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Speech by the Prime Minister, Mari Alkatiri, at the opening
session of the
TIMOR-LESTE DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS MEETING
Hotel Timor, Díli, April 4, 2006, 9:00 AM
"DECISION TIME"
Your Excellences:
Once again, we are assembled here to talk about the future of
the world's youngest nation. One year after Timor-Leste's last
meeting with the donors, the country which Government I am proud
to lead has made significant progress towards development. Steps
have been taken within a global, integrated and structuring context,
decisive steps for us to stop being the poorest country of all
Asia. And these steps were all guided with a single purpose -
to contribute to improve the living conditions of the Timorese
people.
Allow me to gently bore you for a while with some figures. The
percentage of children who attend primary school is now of 86,2
percent. Out of the 246 thousand students in public education
(except for higher education), 19 thousand of 75 thousand have
started receiving this year a warm meal every day as a result
of a pilot programme that has the assistance of the World Food
Programme. In that very same nutrition programme, we are, for
now in two districts of the country, accompanying pregnant women,
lactating women and children bellow five years. The number of
primary schools has grown from 835, in the fiscal year of 2003/04,
to 862 in 2004/05; pre-secondary schools increased from 120 to
129, and secondary schools from 55 to 76. The total number of
teachers is nowadays 7,792 (it was 6,667 in the previous fiscal
year).
In terms of health, we have managed to improve the care provided
to the people in a strong way, which is starting to become evident
in the more recent indicators: infant mortality rates (children
less than one year old) have dropped from 88 in each 1000 births
(in 2002) to 60 in each 1000; child mortality (children up to
five years old) has dropped exponentially from 125 in each 1000,
in 2002, to 83, last year. At this time we have an average of
one doctor for every 3400 persons; and one hospital bed for every
2400 citizens. The improvement of these values is due in great
part to the Cuban cooperation, which provided us with 250 doctors
(out of an agreed number of three hundred) who are working throughout
the 13 districts of the country and who are a substantial part
of the recently created Medical Faculty of the National University.
The percentage of population with access to piped water grew
from 32.5 in 2003/04 to 47.1 in the next year(one should remember
that in 2002 the figure was of 17%). 30.5% of the people already
have basic sanitation.
Overall, the economic growth of the country in 2005 was 2.3%,
against 0.4% in 2004. This was due in good part to the performance
improvement of the agricultural sector of Timor-Leste. After the
severe drought of 2002/03, the last fiscal year showed that agriculture
grew considerably: the weight of the agriculture and fisheries
sector in the GDP went from 81.5 million American dollars (USD)
in 2000 to USD 105.2 million in 2005 - of this amount, USD 7.6
million come from coffee exports.
The increased food production has contributed to improved living
conditions of the Timorese, and has also helped the economic stability.
Domestic inflation remained low and rice imports, due to the increase
of agricultural production, declined. Just bear with me in looking
at these last figures: in 2004/05 we produced around 40 thousand
tons of rice and 100 thousand tons of corn - an increase of 19
percent and 22 percent, respectively, when compared to the previous
fiscal year.
This is the scenario of the Timorese economy. These are the facts.
But the truth is that we can always read the figures the other
way, which some people with responsibilities like to do in order
to maintain a "status quo" often undesired: we still
have a child mortality indicator that is very high, of 83 in each
1000 children; about two thirds of the population have no access
to drinkable water; informal estimates indicate that around 41
percent of the population lives below the poverty line.
In short, the progress is undoubtedly remarkable, but nobody
in good faith could expect miracles and honestly believe that
we could be in a better situation now. Just after the Restoration
of the Independence, Timor-Leste "suffered" with the
natural "exodus" of thousands of foreigners that had
come to help us ensure the institution building of the new State.
Those internationals, with their invaluable experience, contributed
to building the structures that constitute the pillars of the
Timorese sovereignty; they helped our economy a great deal. And
they did it throughout all the country - it should suffice to
mention the presence of the military contingents spread through
the various districts, who by eating at the local restaurants
or buying DVDs from the kids on the street, contributed in a decisive
manner for the artificiality of our economy.
