Government of Timor-Leste

The Secretary of State for Administrative Decentralization, Tomás do Rosário Cabral, carried out a work visit to the State of Victoria, in Australia, on October 14^th and 17^th.

On the agenda of the Secretary of State, for this work visit, were the signature of two cooperation protocols which focus on administrative decentralization, a work meeting with the Mayor of Ballarat and the participation in the conference “Power to the People”, organized by the Municipality of Victoria.

On October 16th, Tomás do Rosário Cabral signed two cooperation protocols with the City of Moonee Valley and Indigo Shire, which focus on decentralization. These two protocols aim at the strengthening of the cooperation relationships between the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and the Municipalities of the State of Victoria, with the purpose of strengthening the institutional capacity of Timor-Leste’s Local Administration and the interchange of knowledge and experiences in the economic, social, educational and cultural areas. Both cooperation protocols signed with Moonee Valley and Indigo reinforce the already established cooperation with Ballarat, Darebin, Yarra and Wangaratta, in the State of Victoria, and the protocol signed with Darwin, in the Northern Territory.

Under the scope of the cooperation protocol, signed on July 28th, 2014, with the Municipality of Ballarat, the Secretary of State for Administrative Decentralization had the opportunity to carry out a work meeting with the Mayor of Ballarat and several chiefs from that municipality. In this meeting, which had the strengthening of cooperation relationships previously formalized as its objective, by holding concrete initiatives for the promotion of the local development of the districts/municipalities of Timor-Leste, Tomás do Rosário Cabral had the opportunity to state the importance of setting a common, coherent and harmonious cooperation strategy between the several Australian cooperation partners on the issue of administrative decentralization.

The Local Government Department from the State of Victoria offered a welcome dinner to the Secretary of State for Administrative Decentralization, on the occasion of his visit to Melbourne and Ballarat, to participate in the Conference "Power to the People”, organized by the Municipal Association of Victoria. At this event, heads of Local Administration from the State of Victoria were present, as well as several mayors and chiefs of department from the municipalities with whom the Secretariat of State for Administrative Decentralization holds cooperation agreements on decentralization.