Gov members in Macau for the environment

Three Timor-Leste Government Officials Participate in the Environmental Protection Industry in Macau

Timor-Leste participates in the Colloquial on the Environmental Protection Industry for the Portuguese Speaking Countries in Macau from 19^th of March to 1^st of April 2013.

“This sort of training is part of the various and noteworthy offers conducted by the Government of the Special Administrative Region of Macau (RAEM)”, underscores Ms Veneranda Lemos, State Secretary for the Support and Promotion of the Private Sector of Timor-Leste.

With the view to strengthen the cooperation in the field of human resources between China and the Portuguese Speaking Countries and in exercising the role of Macau as the platform of cooperation of business linkages and commerce between China and the Portuguese Speaking Countries, three (3) Timorese government officials have left for China to take part in the colloquial. 

“The purpose of the colloquial is to introduce to the officials of the participating countries issues related to the Environmental Protection Industry such as Water Supply & Policy of Hydro Resources, Evaluation of Urban Environment, Treatment of Solid Waste & Water Pollution, Industrial Development of Ecological Vehicles,  and Business Tourism,”  remarks Mr Tony Duarte, as Timor-Leste’s Focal Point of the Forum in Dili. 

In the course of their stay in China, the participants will also attend the International Exposition on the Environment, visit to the Ecological Zone and the Word Heritage Sites identified by UNESCO and a flight to Jinan, Shandong, the interior of China to participate in the Week of Macau’s Dynamic Promotion.

Ms Lemos furthermore says that Timor-Leste’s participation in various trainings offered by the Forum of Macau indicates the strong commitment by the Chinese Government through the Forum in strengthening the already vibrant relationships between China and the Portuguese Speaking Countries.

Timor-Leste’s participants left Dili for Macau on March 17^th, 2013 composed of:

1.            Mr João Carlos Soares, National Director for the Environment, State Secretary for the Environment, Ministry of Commerce, Industry and the Environment as the head of the delegation.

2.            Mr António Cárceres Soares, Technical Professional of Dispute and Mediation, National Directorate of Land and Property, State Secretary for Land and Property, Ministry of Justice.

3.            Mr Sabino Rua, Executive Director of Centre of Bamboo, State Secretary for the Support and Promotion of the Private Sector, Presidency of the Council of Ministers. 

SOURCE: State Secretary for Support and Promotion of the Private Sector

Crab and Fish Farming "On"

Inauguration of the Crab and Fish Farming Centre

 

The Crab and Fish Farming Centre was inaugurated on Friday 8 March by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Mariano Assanami Sabino, and by the US Ambassador, Judith R. Fergins, at Oralan, Vemasse sub-district, Baucau district.

“Our Government, in cooperation with the US Government represented by its implementing agency “Agriculture Cooperative Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance” (ACDI/VOCA) wants this Centre to farm crab and fish, the reproduction of which may reach twenty thousand per month, approximately two hundred forty thousand per year”, Mr. Mariano Assanami Sabino said.

The Minister called upon “the seriousness and discipline of the farmers interested in this activity of aquaculture, for its results brings high economic advantages. To cite an example, the Minister said that one crab alone may weigh one kilogram and each kilogram may cost ten US dollars or even more in the market in Dili”.

“I hope that this Centre, intended to farm crab and fish, will not be the only one. Timor-Leste has more than seven hundred kilometers of coastline, with potential and viability to benefit any Timorese interested in investing in this activity, which may constitute a source of income, particularly for the families living in the coastal regions”, the US Ambassador said.

“The US Government is proud for being a permanent partner of the Timorese Government, the cooperation with which has been further strengthened following the visit of Hillary Clinton in September last year and during which Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão and her agreed that the agricultural and the fisheries sectors are of particular importance for the development of the country.  This project shows that the commitment of the two countries has become a reality with the establishment of this Centre for farming crab and fish”, The American Ambassador Judith R. Fergins said.

SOURCE: GovTL

Wasting Management

"Uma longa viajem comaça com um único passo"

 (Fernando Pessoa)

The Minister of State Administration, Jorge da Conceição Teme, organized a coordination meeting with the Brazilian Ambassador in Timor-Leste, Edson Monteiro, in order to study a proposal to support Timor-Leste in the field of waste recycling. The meeting took place on 7 March 2013 at the Ministry of State Administration (MAE) in Dili.

