DILI, 10 September 2025 (TATOLI) – Timor-Leste’s Education Ministry and UN Women signed an agreement on Wednesday to launch the Skills Training for Economic Participation (STEP) programme in Oé-Cusse and Lautém.
The five-year initiative aims to enhance education access and reduce gender disparities in the labour market.
Odélia Martins, Director-General of Planning, Policy, Inclusion, and Informatics at the Ministry, and Amy Nishtha Satyam, UN Women’s Representative in Timor-Leste, signed the agreement on Wednesday.
The programme forms part of the ASEAN-UK SAGE project, which promotes girls’ education and economic opportunities across Southeast Asia.
Satyam described the agreement as “a transformative commitment to ensure no girl is left behind, equipping marginalised girls with skills, confidence, and opportunities”.
The pilot project will support 100 students aged 16–18 from technical-vocational schools in Oé-Cusse and Lautém, with 80 being women.
It will provide practical skills training, including income-generating business activities.
Martins emphasised the programme’s role in strengthening the economic prospects of women in rural areas.
“This pilot focuses on training to empower women economically in these two municipalities,” she said in Vila Verde, Dili.
The initiative responds to the Maubisse Declaration, which highlighted the need to bolster women’s economic independence.
UN Women will fund the Ministry of Education to implement the planned training over the coming years.
The programme began with training 20 instructors—10 from each municipality—in pedagogy and gender-focused entrepreneurship.
Journalist: Camilio de Sousa
Editor: Filomeno Martins
