Context
The young nation of Timor-Leste suffers from food shortages. Over 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas, the majority being subsistence farmers who cultivate crops such as rice, maize, beans and starchy tubers on less than two hectares of land. Traditional farming methods and a lack of diversification mean that yields are low. The fact that the agricultural sector accounts for only around 30 per cent of the country’s gross national product is a reflection of this low productivity. Regularly occurring periods of food shortage are exacerbated by a growing population and dramatic changes in the weather that can cause crops to fail. The increasing pressure on land resources intensifies the competition for scarce natural resources and is a recurrent cause of conflict.
There are few employment and income opportunities in sectors outside of agriculture. However, Timor-Leste has a high natural potential for increasing food production on a sustainable basis and for exploiting new export options. Along with protecting the country’s biodiversity and its forest and coastal zones, the government has declared the sustainable agricultural use of natural resources as one of the key pillars for economic development.
The public extension service was established in 2008 to advance rural development. It is managed by the National Directorate of Extension under the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. However, the service has not yet had any appreciable, widespread impact since the Extension Workers in the service had not received adequate training and the Ministry’s management system had not been sufficiently developed.
Objective
The people in the programme’s area of focus have sustainably increased their agricultural production and improved their nutritional basis.
Approach
GIZ co-implements RDP IV together with the Portuguese development agency Camões under the guidance of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. It is an integral part of the national development plan.
The objective shall be reached by supporting the agricultural extension service. The aim is to improve agricultural education, organisational capacity, to enhance practical skills of the agricultural extension workers, and to strengthen their conflict management skills. The European Union (EU) is co-financing the project as part of the 10th European Development Fund.
RDP IV is active in all twelve districts of Timor-Leste.
Results achieved so far
In total 1,803 demonstration fields have been established countrywide for maize, rice, coffee, forestry, beans and vegetables. On them farmers publicly showcased high yield increases using improved farming techniques (Good Agricultural Practices – GAP) compared to traditional methods. For instance, compared to traditionally farmed maize fields, the sites in the districts supported by GIZ have increased yield by an average of 64 per cent, even reaching up to 300 per cent in some areas.
Farmer Field Days are hosted for the campaigns in each district and are attended by farmers, representatives of NGOs, Ministry employees and journalists. Working together, they compare the yield from traditionally farmed fields and the demonstration fields and then discuss the results and production processes.
Training modules have been developed and implemented with a practical focus for the agricultural campaigns. Farmers are being encouraged to approach the field advisors and try the yield-enhancing measures themselves again in the next season. Agricultural knowledge is constantly shared with the farmers by the extension workers and media campaigns on the community level. Effective management methods and formats were developed and are constantly followed-up on the national and district level. The topics gender and conflict sensitivity were introduced as cross cutting topics on both levels and Ministry staff trained accordingly.
Renovation and construction work has been carried out as planned at agricultural schools in three districts. They can now admit around 300 students each and offer young people real career prospects on a sustainable basis.