Meet the Youth Building a Healthier Future for Timor-Leste

Answering the Call: Youth Building Careers in Tourism Customer Service

Young People Cultivating the Future of Coffee

At 23, Nuncio da Costa and Santiago Ribeiro come from different parts of Timor-Leste – Nuncio from Baucau Municipality and Santiago from Ermera Municipality – but they share the same aspiration: to improve the country’s animal health and livestock production.

For Nuncio the inspiration comes from home.

Growing up as the eldest of six children, he saw firsthand how livestock farming helped put food on the table and support his family’s needs. When African Swine Fever wiped out all their pigs in 2021, it was a turning point that fueled his passion to learn more about animal diseases and protect other farmers from similar losses.

“It inspired me to study animal health so I can help farmers protect their animals and income.”

Santiago’s path was similar. After high school, he started a small poultry business with friends, but disease outbreaks showed him how essential animal health knowledge is to agribusiness success.

“I want to help farmers access information and use technology to learn more about animal health.”

For Santiago, animal health is also about protecting people.

“Animal health is not only about animals, but also about human health. Many of the foods we consume come from animals, and some diseases can be transmitted from animals to people. By improving animal health, we are also protecting our communities.”

Today, both are final-year animal health students at the National University of Timor-Leste (UNTL) and recently took part in an MDF-supported training on artificial insemination for pigs. The training is part of MDF’s support to strengthen pig breeding practices in Timor-Leste by introducing practical techniques that can improve breeding efficiency, animal productivity and access to better-quality piglets for farmers.

The training didn’t just equip Nuncio and Santiago with technical knowledge, it also inspired them and their classmates to put what they had learned into practice.

While Nuncio is currently volunteering his time at a veterinary clinic, working together, they have started raising pigs and are building the pens themselves using skills gained through the MDF-supported training.

“As a group, we currently have four pigs: three boars and one sow,” they explained. “We plan to sell two of the boars for meat while keeping one boar for breeding so that we can grow our pig farm in the future

Their initiative reflects the growing confidence of young people transforming classroom lessons into real-world solutions, while exploring new business opportunities in Timor-Leste’s livestock sector.

This International Youth Day, MDF is pleased to highlight business partnerships that are translating into innovative career pathways for the young people of Timor-Leste. With nearly 75 per cent of the Timorese population under 30 years old, youth are well positioned to support the country’s economic diversification and growth.

Different contexts. Common aspirations. One generation is helping build healthier future.

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This story is part of MDF Timor-Leste’s International Youth Day campaign, celebrating the journeys of four young Timorese whose paths began in different communities but are united by shared aspirations for the future.

From animal health students in Baucau and Ermera, to emerging coffee sector leaders in Aileu and Liquiça, and young professionals supporting Timor-Leste’s growing tourism sector through call centre services, these young people are turning ambition into action.

Through learning, innovation, and hard work, they are building skills, contributing to their communities, and shaping their own economic futures.

When Marquelina and Dioneiya joined APAC Tourism, they brought with them very different experiences. Marquelina had recently graduated from the National University of Timor-Leste with a degree in midwifery while Dioneiya had just completed her studies in International Relations.

Neither imagined they would begin their careers in tourism and customer service.

Today, both work as reservation agents at APAC Tourism, Timor-Leste’s first call centre serving Australian tourism and hospitality businesses. From Dili, they handle accommodation bookings, customer enquiries, and reservation services, connecting travellers with destinations hundreds of kilometres away.

As part of their professional development, MDF supported Marquelina and Dioneiya to travel to Australia and experience firsthand some of the destinations and tourism businesses served by APAC Tourism. In May, Dioneiya visited K’gari, Queensland, while Marquelina travelled to Kakadu National Park and surrounding tourism businesses in the Northern Territory in July.

The visits allowed them to learn directly from tourism operators, better understand the customer experience, and exchange ideas with industry professionals.

For Marquelina, the transition in the beginning was not easy. The booking systems and technology were entirely new to her.

“It was really hard for me at first when I started with APAC Tourism. But I got used to it because I had a very supportive team. We all love to learn, including me, because life never stops teaching us”. Said Marquelina.

Drawing on the communication skills she developed during her midwifery studies, Marquelina discovered that building trust, listening to people and helping solve problems are valuable in any profession.

In July, she travelled to Australia’s Northern Territory, where she visited tourism businesses including Cooinda Lodge. Meeting colleagues from different cultures and backgrounds reinforced an important lesson: people may come from different places, but they often share the same desire to learn, grow, and succeed.

Dioneiya: A transformational visit

For Dioneiya, a visit to K’gari, Queensland, offered a different perspective. She was inspired by how local communities welcomed visitors, shared their culture through storytelling and cared for their natural environment.

“For me it was a great opportunity to learn alongside professionals. We shared ideas about our cultures. We may be from different countries, but we have the same energy to learn and grow.”

The experience also sparked ideas about how tourism could create more opportunities in Timor-Leste. Having gained firsthand experience in reservations, accommodation bookings, and customer service through APAC Tourism, Dioneiya now sees opportunities to strengthen connections between local businesses and communities.

She believes many guest houses across Timor-Leste already provide a foundation for tourism growth, but more can be done to connect visitors with authentic local experiences.

