Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon and delegation visit Timor-Leste
Minister of State and of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and
Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste
Díli, August 16, 2012
Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon and delegation visit Timor-Leste
For the second time in his term as Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Ban Ki-moon has visited Timor-Leste. Accompanied by the Director-General of UNESCO Madam Irena Bokovana and Special Envoy of the United Nations for Global Education, former UK Prime Minister Mr. Gordon Brown, the Secretary-General has completed a busy schedule of activities.
At a lunch hosted by the Prime Minister of Timor-Leste and attended by senior members of the newly inaugurated V Constitutional Government, the Secretary–General noted the progress made since his last visit in 2007. In the following meeting with members of National Parliament he went on to explain further:
“Today, Díli is a much more vibrant and safe. The national economy is growing. Private businesses are opening. Development is on the rise. Your country’s institutions are ever stronger. You are reforming ministries … the civil service … the judiciary. Timorese security forces have shown growing professionalism in maintaining public security. And, of course, this year’s presidential and parliamentary elections were a great success.”
The Secretary-General comes to Timor-Leste as the mandate of the United Nations Mission draws to a close. He noted that it was in “this positive atmosphere that the United Nations is preparing for the withdrawal of UNMIT at the end of the year.”
The Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, His Excellency Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, responded in his remarks at the lunch recognizing the role of the United Nations since the birth of Timor-Leste as a Nation and expressing his gratitude to the Secretary-General for the contribution made by UN systems to national development. He noted that the Secretary-General’s visit “represents a new stage in our nation’s progress, with the departure of UNMIT at the end of the year, and as we move to implementing a long term plan for our nation.”
The Prime Minister announced at the lunch that Timor-Leste would donate $100,000 to the United Nations Civilian Capacity Program CAPMATCH and offered to also contribute to CAPMATCH through the provision of expertise in natural resources, financial management and elections. Mr. Gusmão explained that this gesture along with Timor-Leste’s strong support of the g7+ was a way in which the nation, now firmly on its own pathway to resilience, was able to give back to the global community.
