On October 22^nd, 2026, at the Government Palace in Dili, the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Agio Pereira, met with the New Zealand Police Liaison Officer for Irregular Migration, Tim Chao—who was accompanied by the New Zealand Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Helen Tunnah—as part of a working visit by the New Zealand Police official to the country, which took place from October 19^th to 24^th.

The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss bilateral relations between Timor-Leste and New Zealand, as well as areas of common interest, with a particular focus on cooperation to combat transnational organised crime and irregular migration.

During the meeting, Timor-Leste’s priorities in these areas were discussed, along with opportunities to deepen cooperation—particularly through the sharing of information and experiences, capacity building, and strengthening coordination between the relevant institutions of both countries.

Tim Chao is posted to the New Zealand Embassy in Jakarta, where he serves as Liaison Officer for Irregular Migration and is accredited to Timor-Leste. He has over 30 years’ experience in criminal investigation, including counter-narcotics, organised crime, intelligence, and asset recovery. From 2019 to 2023, he served as a New Zealand Police Liaison Officer to Europol in The Hague.

The visit to Timor-Leste includes a schedule of meetings with officials from relevant national institutions, aimed at fostering dialogue on challenges related to transnational organised crime and irregular migration, and at continuing existing cooperation in these areas.

Tim Chao previously visited Timor-Leste in April this year. During that working visit, he met officials from national institutions involved in security and criminal investigation, including the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL) and the Scientific and Criminal Investigation Police (PCIC). Those discussions covered, among other topics, irregular migration, the prevention and combating of transnational crime, and cooperation between the authorities of Timor-Leste and New Zealand.

On October 20^th, 2026, the Ministry of Finance and the National Institute of Statistics of Timor-Leste, I.P. (INETL, I.P.) presented the Summary Report on Poverty from the 2024 Survey on Living Standards in Timor-Leste (TLSLS 2024), which shows a reduction in poverty over the past decade, accompanied by improvements in access to electricity, safe drinking water, sanitation, housing, and education.

According to the report, using estimates that allow consistent comparison between the two periods, the poverty rate fell from 48.4% in 2014 to 37% in 2024, a decrease of 11.4 percentage points. The TLSLS 2024 was conducted by INETL between April and October 2024 and covered 7,424 households, with national and municipal representativeness.

The improvement in living conditions is also evident in other indicators. Between 2014 and 2024, the proportion of the population without access to electricity fell from 27.9% to 1.7%, and the proportion without access to safe drinking water dropped from 25.4% to 9.1%. The proportion without access to improved sanitation decreased from 39.6% to 24.4%, while the proportion living in adequate housing increased from 22.4% to 42.6%. The report also notes progress in education indicators, with a reduction in illiteracy and in the proportion of households with primary school-age children who do not attend school.

During the presentation of the report, the Vice-Minister of Finance, Regina de Jesus de Sousa, highlighted the progress achieved and the use of the new data to guide public policies aimed at reducing poverty.

“The TLSLS 2024 shows significant progress in reducing poverty and improving living conditions. The data demonstrate how we can reduce disparities and accelerate poverty reduction. The Government will use the new data to guide policymaking, as we are committed to achieving these goals for the people of Timor-Leste,” she stated.

Despite the progress recorded, the report shows that poverty continues to affect rural areas more severely, with the rate reaching 44.5% in 2024, compared with 18.4% in urban areas. It also identifies differences across municipalities and between the living conditions of poor and non-poor households.

The report was prepared with technical support from the World Bank Group. Its Resident Representative in Timor-Leste, David Freedman, stated that “this report shows positive changes in living conditions in Timor-Leste since 2014” and reiterated the institution’s commitment to working with the Government and partners to reduce poverty and promote shared prosperity.

The TLSLS 2024 data will inform a Poverty and Equity Assessment, to be developed by the Government and the World Bank Group, to deepen analysis of the main causes of poverty and support the identification of priority measures to accelerate its reduction. The survey microdata will also be made available for research and public policy development, with the necessary safeguards to protect participants’ confidentiality and privacy.

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