DILI, 10 october 2023 (TATOLI) – U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Marc Weinstock and Peace Corps Country Director Jamie Fouss welcomed 14 new American Peace Corps volunteers to Timor-Leste, where they will serve for two years.
At the request of the Government of Timor-Leste, the volunteers will co-teach alongside English teachers and collaborate with partners in community economic development sectors. Through secondary projects, the volunteers will also support President José Ramos-Horta’s initiatives to improve nutrition and address stunting.
This is the second group of Peace Corps volunteers to arrive in Timor-Leste since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Charge d’Affaires Weinstock said: “Like many Peace Corps volunteers all over the world, the volunteers arriving here today are passionate and dedicated to service, and I have no doubt they will bring joy, hope, and happiness to many communities throughout Timor-Leste. Go Peace Corps!”
“We are so excited to welcome the second group of volunteers to Timor-Leste post-COVID,” said Peace Corps Country Director Fouss. “Peace Corps is proud of our long history of partnership in Timor-Leste, dating back to 2002 when American volunteers first arrived in Timor-Leste to support the development of Timorese communities. Since then, Peace Corps volunteers have helped thousands of Timorese people across the country develop entrepreneurship, employability, and English abilities – skills that are essential to advancing Timor-Leste’s economic prosperity.”
After Initial Orientation Week in Dili, the volunteers will move to Gleno, in Ermera Municipality, where they will undergo a 10-week community-based training to learn Tetum language, intercultural diversity, as well as ways to stay healthy and safe.
They will be sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers in late december before dispersing to sites throughout the country to begin their two years of service, bringing the total number of Peace Corps Volunteers currently serving in Timor-Leste to 29.
The Peace Corps is an international service network of volunteers, community members, host country partners, and staff driven by the agency’s mission of world peace and friendship.
At the invitation of governments around the world, Peace Corps volunteers work alongside community members on locally prioritized projects in education, health, the environment, agriculture, community economic development, and youth development.
Through service, members of the Peace Corps network develop transferable skills and hone intercultural competencies that position them as the next generation of global leaders.
Since President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps in 1961, more than 240,000 Americans have served in 142 countries.
Journalist: Camilio de Sousa
Editor: Filomeno Martins
