DILI, 12 october 2022 (TATOLI) – The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste, Roy Trivedy has been awarded the Order of Timor-Leste by the President of the Republic, Jose Ramos Horta, for all his remarkable contribution and dedication during his nearly 5-year term as UN Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste.
“It’s a really great honor and privilege to receive this Order of Timor-Leste from President Horta,” Trivedy said at the Presidential Palace, on wednesday (12/10).
He said: “The Order of Timor-Leste to me is as much a recognition of the efforts of the United Nations System and all partners who had been supporting Timor-Leste during these five years. And I am very pleased to have been part of that.”
President Horta appreciated Trivedy’s leadership in leading the UN systems to support Timor-Leste during the pandemic, April flash flood, and many other challenges over the past five years.
“Timor-Leste is in a better position in terms of its longer-term development than it was in 2018 when I arrived. This is the result of the collective efforts of the national leaders and the Timorese people with the support of all development partners. And I am very pleased to have been part of that,” said Trivedy.
He said despite many challenges, Timor-Leste has made progress on many fronts: “There is awareness of public discussion about the long-term economic challenges for the country. There is greater awareness to support for the most vulnerable in our society, and the need to eliminate violence against women and girls and children, and people with disabilities.”
Trivedy emphasized that there is much more needed to do, especially in tackling malnutrition, water, and sanitation, disaster risk reduction, and infrastructure design: “We must continue to improve food security and food safety to improve the quality of education from early childhood to lifelong learning. We must push training and create jobs for our young people and we need to improve health for the well-being of the nation and strengthen public services and gender equality.”
“We need to continue to adapt to the impact of climate change and unpredictable weather systems. Ultimately, we have to build a fairer and equal society. We all need to work effectively to build a happy and healthy, safe, secure, and sustainable country for all,” he said.
Trivedy thanked President Horta, other national leaders, and the Timorese people for making his work so enjoyable, so rewarding, and fulfilling.
He thanked everybody for all the positive messages and encouragement that he has received over the past weeks: “This week I also met several national leaders in the country, all of whom commended and said well done to the United Nations, for our work during Covid-19 and the April Flash Flood.”
“I want to emphasize that without the support and encouragement of the President of the Republic and all of the people in Timor-Leste, it would not possible for me to do my job. I will personally continue to support the national development of Timor-Leste even if I am no longer working for the UN,” Trivedy said.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
