Timor-Leste, Angola deepen tourism cooperation with new agreement
DÍLI, 31 July 2026 (TATOLI) — Timor-Leste and Angola on Friday signed a tourism cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening workforce skills, promoting tourism destinations and attracting investment in the sector.
The agreement was signed by Timor-Leste’s Minister of Tourism and Environment, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, and Angola’s Secretary of State for Tourism, Augusto Laurindo Kalikemala, on the sidelines of the 13th Meeting of Tourism Ministers of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) in Dili.
The ministerial meeting, held at the Palm Spring Hotel under the theme “Nature, Ocean and Culture as Our Tourism Heritage in CPLP Countries,” brought together tourism officials from Portuguese-speaking nations and was attended by CPLP Executive Secretary Maria de Fátima Jardim.
Kalbuadi Lay said the agreement would help strengthen practical cooperation between Timor-Leste and Angola, particularly in tourism training, hospitality services and human resource development.
He said the partnership was especially important as Timor-Leste works to expand its tourism sector following its accession as the 11th member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
“This agreement is important to strengthen cooperation between Timor-Leste and Angola, especially in human resource development, hospitality and hotel management. It will also help strengthen Timor-Leste’s capacity as an ASEAN member and allow us to better benefit from tourism cooperation opportunities in the region,” Kalbuadi Lay said.
The minister also highlighted the importance of sharing experiences among CPLP countries to support sustainable tourism development in Timor-Leste.
Kalikemala said the agreement establishes concrete measures to deepen bilateral cooperation, including joint tourism promotion, professional training and efforts to attract investment.
“These measures will allow greater cooperation between our two countries in joint tourism promotion, professional training and attracting investment for the tourism sector,” he said.
Kalikemala said the two countries would establish a joint working group comprising representatives from both sides to monitor implementation of the agreement and identify new areas of cooperation.
“We created a working team with representatives from both countries that will be responsible for assessing opportunities for joint promotion and joint tourism development,” he said.
Kalikemala added that Angola aims to strengthen its tourism profile within the CPLP community and use the Portuguese language as a tool to expand professional training opportunities in the sector.
“Because we share the same language, it is easier to develop training programmes for tourism professionals and expand employment opportunities generated by tourism in our countries,” he said.
The agreement with Angola follows a separate tourism cooperation deal signed on Thursday between Timor-Leste and Portugal focused on strengthening professional training in tourism.
Journalist: Afonso do Rosário
Editor: Isaura Lemos de Deus
Translation: Filomeno Martins
