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Speech by H. E. the Prime Minister, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão
Dili Convention Centre, Timor-Leste
7 September 2026

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Speech by H. E. the Prime Minister, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão

Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar
5 September 2026

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Today, September 3^rd, 2026, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in Dili, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, Vice Prime Minister, Coordinating Minister of Economic Affairs, and Minister of Tourism and Environment, opened the Ministerial Meeting of the Group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), aimed at defining the group’s policy priorities and common position for the negotiations at the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31).

The ministerial meeting is part of the LDC Group’s strategic meeting, which is taking place in Dili from September 1^st to 4^th, 2026. It brings together representatives from the 44 countries that make up the group, including ministers, negotiators, and experts, as well as representatives from international organisations and development partners.

Timor-Leste holds the Chairmanship of the LDC Group, represented by the Special Envoy for Climate Affairs, Ambassador Adão Soares Barbosa, and is hosting this meeting to coordinate the group’s positions ahead of COP31, which is scheduled for November in Antalya, Turkey.

At the opening of the ministerial segment, Vice Prime Minister Francisco Kalbuadi Lay emphasised that, despite their limited contribution to the global climate crisis, LDCs are among the most vulnerable countries to its impacts.

He noted that Timor-Leste also faces the effects of climate change, including coastal erosion, pressure on agriculture and food security, extreme weather events, and heightened disaster risks, with severe consequences for communities, the economy, and national development.

The Vice Prime Minister argued that climate finance for least developed countries should be adequate, predictable, and accessible, and should strengthen national institutions and capacities. He also emphasised the need to facilitate the transfer of knowledge and technology and to ensure greater transparency in the use of resources.

The ministerial meeting follows two days of technical and strategic sessions, during which the LDCs’ key priorities for COP31 were discussed, including climate finance, adaptation, mitigation, a just transition, and loss and damage.

Participants also discussed implementing National Adaptation Plans, technology and technology transfer, transparency, Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, agriculture, capacity building, and the relationship between gender and climate change, as well as issues related to trade, health, oceans, mountains, and migration.

At the start of the technical sessions, the Chair of the LDC Group, Ambassador Adão Soares Barbosa, called for the establishment of a “clear and unified” negotiating position for COP31 and for the identification of issues requiring political guidance at the ministerial level.

According to the Ambassador, the Least Developed Countries have contributed least to the global climate crisis but face greater difficulty in accessing the resources needed to address its impacts. In this context, the group intends to strengthen its position on increasing the volume and quality of climate finance, simplifying access to funds, ensuring the predictability of resources, and providing technical and institutional support to the most vulnerable countries.

The LDC Group also aims to accelerate the implementation of National Adaptation Plans, promote mitigation measures consistent with the goal of limiting the rise in global average temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and ensure adequate, predictable, and accessible resources to address climate change-related loss and damage.

The meeting also features participation by international partners, including the United Nations Development Programme, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank, which presented perspectives on climate finance, institutional capacity, and the translation of national strategies into concrete programmes and projects.

The results of the technical discussions will be reviewed at ministerial level to consolidate the LDCs’ key messages and policy priorities and to adopt a ministerial declaration that will guide the group’s participation in international climate negotiations and at COP31.

 

The Minister of Health, Élia A. A. dos Reis Amaral, inaugurated, on August 31^st, 2026, the new Basic Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care Centre (KEmON-B) in the Administrative Post of Atsabe, Ermera Municipality, aimed at strengthening access for pregnant women and newborns to emergency care and safe delivery services closer to their communities.

The improvement of the facilities resulted from collaboration between the Ministry of Health and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), with funding from the Government of Japan, and will enable the provision of the medical and non-medical equipment necessary to deliver emergency obstetric and neonatal care, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Centre is expected to serve approximately 17,000 women of reproductive age in the Atsabe Administrative Post and provide services to around 800 pregnant women each year.

Health professionals received specific training in emergency obstetric and neonatal care, including responses to obstetric complications such as pre-eclampsia and haemorrhage, and in neonatal resuscitation procedures.

At the inauguration ceremony, the Minister of Health said, “Today’s inauguration marks an important commitment to protecting the lives and dignity of women and babies, and to ensuring that families and communities in Atsabe have access to quality care at the right time and with dignity, closer to their homes.”

“By inaugurating this centre, we reaffirm our responsibility to ensure it operates to appropriate standards, has the necessary health professionals, equipment, and medical supplies, and is integrated into the health system,” she added.

The Minister of Health thanked the Government of Japan for its support in strengthening the national health system and highlighted collaboration with partners to improve maternal and neonatal health services.

“Together, we are strengthening primary healthcare and services for mothers and newborns in the places where they are needed most,” she said.

The Ministry of Health will ensure support for the supervision and continuous training of professionals, the supply of essential medicines and medical materials, and the operation of the referral and communication systems necessary for service delivery.

The Minister also thanked the health professionals and staff at the Atsabe Community Health Centre and highlighted the role of local authorities and community representatives in the use and maintenance of the new facilities.

The inauguration was attended by the Ambassador of Japan to Timor-Leste, Yamamoto Yasushi; the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Funmi Balogun; the UNFPA Representative, Navchaa Suren; the Directors-General and National Directors of the Ministry of Health; representatives of the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL); local authorities; members of religious congregations; health professionals; and community representatives.

The opening of the Atsabe Centre strengthens local capacity to respond to obstetric and neonatal emergencies. It reduces the need to travel to more distant health facilities when immediate assistance is required.

Between September 1^st  and 10^th, 2026, the Government and the Timorese Episcopal Conference are holding a series of ceremonies to honour Bishop Jaime Garcia Goulart, Bishop José Joaquim Ribeiro, Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes, and Bishop Alberto Ricardo da Silva, in recognition of their pastoral legacy and their contributions to the history of Timor-Leste.

