Minister of State and of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and
Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste
Díli, July 27th, 2015
International meetings enhance engagement and opportunity for Timor-Leste
The closing of the Twentieth Ordinary Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries [CPLP] last Friday capped off an intense two-week period of events held in Dili which included the Second CPLP Civil Society Forum and the Eighth Meeting of the CPLP Ministers of Tourism.
The Second CPLP Civil Society Forum ran throughout the week beginning the 13th of July and brought together representatives of Civil Society from every one of the nine CPLP Countries. Prime Minister H.E. Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo noted the forum gave an “opportunity to debate social issues that have a significant impact on the development of our populations and our countries.” He explained the practical benefits of the meeting saying that “exploring the potential of the Portuguese language and culture to build socioeconomic and cultural partnerships between our countries and to develop sustainable projects, will allow us to maximize the educational, social and economic development of our populations.”
The Sixth Constitutional Government has consistently endorsed the role of non-governmental organizations, labor organizations, the media and other civil society representatives in playing a vital role in monitoring the execution of Government policies and contributing to national development. The Government is encouraging civil society in Timor-Leste to play an even more active part in governance thorough a mechanism being developed called ‘Social Audit’ to promote rigorous, independent and accountable assessment that will ultimately lead to better service delivery.
In Dili the CPLP Civil Society Forum statutes were approved and the election of the Forum Secretariat completed, highlights of the event that were a crucial step in strengthening the forum.
The Eighth Meeting of Ministers of Tourism of Portuguese Speaking Countries took place between the 15th and 17th of July. Prime Minister H.E. Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo welcomed the various Ministers, Vice Ministers and Secretaries of State for Tourism from the CPLP member States when he opened the central meeting at the Dili Convention Centre on the 17th of July. He noted that Timor-Leste’s “Strategic Development Plan 2011-2030 seeks to develop a diversified economy, with tourism being one of the three key areas.” He said “we believe that development in this sector will create more employment and investment opportunities, while preserving and promoting our identity.”
The meeting of Ministers of Tourism had practical outcomes with Timor-Leste signing bilateral Memorandums of Understanding with countries such as Angola and Portugal in the areas of training, capacity building and technical assistance. The meeting endorsed the Declaration of Dili setting out steps to be undertaken before next year’s meeting in Brazil, and also produced a comprehensive Work Plan for the period 2015-2017 with specific actions and timeframes to enhance communication, coordination and promotion. A working group is to be created to identify partnerships and joint projects to attract investment and capital for the tourism sector of CPLP member States.
The Twentieth Ordinary Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the CPLP was the third major event in the two-week period and occurred last Friday with preliminary meetings undertaken earlier in the week. Timor-Leste’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation H.E. Hernâni Coelho was Chair of the meeting which brought together the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Relations from the CPLP member States and their representatives. Also participating was the Executive Secretary of the CPLP, H.E. Ambassador Murade Murargy, former President of the Republic H.E. Dr. José Ramos Horta and the former President of National Parliament H.E. Dr. Francisco Lu-Olo.
The meeting was opened by Prime Minister H.E. Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo who spoke on the ‘New Strategic Vision for the CPLP’ drawing strongly on the theme of Timor-Leste’s Presidency of the CPLP which is ‘The CPLP and Globalization.’ He emphasized that “one must both value the past and use it to shape the future” and that the CPLP group was poised to take advantage of it’s presence across four continents in “an ever-changing globalized world with constant challenges.” The Prime Minister underlined the desire to “use the location of Timor-Leste to position the CPLP as a platform for developing our peoples, within a geostrategic position that enables us to create a series of synergies and partnerships in the Asian continent which has tremendous economic potential.”
Also during this busy two week period was the inauguration of the CPLP Office in Díli officially opened on the 23rd of July by the CPLP Executive Secretary and Timor-Leste’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.