The Crab and Fish Farming Centre was inaugurated on Friday 8 March by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Mariano Assanami Sabino, and by the US Ambassador, Judith R. Fergins, at Oralan, Vemasse sub-district, Baucau district.

“Our Government, in cooperation with the US Government represented by its implementing agency “Agriculture Cooperative Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance” (ACDI/VOCA) wants this Centre to farm crab and fish, the reproduction of which may reach twenty thousand per month, approximately two hundred forty thousand per year”, Mr. Mariano Assanami Sabino said.

The Minister called upon “the seriousness and discipline of the farmers interested in this activity of aquaculture, for its results brings high economic advantages. To cite an example, the Minister said that one crab alone may weigh one kilogram and each kilogram may cost ten US dollars or even more in the market in Dili”.

“I hope that this Centre, intended to farm crab and fish, will not be the only one. Timor-Leste has more than seven hundred kilometers of coastline, with potential and viability to benefit any Timorese interested in investing in this activity, which may constitute a source of income, particularly for the families living in the coastal regions”, the US Ambassador said.

“The US Government is proud for being a permanent partner of the Timorese Government, the cooperation with which has been further strengthened following the visit of Hillary Clinton in September last year and during which Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão and her agreed that the agricultural and the fisheries sectors are of particular importance for the development of the country.  This project shows that the commitment of the two countries has become a reality with the establishment of this Centre for farming crab and fish”, The American Ambassador Judith R. Fergins said.