Timor-Leste explores legal education cooperation with University of Coimbra
DÍLI, 27 October 2026 (TATOLI) – Timor-Leste is exploring further cooperation with Portugal’s University of Coimbra to strengthen legal education and develop qualified professionals for the country’s justice sector.
The Minister of Strategic Planning and Investment, Gastão Francisco de Sousa, accompanied by Lúcia Lobato, coordinator of the Working Group for Justice Sector Reform, visited the university’s Faculty of Law on October 27 to discuss opportunities for academic cooperation and human resource development.
The delegation was received by Margarida Costa Andrade and João Pedro Rodrigues at the Faculty’s Scientific Council Room. Discussions focused on existing ties between Timor-Leste and the University of Coimbra, as well as potential areas of collaboration aligned with the Government’s priorities for justice sector reform.
Lobato has been coordinating human resource development initiatives linked to the reform process, including scholarship programmes for the justice sector and cooperation with Portuguese universities and institutions.
In May 2026, she undertook an official mission to Portugal, where she held meetings with justice sector institutions and met Timorese scholarship recipients pursuing studies in several Portuguese cities.
The Government has been expanding partnerships with Portuguese higher education institutions to address the shortage of qualified legal professionals in Timor-Leste.
In June 2024, it signed five cooperation agreements with the Portuguese Catholic University and the universities of Minho, Lisbon, Porto and NOVA de Lisboa. Under the programme, funded by the Timorese Government, around 50 students are expected to receive training in Portugal each year.
The initiative aims to train between 250 and 300 legal professionals to meet the staffing needs of the judiciary, Public Defender’s Office, legal departments across public administration and legal education institutions.
In early October 2026, another 50 scholarship recipients travelled to Portugal to pursue higher education. Of these, 41 enrolled in bachelor’s degree programmes, six in master’s programmes and three in doctoral studies.
The latest group follows 51 students who went to Portugal in 2024 and another 52 selected in 2025 under the same human resource development programme.
The University of Coimbra also has an established academic partnership with Timor-Leste. In April 2023, the National University of Timor Lorosa’e (UNTL) and the University of Coimbra signed a cooperation agreement to establish a master’s degree programme in law at UNTL, with the Portuguese university’s Faculty of Law providing academic and scientific coordination.
The October visit builds on the Government’s ongoing engagement with Portuguese higher education institutions to improve the qualifications and professional capacity of Timor-Leste’s national workforce.
It also provided an opportunity to explore further collaboration with the University of Coimbra’s Faculty of Law. Following the meeting, the delegation toured the faculty’s facilities.
TATOLI
