TIMOR-LESTE and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) are exploring possible areas of cooperation.
This, as the Timor-Leste Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry (MLFF) officials, led by Secretary of State for Livestock José Vieira de Araujo, visited the SEARCA headquarters on May 29, 2025.
With Araujo were Carlos Antunes Amaral, general director of Livestock and Veterinary; Agusto Barros, national director of Livestock and a SEARCA scholarship alumnus; Elizabeth Purificação Luan Mali, executive secretary; and Julio Cesar Sequeira Amaral, media officer. They were accompanied by representatives of the Timor-Leste Embassy in Manila.
Welcoming the visitors was SEARCA Director Mercedita Sombilla, together with Nur Azura binti Adam, deputy director for Programs; Maria Cristeta Cuaresma, senior program head for Education and Collective Learning; Sharon Malaiba, unit head for Partnerships; and key Partnerships Unit staff.
According to SEARCA, the MLFF delegation sought the center's support for Timor-Leste's agricultural development, particularly in strengthening the country's carabao industry with a focus on milk production, breeding practices, value addition and market access.
Recommending specific interventions to improve the competitiveness of the country's carabao sector, Sombilla mentioned that SEARCA and the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Carabao Center had previously conducted a value chain analysis of selected carabao-based products from four regions in Luzon. She suggested creating a similar one for Timor-Leste.
The MLFF delegation expressed interest in institutional development assistance for their national universities and colleges, as well as graduate scholarship opportunities for Timorese nationals.
Sombilla said SEARCA has been assisting the Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e (UNTL) through scholarship support to its faculty members.
The center has also been assisting UNTL by enabling its faculty and research staff to participate in short courses, in-country training, conferences and other learning events, and awarded to Timorese nationals 69 full graduate scholarships.
The visitors also requested assistance from the center for building the capacity of their technical staff.
Also during the visit, discussions covered scaling out SEARCA's School-Plus-Home Gardens Program in Timor-Leste, with possible integration of carabao products.
Sombilla also proposed updating SEARCA's Southeast Asian Agriculture and Development Primer Series, which covers agricultural policies and reforms in Southeast Asia, including Timor-Leste, to reflect changes in the region's agricultural landscape.
In addition, she recommended that the SEARCA alumni working at MLFF reinvigorate the SEARCA Alumni Association in Timor-Leste (SAAT) and organize a conference, replicating the success of the 2nd Regional SEARCA Fellows Association Conference on Food Security, Poverty Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation, which was hosted by SAAT in 2015.
Sombilla noted that the potential partnership between SEARCA and MLFF holds great promise for enhancing both agricultural research and education in Timor-Leste.
"As a SEAMEO center of excellence in agriculture, SEARCA is dedicated to enhancing institutional capacities and bridging policy and technology in agricultural and rural development throughout the Southeast Asian region, including Timor-Leste," she said.