Therefore, it was up to the First Constitutional Government of
Timor-Leste, which I lead, to raise the economy of the country
from a level well below zero. Note that I do not say "make
reborn" or "resurrect" the economy of Timor-Leste,
and if I do not say it, it is because of conviction and training;
I do not say it because in the administration of a State there
are no miracles, everything is achieved through induction. And
in a slow manner. Surely slower than what was imagined by those
among us who thought that the sum of Independence and Democracy
would immediately result in Development. It never did. It never
does. As all you ladies and gentlemen know, in Timor-Leste it
was first necessary to build the State, deeply disarticulated
due to the events of 1999 - from the administration previous to
1999 we have inherited ashes, from UNTAET an amalgam of services.
But, truth be told, we have inherited peace and the respect for
the law. Therefore it was necessary to lay the foundations for
the Public Administration. From UNTAET's administration, built
in a fragmented way, without an integrated and systemic view,
with 90 percent of its administration board consisting of internationals,
we have launched, together with the UN and the international community,
the basis for a modern Administration with more and more Timorese
workers. The respect for the law was institutionalised and the
first stepping stones of the Public Administration were laid.
However, this process went on in a fragmented way, without an
integrated and systemic view, with 90 percent of its orientation
dependent on internationals.
Let no one think these were small feats. In three years we have
managed what other States take decades to achieve, and often in
a shy way: we have a functional structure of State and respect
for the law is a reality. In short: We have a State! And we have
a Government that takes up the responsibility of being a governance
school. A State that has already approved many of the essential
laws for living in society; a State that enables its citizens
to appeal against eventual wrongdoings by the various powers;
a State that is renewed in its legitimacy by way of democratic
elections and the capacity of having the people take part in the
fundamental decisions; a State that seeks to ensure universal
access to health and education, and that is committed to generalising
the distribution of electricity and piped water; a State that
seeks to protect those in need and those who fought for the liberation
of the country; a State that wants to safeguard the future of
the generations to come, allowing our children and our grandchildren
to have the chance of a stable life, promoting a savings policy
in relation to the revenues from the exploring of Timorese oil
and natural gas. Often presented as the "crème de
la crème" of this Government, due to the various international
compliments it has received, the Petroleum Fund of Timor-Leste,
created last August, already has US 510 millions, and will allow,
without harm to the continuous increase of its revenues, the approval
this year of a State Budget over USD 230 million. Yes, I am indeed
proud to have been one of those responsible for the difficult
negotiations of the Timor Sea resources and for realising a personal
dream, the creation of the Petroleum Fund. I am convinced that
thanks to it, Timor-Leste will have a greater possibility of achieving
the goal of improving the living conditions of the Timorese. And
all this in a country of unique features, a country whose balance
sheet remains immaculate, no foreign debt whatsoever …
After boring you with some figures from the economic and human
development of Timor-Leste, allow me to remind you that when one
speaks of poverty it is necessary to consider two dimensions:
that of the social and human development benchmarks, translated
in the percentage of people who have access to education, health
care and piped water and sanitation at home; and that of the income
- if they live with less than 55 cents a day, then they are below
the poverty line. Now, even if the State makes an extraordinary
effort in order to provide a generalised access to these goods
and services, should the population keep increasing in an even
more exponential way than the results achieved through the improvement
of public services and the marginal increase of the total income,
it will be very hard to say that in average the citizens of such
country are less poor.
In practical terms: if we continue to have a population growth
rate of 3 % a year and a fertility rate of seven children per
woman (in some cases eight), and not being able to introduce catalytic
for a economic growth of more than seven percent per annum and
trampolines to increase the revenue per capita e and the improvement
of the quality of life in the rural areas, all efforts to put
the country in the path to progress will be in vain. Let there
be no doubt, if we are to bring development to Timor-Leste we
must also work in this area - an area where it is clear that the
sovereignty bodies cannot work alone. This is why, in the next
battle my Government intends to fight, we intend to call upon
all living forces of the country: the fight against poverty must
be seen by all as a national cause; only this way can we expect
to have good results. Let us mobilise and organise the society
to win the fight against poverty.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
One year after we presented you, also at this Timor-Leste Development
Partners Meeting, with the guideline we had set for the Government,
we now stand at a crossroads: on one side we have the sustained
strong economic growth as a driving force to take us away from
poverty; on the other, we have the maintenance of the current
growth levels, which are fair for any developed country, but which
hurt the eradication of extreme poverty. This is to say, should
annual economic growth remain at 2.3%, it will lead to the increase
of the number of poor people in Timor-Leste.