The Minister of State Administration considers that Timor-Leste has to “learn from countries like Brazil, India and South Africa because these countries faced the same problems we are facing now. In so doing, we will not commit the same mistakes.” Mr. Jorge da Conceição Teme took advantage of the occasion to launch an appeal to the population residing in Dili, where the problem of the waste is more complex, “to be conscious that the waste problem is a problem that concerns all of us. All of us should fight the waste problem for the sake of our own well-being, so that we can have a healthy life in the city, because the capital city of a country reflects the image of its people. We have to educate our people to the effect that waste must be dealt with properly, packing it properly and placing it in appropriate places, because, where processed, waste also has an economic value.”

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Environment, António da Conceição, informed that “there was a debate on the proposal presented by the Brazilian Ambassador to support Timor-Leste in terms of waste processing. My Ministry, together with the Ministry of State Administration, will study the project which may probably count on the support of Brazil, India and South Africa for the establishment of a joint fund in support of waste recycling.”

After the meeting, the Brazilian Ambassador informed that “we have analyzed some ideas around the project and we believe that it may contribute towards a viable solution for the problem under review. This project does not only a Brazilian project. I am very grateful for being able to come here today to speak on behalf of Brazil, India and South Africa on the establishment of a fund to finance the project called IBA Fund – IBA sanding for India, Brazil and South Africa. This is a matter of interest not only to us, but also to Timor-Leste.”

Source:  GovTL

First Marine Hatchery

A mud crab and fish hatchery will be inaugurated by U.S. Ambassador Judith Fergin and the East Timor Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Sr. Mariano Assanami Sabino in a ceremony, March 8, 2013.

This venture in aquaculture development comes at a crucial time for East Timor, as the country seeks to diversify its economy and feed its growing population while protecting its coastal and marine resources for tourism and future generations. Mud crabs are a prized delicacy throughout Asia, commanding high prices in upper-end restaurants and hotels.

The facility is the country's first brackish water hatchery. It was built by ACDI/VOCA's Mud Crab and Fish Cultivation program in coordination with the East Timor Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and with funding from the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food for Progress program.

The nation's stable weather patterns and over 700 km of coastline are well-suited for sustainable coastal aquaculture production. Still, fish-farming practices that have grown rapidly during the last 20 years in other Asian nations such as Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia are almost nonexistent in East Timor. 

New Hatchery Brings New Economic Opportunities

Mud crabs were selected because they can be environmentally sustainable to cultivate, have strong market potential in nearby countries such as Japan, Taiwan and Singapore, and can be fattened in coastal ponds alongside milkfish or tilapia.

Once operational, the hatchery is expected to produce 240,000 mud crabs per year. The facility can also be modified to produce brackish and saltwater fish. 

The new complex incorporates a number of technologies that are firsts for East Timor: four ponds totaling­­ two hectares; a powerful 4-cylinder generator; a UV seawater filtration system; numerous tanks for spawning and cultivating crabs; and a state-of-the-art laboratory designed for ensuring quality control, growing phytoplankton and rearing the youngest crab larvae.

Seed stock produced at the hatchery will be transported to cooperatives whose members have already been trained to fatten mud crabs in cages and pens placed in coastal mangrove areas. The program began organizing cooperative groups in 2011, and now estimates that 70 cooperatives will benefit from the hatchery's production. 

Hatchery is Environmentally Friendly and Sustainable
 

"Hatchery seed stock is easier and more environmentally friendly to raise than wild catch," said Jinki Comon , the program's technical manager. "Sourcing crabs from the hatchery rather than coastal areas lessens overfishing."

The potential for the facility does not end with mud crabs—it could easily be modified to produce other aquatic species such as snapper, milkfish or grouper and sea bass. 

This potential is not lost to Dani Fernandes , who will manage the hatchery as it is turned over to the ministry in the coming months. "I hope that [the hatchery] will become a center for aquaculture and for research that will attract and train the type of people that can help develop Timor Leste's fisheries," said Fernandes.

ACDI/VOCA implements the Mud Crab and Fish Cultivation program which began in 2010 and is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture. ACDI/VOCA is an economic development organization that fosters broad-based economic growth, raises living standards and creates vibrant communities. Based in Washington, D.C., ACDI/VOCA has worked in 145 countries since 1963, empowering people to succeed in the global economy.

Contact: Elise Otto (Timor Leste)
Mud Crab and Fish Cultivation (MCFC) Program
Bidau Akadiru Hun
P.O. Box 86, Dili, Timor Leste
Phone +(670) 3310902
otto.elise@gmail.com

SOURCE: ACDI/VOCA