The Minister for Transport and Communications and Chairman of the General Council of Cabos de Timor-Leste, EP (CTL, EP), Miguel Marques Gonçalves Manetelu, is participating, accompanied by a national delegation, in the 11th edition of the Bali Annual Telkom International Conference (BATIC 2026), taking place from August 24th to 28th, 2026, at the Bali International Convention Centre in Indonesia.

Organised by Telin, an international subsidiary of Telkom Indonesia, the conference is being held under the theme “Uniting the Ecosystem to Drive Interconnected Progress” and brings together representatives from governments, telecommunications operators, technology companies, and other stakeholders in the digital sector from various countries.

The participation of the Timorese delegation makes it possible to keep abreast of international developments in the areas of connectivity, submarine fibre-optic cables, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, data management, cybersecurity, and digital transformation, as well as to foster contacts with international operators and partners in the telecommunications sector.

As part of the conference, the delegation also participated in the ignitePRO Forum, dedicated to cooperation between governments and the private sector in the development of telecommunications and the digital economy.

Minister Miguel Manetelu highlighted the opportunity to learn from the experiences of other countries and companies that could contribute to the development of CTL, EP, namely in managing the national fibre-optic infrastructure. He also noted the need to establish regulatory conditions conducive to the development of telecommunications and to promote the responsible use of new technologies, including artificial intelligence, for the benefit of society and national development.

BATIC 2026 also addresses the growing demand for bandwidth and connectivity associated with the development of artificial intelligence, focusing on investment in submarine cables and data centres, the security of digital infrastructure, and cooperation among telecommunications operators, cloud service providers, technology companies, and regulatory bodies.

The Executive Director of Telkomcel Timor-Leste, Benedictus Ardiyanto Priyo, emphasised that participating in BATIC provides an opportunity for Timor-Leste and CTL, EP to establish contacts with global operators and technology companies, highlighting the role of connectivity in promoting the digital economy and improving telecommunications services in the country.

The delegation also includes the General Coordinator of CTL, EP, Pedro Lay; the Director General of Communications, Ambrósio Amaral; and the Director of the National Directorate for Communications Infrastructure, Pedro Amaral.