Obliged as we are to follow our National Development Plan, our
Bible, our Koran of the political framework of the First Government
of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, it shows us the way:
we have no choice but to try to turn the State into the engine,
the locomotive of the Timorese economy, and try to ensure that
the distribution of investments in our country is done in an equitable
way, to overcome the regional asymmetries that anyone can plainly
see today.
In order to contribute to reducing the number of poor people
in Timor-Leste and to achieving the Millennium Development Goals
in 2015, and the National Development goals in 2020, there is
only one way: due to the still weak condition of the Timorese
private economy, it will have to be the State to boost the economy
- create employment, promote the construction of the infrastructures
that the people continue to demand in good right (roads, bridges,
health centres, schools, electric power, drinkable water), and
enable the many citizens who make their living off subsistence
farming to go to the nearest market sell their surplus and have
a few dollars in their pockets. In order to do that we should
find find induction mechanisms in the economy to, more swiftly
allow the creation of a market for the small-sized countryside
producers (for example, a daily school meal connected to buying
the products from the small producers.
It is decision time, and the decision has been made: we will
have the State make our economy grow. Please do not accuse us
of nationalising the Timorese economy, led by some socialist influence
that would characterise the decision-makers of this country. The
International Monetary Fund and the Work Bank have complimented
us on the policy that we set for fiscal year 2006/07: in order
to fight poverty in Timor-Leste we must make our economy grow
above six percent and for that the economy has to give vibrant
signs of vitality. To many, a seven percent growth is a mythical
figure, a mirage in the desert. Since I believe in the energy
in to which our people can tap from and since I am a born optimist,
I am sure that we will do it.
And how are we to grow by seven percent a year? By ensuring a
large increase in the investment (capital and development) expenditure.
The public investment proposed by the Government in the State
Budget for fiscal year 2006/07 goes over USD 82 million. This
is an increase of 75 percent. Almost all this expenditure will
go to infrastructure projects (rehabilitation and construction
of schools and health centres, roads, sanitation, electricity
and water), which raises the legitimate question of whether the
Timorese private sector is, namely the civil contractors, ready
to meet a massive flow of orders. In our opinion, the Timorese
contractors will not be able to execute by themselves all the
projects that the Government, after a careful cabinet analysis,
identified as priorities. Therefore the Executive is prepared
to follow suit in relation to many other States and open the doors,
by way of international public tenders, to foreign investors who
wish to operate here. However, and since we are a developing country,
we intend to make some conditions clear: firstly, companies that
come to implement construction contracts with the State will necessarily
employ 50 percent of Timorese labour; and secondly, in large projects,
foreign companies will be required to subcontract Timorese companies
for at least 30 percent of the total value of the work to perform.
This partnership will allow to increase the capacity of the timorese,
and retain, as much as possible, timorese money in the country.
When they join efforts with foreign companies, they will assimilate
new techniques, they will grasp new technologies, they will understand
better the greater demands for quality. The underlying intention
is to ensure that a great part of the jobs created in Timor-Leste
is occupied by Timorese citizens. It is also necessary to improve
the quality of the work done by the national contractors, which
unfortunately does not always meet the minimum standards. By associating
with foreign companies, national contractors will have to be able
to meet the quality standards those very companies provide. While
the increment of the works is a landmark of the Budget that we
intend to present soon to the National Parliament, this Government
is committed to good quality, having set strict overseeing criteria
for over 400 new projects we intend to execute during the next
five years. Thus, even if we had planned to complete 100 miles
of roads, we will not hesitate to reduce the number to 50 if quality
is at stake. It is preferable to do a small amount that lasts
a lifetime than doing a large amount and then having to repair
it all the time.
