The Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Armindo Maia, signed, on the May 4th, 2021, a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Director of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOIKA) in Timor-Leste, EunjuCha, for a cooperation project for the development of sports for children and youth in Timor-Leste. The agreement signing ceremony took place at the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, in Dili.
The project aims to promote the participation of children and youth in sports activities, with an emphasis on football, and to raise awareness of child development through sports activity. It is also intended, through this programme, to establish the sports system in Timor-Leste, through capacity building in organisational management and youth sports coaches and through the modernisation of youth sports facilities.
Under this memorandum, a youth football centre will be built in Becora and three community fields will be rehabilitated in the city of Dili, in Bidau, Kampung Alor and Comoro. This cooperation project will have a total amount of 6.5 million USD to be financed by KOIKA.
In addition to the construction of the youth centre and the refurbishment of community fields, equipment for these sports facilities will also be provided under this project. The Korean agency will also support the training of youth football coaches and send experts to help set up an annual youth football league for 11-16 years old.
In his speech at the signing ceremony, the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports thanked the Government and the Korean people for this support and reiterated the 8th Constitutional Government’s commitment for the development of sports and, in particular, football in Timor-Leste.