On  August 11, the Minister of Economy and Development, João Mendes Gonçalves, together with the Ambassador of Portugal, Luís Manuel Barreira de Sousa, representing the Ministry of Agriculture, Sea, Environment and Territorial Planning from Portugal, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the training of technicians in the environmental field.

Since 2007, the Portuguese Government, in coordination with UNEP – United Nations Environment Program, has sought to develop programs, projects and capacity building activities in the area of the environment in Timor-Leste.

Thus, this MOU formalizes the opening of a Course in Specialization in Environmental Policy, administered by the National Administration Institute of Portugal (INAP) for public servants of the National Directorate for International Environmental Affairs, of the Ministry of Economy and Development.

The course will be taught in three modules, totaling 90 hours and covers subjects such as environment and sustainability, international conventions, strategic environmental assessment, environmental markets, among others.

The project was supported by the World Bank who, in addition to logistical support, such as facilities and audiovisual equipment, supported the charges for translation.