Another priority of the Executive that I lead is reducing the
regional asymmetries that our country features today. At the present,
Díli has a GDP per capita of about USD 650, while the national
average is USD 367 - the capital produces half the income of Timor-Leste.
Poverty in Timor-Leste is clearly a rural "illness".
A high percentage of the people in poverty are concentrated in
households that make their living off subsistence farming. This
means that in order to improve their living conditions we have
to invest in the improvement of the services provided by the State
to those populations. Hence a substantial part of the projects
we intend to execute during next the coming years will be directed
to interior districts - even if Díli once again attracts
a great number of investments, a trend that cannot be reverted
in the blink of an eye, since almost a fifth of the population
of Timor-Leste resides in Díli.
The Government's strategy also includes the creation of new effective
poles of attraction for the population outside of Díli,
in order to counter the migratory trend towards the capital. The
experience in other countries of encouraging the existence of
the so-called medium cities (with the respective business centre,
market, hospital and efficient State services) should be an example,
according to the regional division pilot already in force in Timor-Leste,
for promoting the existence of reference-towns that function as
regional capitals for encouraging progress. If we can ensure that
all five regions into which the organisation structure of the
Government is currently divided have one of those reference-towns,
we will be promoting the improvement of the living quality of
the people - those who want to sell their agricultural produce
will no longer have to travel to the capital, since they will
have near them a medium-sized regional market that will ensure
them some certain profit, with certainly less costs, as they will
no longer have to travel to Díli and will therefore save
money and time on transports.
On the other hand, the citizens in rural areas will only get
the full benefits of the large increase in investment when the
local government initiatives are generalised. The Ministry of
State Administration is promoting two pilot experiences at the
districts of Bobonaro and Lautem, which should slowly be expanded
to the rest of the country. Soon we shall present our proposal
for the administrative and political division of Timor-Leste,
promoting the creation of municipalities, once we first establish
their attributions in a clear and rigorous manner. If only now
we are speaking of power decentralisation it is because only now
we have institutionalised and stable power to distribute regionally.
On the other hand, it was only last year that we completed the
election of chiefs of suco at the 13 districts - a process conducted
entirely by the Timorese State. Therefore, only now the community
leaderships are legitimised for duly representing the interests
of the populations. To this must be added the role of the regional
secretaries of State, an idea I presented to you in first hand
at last year's meeting, and who had an important role in obtaining
the budget execution of around 64 percent that we present today
in relation to the current fiscal year (when we are entering the
last three months of the fiscal year).
The importance of the local government in executing the strategy
that reduces poverty in the rural world is enormous. It will play
a vital role in attracting the thousands of people who make their
living off subsistence farming towards the market economy. For
this the Government intends to encourage the creation of a Rural
Credit Bank, with a semi-public nature, based on the principles
of micro-credit and good bank practices, in which the beneficiaries
will be accompanied in their execution by the financial institution.
The goal is firstly to provide access to some initial capital
that enables them to set up a business or sell their surpluses,
and secondly to build the capacity of the people to be able to
take part in the market economy.
In this tireless fight against poverty, another priority target
of the Government that will have special attention is the groups
consisting of veterans, widows and orphans. Since November, by
initiative of the Executive, a symbolic monthly allowance is being
awarded to 39 persons who are proven to have passed the 24 years
of struggle in the forests and who otherwise would not have the
means to lead a dignifying life. This allowance will soon make
way to monetary (and other) contributions foreseen in the Veteran
Law already approved by the National Parliament and that the Government
vows to regulate as soon as the President of the Republic promulgates
it. In view of the involvement of the Head of State in this matter,
the said promulgation is bound to happen soon.
This social concern of the Government is expressed in another
type of measures, like the one I mentioned in the start of my
intervention of supplying a warm meal per day to the students
below higher education, giving priority to those in primary education.
At this time there are 75 thousand students that benefit from
a free warm meal every day. It is our intention to expand this
measure during the next fiscal year to every public school in
the country, contributing clearly to improve the living quality
of the students and alleviating the financial effort by the parents.
