government approval of the Timor-Leste Tourism Policy and the Explore the Undiscovered tourism brand, earlier in 2017. In support of next steps, this Tourism Barometer has been developed to provide a situational analysis that guides tourism development in the country. It is critical that there is wide participation in the development of The Barometer by public and private stakeholders. Consultations have already been held with both the 7th and 8th Constitutional Governments, and two Timor-Leste Tourism Symposia were held in October 2017 on the topics of tourism partnership and destination marketing. It is envisaged that The Barometer is a living document and will therefore require ongoing consultation among stakeholders to absorb refinements and encourage continuity. Ideally, The Barometer will become a guiding document for any future tourism-specific public-private partnership arrangements that may be established, such as a Tourism Authority of Timor-Leste (TATL) or similar.

The COVID-19, or coronavirus global pandemic has required huge responses from governments all over the world. Timor-Leste has its own unique requirements when addressing an event of this magnitude. The Government of Timor-Leste responded by declaring a state of emergency, which closed schools, suspended public transport and large gatherings, instituted border closures and established requirements for social distancing. While these measures were put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Government of Timor-Leste also acknowledged the social and economic impact and introduced a number of financial support programs, to not only support citizens as they self-quarantine, but also to boost the economy.

KEY ISSUESContext. The economy is very dependent on natural resources. Government spending,funded by oil exports, has driven rapid non-oil GDP growth but with high inflation, a lossof competitiveness, and weak employment generation. The political situation is relativelystable with elections in 2012 and the long-term UN presence has ended but fragilitiespersist as poverty remains high. The Strategic Development Plan guides policies, aimingfor upper middle-income status and significant poverty reduction by 2030.Outlook and Risks. Non-oil GDP growth should average around 8 percent assumingstructu

The Country Environmental Analysis (CEA) for Timor-Leste identifies environmental priorities through a systematic review of environmental issues in natural resources management and environmental health in the context of the country's economic development and environmental institutions. Lack of data has been the main limitation in presenting a more rigorous analysis. Nevertheless, the report builds on the best available secondary data, presents new data on the country's wealth composition, and derives new results on the costs of water and air pollution. The CEA calls for urgent attention to gaps in the environmental management framework, the lack of capacity to implement the few regulations in place, and the high cost of indoor air pollution and poor water, sanitation, and hygiene. Timor-Leste is a young country that regained independence in 2002, and it has emerged from a bitter past burdened by colonialism and violent conflicts. It is still a fragile state facing enormous challenges. The report also points out the lack of clean water, appropriate sanitation, and hygiene as an environmental priority. The CEA estimates that this imposes an economic cost of about $17 million per year by way of illness and premature death. The CEA also looks at outdoor air pollution and at natural resource management for land, forestry, and coastal and marine resources. Outdoor air pollution is not a serious problem for the time being, but it could become so in the long run if the economy grows rapidly, urbanization continues, heavy industry emerges, and motorization increases rapidly. This underlines the need for good forward territorial and development planning. In conclusion, much good work has already been done to enhance the quality of the environment in Timor-Leste. Efforts are under way to improve the data base for environmental management.

The breakdown of law and order in Timor-Leste in 2006 has two important dimensions: internal power struggles and regional differences. This article discusses how the competitive development of the armed forces and the police and the reemergence of regional differences affected the process of creating a democratic state.

Doing Business 2020 is the 17th in a series of annual studies investigating the regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it. Doing Business presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights that can be compared across 190 economies— from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe—and over time. Regulations affecting 12 areas of the life of a business are covered: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts, resolving insolvency, employing workers, and contracting with the government. The employing workers and contracting with the government indicator sets are not included in this year's ranking on the ease of doing business. Data in Doing Business 2020 are current as of May 1, 2019. The indicators are used to analyze economic outcomes and identify what reforms of business regulation have worked, where and why. This economy profile presents indicators for Timor-Leste; for 2020, Timor-Leste ranks 181.

O Timor Leste é um pequeno país, situado numa posição estratégica privilegiada, entre a Ásia e a Oceania e entre os oceanos Pacífico e Índico. Foi destruído por sua vizinha Indonésia, no final de 1975, por ocasião de uma violenta invasão militar. Possui dois idiomas oficiais: o tétum e o português, sendo este proibido pelos indonésios. É membro da Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa (CPLP). O Brasil tem procurado colaborar com os timorenses, aproveitando para se projetar naquela região e fortalecer a referida comunidade lusófana. Assim, este trabalho tem por objetivo mostrar como um planejamento estratégico pode contribuir para um país, possibilitando definir objetivos nacionais. Sua relevância é debater a importância da defesa, mostrando que a mesma não pode estar separada das políticas de desenvolvimento, bem como destacar a importância da língua portuguesa como forma de preservação da identidade e das fronteiras físicas daquele país amigo, e de contribuir com o seu desenvolvimento nacional, com ênfase na segurança e defesa. Este artigo está dividido em cinco partes, trazendo as considerações iniciais na introdução. Na segunda parte, discorre-se sobre um breve histórico do país. A terceira sessão apresenta um relato sucinto da atual conjuntura do Timor Leste. A quarta parte mostra a contribuição da ESG. A conclusão aborda como um método de planejamento estratégico pode contribuir para o crescimento e para o desenvolvimento daquele país asiático e integrante da CPLP.