The Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry, in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in Jakarta, organised a seminar on the application to nominate the Nino Konis Santana National Park as a biosphere reserve under UNESCO’s “Man and the Biosphere” Programme. The event, which took place on August 7th, 2024, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in Dili, is part of the efforts to conserve and sustainably develop the Nino Konis Santana National Park.
The seminar also aimed to set up a committee to ensure that all the requirements for applying to UNESCO are met before the September 30th deadline.
The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry, Marcos da Cruz, highlighted the importance of obtaining this status for the Nino Konis Santana National Park, considering it “a centre of biodiversity” that “will contribute to the ecological and cultural value”, “intensifying the Government’s efforts in the conservation and sustainable development of the park”.
In his speech, the Secretary of State for Forests, Fernando Vieira da Costa, emphasised the 9th Constitutional Government’s commitment to promoting sustainability and biodiversity conservation.
“Based on the policy of the 9th Constitutional Government and the programmes approved by the National Parliament, our forest management aims to develop a National System of Protected Areas and Parks, as well as Biodiversity Conservation”, he declared.
The Secretary of State also expressed his gratitude to Ryuichi Fukuhara, from UNESCO Jakarta, and Prof Purwanto, from Indonesia, “for their valuable contributions and sharing of experiences”.
This international recognition of the Nino Konis Santana National Park “not only emphasises the ecological and cultural value of the park but also strengthens the mechanisms for conservation and sustainable development in Timor-Leste”. “Designation as a biosphere reserve will contribute significantly to the promotion of ecotourism and the involvement of the local community in the preservation of biodiversity”.
Funmi Balogun, the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste, and Ryuichi Fukuhara, the UNESCO representative in Jakarta, among other guests, attended the ceremony.