The ceremonies began on September 1^st with the arrival in Dili of the mortal remains of Bishop Jaime Garcia Goulart, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Dili; Bishop José Joaquim Ribeiro, the second Bishop of the Diocese of Dili; and Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes, former Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Dili.

The mortal remains of the three prelates arrived at President Nicolau Lobato International Airport from Portugal and were received with State honours at a ceremony attended by the President of the Republic, José Ramos-Horta; members of the Government; representatives of sovereign bodies; leaders of the Catholic Church; and members of the Diplomatic Corps.

During the ceremony, the Government, represented by the Minister of State Administration, Tomás do Rosário Cabral, formally handed over the caskets to the Timorese Episcopal Conference, represented by Virgílio Cardinal do Carmo da Silva, Metropolitan Archbishop of Dili and President of the Timorese Episcopal Conference.

After their reception at the airport, the caskets were carried in procession to Tasi Tolu, where they were joined by the mortal remains of Bishop Alberto Ricardo da Silva, Bishop of Dili from 2004 to 2015, for a Mass of Thanksgiving in honour of the four prelates.

On September 2^nd, the mortal remains of Bishop Jaime Garcia Goulart were taken to the Major Seminary of Saints Peter and Paul in Fatumeta and to the Minor Seminary of Our Lady of Fátima in Maloa, where seminarians, trainers, and the faithful paid tribute to the former Bishop of Dili and recalled his contribution to the formation of the Timorese clergy.

On the same day, the mortal remains of Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes were transported to Laleia, in the municipality of Manatuto, his birthplace. The casket was received by his family, the Church, and the local community, then carried in procession to the Parish Church of Laleia, where religious ceremonies in his honour were held.

Tributes to Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes continued on September 3^rd, in Manatuto. The programme included the transfer of his remains from Laleia to Manatuto and a ceremony at the Manatuto Bridge, during which the Government Resolution designating the bridge as the “Mons. Martinho da Costa Lopes Bridge” was read out. The ceremony also featured an address by the President of the Republic, José Ramos-Horta, the unveiling of the commemorative plaque, and the blessing of the bridge by the Archbishop of Dili.

Born in Laleia on November 11^th, 1918, Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes was appointed Vicar-General of the Diocese of Dili in 1975 and Apostolic Administrator of Dili in 1977. During the Indonesian occupation, he denounced violence against the Timorese population and defended the rights and dignity of the people of Timor-Leste. He passed away in Portugal on February 27^th, 1991.

Bishop Jaime Garcia Goulart and Bishop José Joaquim Ribeiro also held leadership roles within the Catholic Church in Timor-Leste. They helped consolidate its pastoral, educational, and social structures. Bishop Alberto Ricardo da Silva, Bishop of Dili from 2004 to 2015, carried out his pastoral mission during the period of consolidation of national institutions following the restoration of independence.

The ceremonies, held under the theme “Portraits of Faith and Eternal Memory of the Church and of Timor-Leste – CELEBRATING THE LEGACY AND SACRIFICE OF OUR BELOVED PRELATES”, mark the return to Timor-Leste of the mortal remains of Bishop Jaime Garcia Goulart, Bishop José Joaquim Ribeiro, and Monsignor Martinho da Costa Lopes, which will be laid to rest alongside those of Bishop Alberto Ricardo da Silva.

The programme of tributes concludes on September 10^th with a Holy Mass at Tasi Tolu, presided over by Virgílio Cardinal do Carmo da Silva, followed by the burial ceremony for the mortal remains of the four prelates at Dili Cathedral, and a visit to the Memorial Monument and Garden on the grounds of Dili Cathedral.

 

The 120 participants in the third edition of the Futuru Líder Ba ASEAN (FLBA) programme completed, between July and August 2026, a one-week immersion programme across nine ASEAN Member States, designed to deepen knowledge of the region and strengthen leadership and regional-cooperation skills. 

Organised into groups, participants visited Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, where they had direct contact with institutions, development models, and the economic, social, and cultural realities of countries in the region.

During the visits, participants met with representatives from government institutions, companies, universities, development organisations, and other entities. The activities provided an opportunity to learn from ASEAN Member States’ experiences in areas such as economic development, human capital development, sustainability, governance, and regional cooperation.

The immersion programme comprised meetings, institutional visits, and practical learning activities designed to strengthen skills in leadership, strategic thinking, intercultural communication, and problem-solving. Participants also had the opportunity to build professional contacts with representatives from various sectors in the countries visited and to identify experiences relevant to Timor-Leste’s development priorities.

The visits were carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MNEC), Timor-Leste’s diplomatic missions in ASEAN Member States, and institutions in the host countries. Timorese embassies and missions supported the organisation of institutional visits, liaised with local entities, and accompanied the delegations.

Futuru Líder Ba ASEAN is a Government initiative delivered through the MNEC, led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Bendito dos Santos Freitas, and coordinated by the Vice Minister for ASEAN Affairs, Milena Rangel. The 12-month programme, funded by the Government, aims to build the capacity of young Timorese professionals to contribute to Timor-Leste’s participation in ASEAN and to national development.

The third edition, launched in March this year, brings together 120 professionals from approximately 100 organisations, selected from 480 applicants, including representatives from public administration, the private sector, civil society, and academia, from various municipalities and professional fields.

The immersion programme continues the training activities developed throughout this third edition, including the April Acceleration Programme, which was dedicated to human development, leadership, sustainability, and economic growth in the context of ASEAN.

Since its launch in 2024, the FLBA has been preparing Timorese professionals to participate more fully in ASEAN structures and initiatives. The knowledge, experience, and contacts gained during the visits will be integrated into the upcoming stages of the programme’s third edition and into participants’ professional and institutional activities.