“We have so many guest houses established across Timor-Leste, especially in the municipalities, but often people only go there to sleep and relax. What is lacking are experiences that connect visitors with local areas. We need more tour guide services and activities that help visitors learn about our culture, communities and environment.” Said Dioneiya.

Inspired by what she observed in K’gari, Dioneiya hopes tourism in Timor-Leste can create benefits beyond accommodation by encouraging community-based experiences, cultural storytelling, and local entrepreneurship.

“The local communities in K’Gari love their culture and keep their environment clean. I hope we can do the same in Timor-Leste. We also have mountains, beaches and culture as our strength, and I hope tourism can help benefit our communities”, said Dioneiya.

Both women see tourism as more than an industry.

For them, it is a pathway for young Timorese to develop skills, build careers, and contribute to their communities. “Even though call centre operations that help tourists enjoy a full experience are still new in Timor-Leste, they give youth and young people opportunities for jobs that can ensure better livelihoods,” said Marqueline.

This International Youth Day, Marquelina and Dioneiya encourage young people to remain curious, keep learning, and embrace opportunities that may lie outside their fields of study. New industries are emerging in Timor-Leste, creating pathways for young people to gain skills, build careers, and contribute to the country’s future.

Different contexts may shape our journeys, but common aspirations can drive us all forward.

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This story is part of MDF Timor-Leste’s International Youth Day campaign, celebrating the journeys of four young Timorese whose paths began in different communities but are united by shared aspirations for the future.

From animal health students in Baucau and Ermera, to emerging coffee sector leaders in Aileu and Liquiça, and young professionals supporting Timor-Leste’s growing tourism sector through call centre services, these young people are turning ambition into action.

Through learning, innovation, and hard work, they are building skills, contributing to their communities, and shaping their own economic futures.

Nestled in the mountains of Liquiçá Municipality, Darulete is a long and challenging journey from Dili. The winding roads climb steeply through rugged terrain before reaching a valley. Here, coffee farming is more than a source of income.

It is a way of life passed down through generations.

Cipriana Ressureição has lived in Liquica her whole life. She and David Martins, from Aileu are part of a group of Timorese youth committed to continuing previous generations’ work in agriculture – particularly Timor-Leste’s all-important coffee sector. The two work at an Organic Input Production (OIP) site supported by agribusiness Olam. At the OIP site, they produce organic fertiliser using locally available materials such as coffee husks, banana trunks and tree branches. The fertiliser helps coffee farmers rehabilitate ageing coffee trees and improve productivity.

Through its partnership with Olam, MDF is supporting the business to expand its OIP sites and make quality organic fertiliser more easily accessible to coffee farmers.

The initiative is also creating employment and learning opportunities for rural youth, enabling them to participate in one of Timor-Leste’s most important agricultural sectors.

For David, the work is deeply personal. Raised in a farming family, he grew up watching his parents depend on coffee to support the household. Today, he has chosen to continue that legacy.

“My parents are farmers, and coffee has always been part of our lives. After finishing university, I decided to continue working in the coffee sector because I want to help strengthen an industry that supports so many families, including my own.”

David understands that many coffee trees in the area are aging and require rehabilitation to remain productive.

“We cannot simply wait for our coffee trees to produce cherries. To secure the future of coffee farming, we need to rehabilitate our farms today through pruning, terracing, proper planting, and fertilisation. The work we do now will determine the harvests of tomorrow.”

David is currently managing several OIP operations across Aileu, Liquica, Manatuto, and Ainaro municipalities, supporting the business to reach more farmers and respond to growing market demand.

As part of his role, David also shares his knowledge with other young people, teaching them how to produce compost, make liquid fertiliser from locally available material and apply good coffee management practices.

While some young people view agriculture as traditional, difficult work with limited rewards, David believes perceptions are changing.

“The youth who join us gain practical skills and experience. Some are even creating their own income opportunities by producing and selling compost! Agriculture can create jobs if we are willing to innovate and invest in it.”

Like David, Cipriana sees coffee as both a responsibility and an opportunity for the next generation. Before joining Olam’s OIP program with fellow other youths, she had never considered the value of materials often discarded after harvest.

“Last year, we didn’t know that coffee husks could be turned into fertiliser. Now we understand that these materials can help improve soil health and raise production.”

Although David and Cipriana have their own journeys and experiences, they share a common aspiration: ensuring that coffee remains a source of opportunity for future.

The growth of OIPs is creating new roles within the business and its wider supply chain, opening up practical employment pathways that young people are choosing to take up. In Timor-Leste, where young people make up a significant share of the population (nearly 75 per cent of the population is under 35 years old), private sector growth like this is important because it creates real, market-based pathways into employment

Beyond economic and business reasons, Cipriana believes that more young people should become involved in the sector.

“Many young people think coffee farming is old-fashioned or only for older generations because it is rural work. But when our mothers and fathers are no longer here, it will be our responsibility to continue looking after the farms and protecting this important part of our livelihood.”

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This story is part of MDF Timor-Leste’s International Youth Day campaign, celebrating the journeys of four young Timorese whose paths began in different communities but are united by shared aspirations for the future.

From animal health students in Baucau and Ermera, to emerging coffee sector leaders in Aileu and Liquiça, and young professionals supporting Timor-Leste’s growing tourism sector through call centre services, these young people are turning ambition into action.

Through learning, innovation, and hard work, they are building skills, contributing to their communities, and shaping their own economic futures.