Overview
Timor-Leste, home to around 1.34 million people, is located northwest of Australia at the eastern end of the Indonesian Archipelago. Since reclaiming its independence in 2002, Timor-Leste has established itself as a young yet effectively functioning democracy.
Despite possessing substantial oil and gas reserves, Timor-Leste remains categorised as a Least Developed Country, grappling with issues such as food insecurity, high levels of malnutrition and the lack of infrastructure. Like most of its neighbours in the Pacific, the path to development in Timor-Leste is also complicated by the regular occurrence of natural disasters, including earthquakes and floods.
Our partnership
The EU’s partnership with Timor-Leste is deeply rooted in shared commitments to democracy, human rights and the principles of multilateralism. Leveraging these common values, our actions focus on promoting economic diversification, fostering economic growth and job creation, and supporting the post-accession process to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the accession to the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The EU has allocated € 85 million in grant funding towards the partnership for the 2021-2027 period, to support initiatives that are notably in line with Timor-Leste's Strategic Development Plan for 2011-2030 and the EU’s Global Gateway Strategy.
Timor-Leste benefits from multi-country programmes, including regional programmes for the Pacific. Timor-Leste also benefits from PALOP-TL (Portuguese-Speaking African Countries and Timor-Leste)-EU cooperation.
EU-Timor-Leste partnership documents can be found in the 'Related documents' section below.
Our key initiatives
- Agroforestry, climate change and renewable energy
- Increasing quality employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for youth in the agroforestry sector, particularly for young women and girls.
- Promoting a climate change resilient agroforestry sector.
- Improving the sustainability of infrastructure investments.
- Provide access to sustainable and renewable energy electricity services in remote communities (Pacific Regional Electrification Programme).
- Ensuring the sustainability of the marine resources and ecosystem while developing a coastal blue economy.
- Working towards the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in land and ocean.
- Digital
- Improving the quality of the budget cycle and increasing the use of safe e-governance.
- Contributing to a more effective, transparent, accountable and equitable justice system, thereby improving the right to access to justice and fostering an inclusive digital transformation.
- Working towards the creation and development of sustainable and circular economy businesses.
- Governance
- Strengthening public finance management, mobilising revenue and increasing transparency, efficiency and effectiveness of public expenditure.
- Supporting the de-concentration and decentralisation process to bring governance and public administration closer to people.
- Equality and human rights
- Promoting gender equality and eradication of violence against women and girls.
- Boosting women economic empowerment.
- Reducing poverty by addressing malnutrition and social inclusion amongst children under five, pregnant mothers, and school age children.
- Strengthening social inclusion and nutrition in Timor-Leste.
- Trade and Regional Integration
- Increasing private sector participation.
- Boosting intra-regional integration and international trade, preparing Timor-Leste for its adhesion to ASEAN and beyond.
