Timor-Leste and Brazil formalise cooperation on training Portuguese language teachers
The Governments of Timor-Leste and the Federative Republic of Brazil formalised a cooperation agreement this Wednesday in Dili to train Portuguese-language teachers for the 3rd Cycle of Basic Education, with the aim of strengthening teachers' linguistic, communicative, and pedagogical-didactic skills and supporting the implementation of the new national curriculum, which has been in effect since the 2025 school year. 
The agreement was signed by the Minister of Education of Timor-Leste, Dulce de Jesus, and the Brazilian Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Ricardo José Leal, as part of a multi-year training project that will cover 644 Portuguese language teachers directly involved in the teaching and learning of Timorese students.
At the signing ceremony, the Minister of Education stated that "the Portuguese Language Teacher Training Project for the 3rd Cycle of Basic Education, which we formalised through the signing of a supplementary agreement and a project document, stems from a deep commitment: to ensure that all our teachers have the linguistic, communicative, didactic-pedagogical, and methodological skills necessary to ensure the successful implementation of the new national curriculum, which came into effect in the 2025 school year."
The project provides for technical support from 17 Brazilian coordinating teachers, who will work in a joint teaching arrangement, and the participation of 81 Timorese teachers, who will act as multiplier teachers. According to Dulce de Jesus, “to improve this process, we will have the technical support of 17 Brazilian coordinating teachers, who will work in a joint teaching arrangement, and 81 Timorese teachers, who will act as multiplier teachers, thus ensuring the sustainability and continuity of training in the future.”
The initiative also includes the production of new teaching materials for the 7th, 8th, and 9th grades, the creation of a Virtual Learning Environment, and the establishment at the National Institute for the Training of Teachers and Education Professionals (INFORDEPE) of a Portuguese Teacher Training Centre as a permanent structure for technical and pedagogical support.
The Minister of Education also emphasised that “we all understand that this is a strategic and ambitious investment. An investment that goes beyond simple teacher training and represents the construction of a sustainable model for the future of training and education in Timor-Leste”.
In turn, the Brazilian Ambassador to Timor-Leste stated that the Brazilian Government remains committed to collaborating with Timor-Leste, particularly in promoting and disseminating the Portuguese language, noting that “teacher training aims to empower teachers and expand the use of the Portuguese language, especially in basic education.”
The project has the support of the Brazilian Government, through the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), and the collaboration of the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in technical and scientific matters, within the framework of bilateral cooperation in the education sector.
