Timor-Leste Experience on ODA

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Timor-Leste Experience on ODA Aid
Effectiveness9-12 October 2007The Central
Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Regional
Workshop on Aid EffectivenessHanoi, Vietnam
Presentation byPalmira PiresDirectorETDA,
Timor-Leste
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Overview

• Timor-Leste Timor of the rising sun
• Situated Eastern part of Timor Island
• 500 km across the Timor Sea is Australia
• It also includes the enclave of Oecussi (located
  in West Timor)

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Facts and Figure

• Population 1,084,971 (Estimated)
• Rural population 90
• Language Literacy
• Tetun 82
• Portuguese 5
• Indonesian 43
• English 2
• Gender 49 Male, 51 Female
• Youth (Age below 33) 51
• Land Area 15,007 sq km
• Source The World Factbook Timor-Leste

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Language Administrative division

• 12 main ethnic groups, each with its own language
  ie
• Tetun, Mambae, Tokodede, Kemak, Galolen,Idate,
  Waimua, Naueti, Lakaale, Bunak, Makasae and
  fataluku, Makalero, Baikeno
• Timor-Leste comprises of 13 districts, 67
  sub-districts (postos), 442 villages (sucos) and
  2,336 sub-villages (aldeias)

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History

• 450 years under Portuguese colony
• 3.5 years under Japanese invasion (World War II)
• 24 years under Indonesia (Order Baru)
• 2 years under UN Transitional Administration
  (UNAMET/UNTAET/UNMISET)
• Restoration of Independence, 20 May 2002
• Currently led by the 4th Constitutional Government

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Non- State Actors

• Religious organizations
• Mass organizations
• Cultural and traditional associations
• Community and sports organizations
• Development organizations and self-help groups
  referred as NGOs

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Indonesian period

• Indigenous political associations survived
  underground or were incorporated into Indonesian
  organizations
• Clandestine organizations operated under CNRT
  (National Council of the Timorese Resistance)

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Catholic Church

• 98 population is Catholic
• Constitution praises merits of the Church in its
  Preamble but does not favour any religion
• Church has communication and social service
  network

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Civil Society

• There is a total of 467 local and international
  organizations in Timor-Leste in which 83 are
  local organizations. Most of the organizations
  are based in Dili.
• 369 Local NGOs
• 18 National NGOS
• 80 International NGOS

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Role of Civil Society

• Monitoring
• Advocacy
• Education
• Agriculture
• Advisory services on human rights, justice and
  peace, gender awareness, environment and
  emergency assistance

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Timor-Leste ODA Experience

• In 2004
• GDP is USD 366
• Unemployment 55 nationwide, 20 capital Dili
• gt10,000 young people join the labour market every
  year
• Inflation fell 1.8 in 2004 and is expected to
  remain at round 2.4
• Growth in GDP is low at 1.8

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Timor-Leste ODA Experience (cont)

• Government records reveal that Timor-Leste
  received a total of
• USD 2,314,495,641
• from 1999 to 2007
• This figure represents both the security
  (military), emergency and development assistance
  to the country
• Source figures gather from the Registry of
  External Assistance of the Government of
  Timor-Leste as of 28th September 2007

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Timor-Leste ODA Experience (cont)

• Funding breakdown
• Total Funding (US)
• Country (28) 1,949,663,249
• Institutions (26) 364,832,391
• Total 2,314,495,640

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East Timor Development Agency (ETDA)

• Established in 2000
• Non-governmental organization
• Led by Timorese
• Development of human resources through training,
  employment and business centres

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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance

• Since its establishment, ETDA received funding
• Funding approved (US)
• Country (4) 969,112
• Institutions (3) 179,671
• Total 1 148 783
• (To date ETDA has received only 64 of the total
  approved funding)

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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance (cont..)
ETDA received 0.000496 of total Aid Assistance
in Timor-Leste
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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance (cont..)

• ETDA allocated Aid Assistance to
• Institution building
• Capacity building

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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance (cont..)
Aid Assistance from donors based in the country
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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance (cont..)
Aid Assistance from donors outside the country
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ETDA experience with Aid Assistance (cont..)

• Results
• Ownership (organization is run and led by
  Timorese)
• Equal partnership (act as adviser to
  international organizations on local issues)
• Sustainability
• Sharing resources (support other non-government
  organizations including government in sharing
  resources)

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Results

• International organization facilitated Timorese
  technical assistance from abroad
• Timorese technical assistance from abroad acted
  as bridge between donor community and local
  Timorese
• Ownership of the project
• Transference of skills
• Long term commitment

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Challenges

• Lack of accountability of international partners
  organizations
• Lack of communication
• Inequality in sharing information
• Competition between international organizations
  in bidding for projects
• Difficulties in creating new programs
• Difficulty in starting on equal ground with
  international organizations in implementing NEW
  projects

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Recommendations

• Donors to provide an endowment fund to local
  organizations
• Beneficiaries of the project to evaluate the
  project
• Create a transparency mechanism where the
  international institutions must be accountable to
  present the results of the project to the
  beneficiaries, not just to donors
• Be able to access information of projects
  implemented in the country on an annual basis

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Recommendations (cont..)

• Support local media to monitor aid projects
• Create a mechanism for the return of professional
  technical assistance to their developing
  countries
• And most importantly
• Aid assistance should not be tied with political
  decisions of the country

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Obrigadu Barak!
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Thank You