Indeed, it was with this goal in mind that the Government suspended
the school fee, a sum that the families had to pay every month
in order to pay the voluntary teachers and small repairs at the
schools. In this fiscal year we have suspended it as an experience
in some areas of the countries, but from July 1 on this decision
will be effective for the entire national territory, alleviating
the purses of the parents who have children in school age. In
this case, there could be no other decision: when the Budget starts
to show financial soundness, the costs of the education and health
services must naturally be bore by the State. This measure of
expanding school meals to all the country, as well as improving
them, has also got another important implication for reducing
poverty: it animates the local economy around the school, helping
the small producer who supplies the food. It is always in this
integrated perspective of development that we get our inspiration.
The concern with social aspects can also be seen in another experimental
measure that is being adopted at health centres and that concerns
meals for lactating mothers and children under five. In the two
districts where this is being done, the coverage rate is around
50 percent.
The public investment programme should be expanded soon. After
last year we were admitted for funding from the Millennium Challenge
Account, a programme by the United States government to assist
developing countries, we are currently negotiating support for
the Timorese State of around USD 350 million. If the negotiations
are successful, as we believe they will be, we shall have more
capital to invest in various areas, thereby consolidating the
effort being made by the State Budget.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The setting we have presented you with for 2006/07 and for the
following years (since the intention is to attain the seven percent
growth by 2010, based on a strong public investment) only makes
sense against a background of stability. Investors, as you well
know, are conservative and care little for adventures or confusing
policy frameworks in which it is difficult to see clearly what
the goals are and in which the political action lacks coherence.
Of this error no one can accuse us, as our policies have been
abiding in full with the dispositions of the National Development
Plan. What we want is clear. What motivates us is also obvious.
Can all state the same?
Therefore I can say with unabashed satisfaction that, during
these last few years, the Government has been a factor of stability.
Even though there are those who every once in a while seek to
tarnish its image, and that you all can start to find somewhat
odd that whenever you attend donor conferences there is agitation
on the streets, more or less instigated, those persons who shield
themselves in the anonymity of the throng seem to miss the fact
that, more than hurting the legitimate Government of their country,
they are affecting the image the Timor-Leste casts unto itself
and unto the world. And this is an evil that cannot be counted
at the polling booths. It is an evil that affects first and foremost
the citizens of this country, in particular the less fortunate
ones for which we channel all the policies of our Government:
the poorest. Because with demonstrations or riots caused by groups
of thugs, making use of political situations that often are no
more than a storm in a teacup, there are always those who, without
a full view of the problems, can become doubtful in relation to
our country, and thus choose not to invest, cooperate or visit
Timor-Leste for tourism. In short, we all stand to lose with the
actions of those few who seek to throw the country out of balance
and cause fear in the populations with less access to information.
In relation to the case that is parallel with this year's Timor-Leste
Development Partners Meeting, the issue of the departure of 591
military from the F-FDTL, I would only like to say that the principles
of legality and discipline prevailed. When States have professional
armed forces, the respect for discipline and law in their midst
has to be even greater that in the case of those countries where
the military service is compulsory, as if the respect for the
institution was doubled: the free-will of the people is shown
in their voluntary adherence to the military service, but also
in their respect for the rules of that same military service.
Once someone who accepts these principles chooses no longer to
abide by them, there is no other way but to cast that person away
from the armed forces. This does not mean that no attempts will
be made to correct the alleged root causes for that dissatisfaction.
But that is another issue. It is the issue of the right of every
citizen to defend his name and his reasons. In this specific case,
we do acknowledge the existence of institutional problems that
are yet to be solved so that the can instil more life, institutional
culture and professionalism within the F-FDTL. But we'll solve
those problems!
Different from this was last year's demonstration, organised
by some top elements of the Catholic Church, which all you ladies
and gentlemen had the opportunity to see. During those 19 days
we learned a great deal. Our police force, due to the exemplary
way it acted then, showed a quality far above the average. And
the partnership that was created following the demonstration between
the Government and some religious confessions has been useful
to clear some doubts that have been emerging on some of the parties
involved. Still, there is yet much to do in this matter.
The last few months were also besmirched by an intense campaign
to discredit our Penal Code, subtly transformed into a mere defamation
law. While we are still awaiting for the decision by the President
of the Republic, I would just like to say that those who fought
the structural law of a Rule of Law state are unaware that most
of the solutions still applied in Timor-Leste, through the adoption
of the Indonesian Penal Code, are clearly more damaging to the
defendants. As to the criminalisation of defamation, I wish only
to state one thing, that the recommended solution is not much
different from what is in force in several European Union countries
and in some US states. I also wish to solemnly add, that it is
not the intention of the Government to chase reporters and much
less to silence the opposition, as some in this very room would
suggest, namely those who would seek to have their views taken
for the views of the entire civil society. It is never the Government's
intention to silence anyone, and it will never be. The formula
found by this Code is the most appropriate one to institutionalise
the respect for all rights provided by the Constitution and the
International Law for all citizens…
On the other hand, this case reminded us of the training and regulation
needs for the media, which shall soon earn special attention,
since next year there will be legislative and presidential elections,
and the Government wants the media to be stronger, yes but also
an equally responsible media.
Ladies and gentlemen:
Regarding the stable and attractive environment for investors,
the Executive also intends to change the tax system so as to create
a more enabling environment for investors. By making the tax system
less costly for investors we are indirectly transferring public
resources to the society and encouraging private investment, which
after this "shock" with the execution of public investments
will become more and more an auxiliary engine of the Timorese
economy. On the subject of the stable and proper environment for
investing, I would just like to add a few more words concerning
the institutions of the State, namely the judicial one, saying
that it is necessary that they have a good performance in their
respective areas. All public services have to improve the quality
levels provided to the population. This covers all the areas of
the Executive, but without a Justice that is fast, clear and without
the shadow of suspicion, we can never create the conditions for
being "invaded" by potential investors. In this sector
we are still rather fragile, depending on the assistance from
international judges, prosecutors and defenders for the operation
of our courts. This is why we are very much pleased to announce
the willingness pf both UNDP and the Governments of Australia
and Portugal, amongst others, to extend their help in this sector
for some more years. Many donors have also pledged to continue
their cooperation through the Consolidation Support Programme,
which includes training as one of its most important features.
Unfortunately, there is still much to be done in terms of training,
which is why we continue to require donor assistance, even though
the present State Budget already includes a considerable sum for
supporting technical assistance.
Mr President, Your Excellences:
Let us intervene in our economy so as to release the creative
energies. Since we have the resources, every caution is necessary
to make sure that we do not repeat the situations of the past,
during the emergency period, where the measures taken in order
to assist the populations ended up creating new dependencies and
numbed down even more the creative energies of the people. For
instance, a project called "Community Empowerment" saw
no progress whatsoever towards capacity building, and instead
created dependency situations throughout the entire Territory.
I do not question the good intentions behind these initiatives.
I speak only of the results, which left much to be desired and
should not be repeated again.
In a broad vision, what you can say of the recent past is that
an artificial and unsustainable growth was created, by injecting
resources into a disaggregated economy without absorption capacity.
With the exodus of the internationals and the drastic reduction
of the funding, the economic growth drops sharply. And this was
the legacy inherited by this Government, which was forced to manage
it in order to correct errors and distortions and to programme
the economic recovery in a gradual and sustainable way.
In order for us to emerge victorious from the fight against poverty,
we must transform it into a cause for all of us. Nobody can stay
at home. These partnerships, this collective effort that is the
search for the eradication of poverty, or, according to the United
Nations, the reduction by half of the extreme poverty by 2015,
lead us to call upon all those who can in any way contribute to
change mentalities, help in the national building and promote
development. Let everyone feel called upon. Civil society organisations,
party members, sovereign bodies, religion representatives, youth
and women associations. Let all cast their divergences aside -
we all have them, there is no point in denying it - and understand
that the essential thing is for us to contribute with our very
best in the search for better solutions to give our fellow citizens
the minimum living conditions that are required by the dignity
that is due to each and every human being. There is only one option:
to make the combat against poverty a national cause.
Thank you all very much.
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