]]> http://giacontour.wordpress.com/2009/09/22/world-wide-walk-passing-by-baucau/feed/ 0 giacontour wwwalk http://giacontour.wordpress.com/2009/09/14/millennium-development-goal-fund-visit-in-baucau/ http://giacontour.wordpress.com/2009/09/14/millennium-development-goal-fund-visit-in-baucau/#comments Mon, 14 Sep 2009 02:49:32 +0000 giacontour http://giacontour.wordpress.com/?p=230 ]]> Last week the Millennium Development Goal Fund Secretariat Sophie de Caen from New York visited Timor-Leste. Her visit included also a day visit in Baucau.

Before to talk about the visit let me say something about the Millennium Development Goals Fund: MDG Fund is an initiative carry out by several countries which aims to provide financial support for projects which meet the objectives of the UN millennium development goals. For who was more interested about such topic it is possible to find more information about the Millennium Development Goals at www.un.org/millenniumgoals .

The objective of the Secretariat visit in Timor-Leste was to visit one of the country which has been selected for implementing specific projects in order to archive the Millennium Development Goals in 2015. As FAO and UNICEF received some funds for implementing projects in Timor-Leste and Baucau is one of the focal point for both agencies, a day visit in our lovely town has been planed.

FAO and UNICEF have both been engaged for the two weeks before the visit to plan in the detail the visit of such important delegation. In fact together with the MDGF Secretariat and all the agencies chiefs, also Mr.Finn Reske-Nielsen, the operational responsible of the United Nation Mission in Timor-Leste would take part to the visit. That’s means all the UN high level figures in Timor-Leste would have come to Baucau. No mistakes in logistical organization as well as security planning would have been tolerated.

Our assignment was to plan a visit to one of the community where FAO is currently implementing a project and to show how the work is going on. The same for UNICEF with its project.  Of course our projects are different in term topics: we are working in agricultural development and UNICEF is operating in children education topics.

I have to say that to have the chance to present our project to UN high level people as well as to present them to our communities was a kind of good feeling along ht previous days. I think it is important for the UN high spheres to get in the field even if it is only a matter of few hours in an official meeting. But the main question was… where to go and what to present to such ema boot guests?

I should find out one of the most interesting community, near Baucau town and with an easy interlocutor for working with. After few talks with my local team, we definitely all agreed with the suco (community ) Gariwai. Why such choice you will ask. Gariwai is the hugest suco in our project, it is located few km from Baucau on the way to Venilale, but the most important feature of Gariwa  is that the suco chief which correspondent of our major (sindaco) is a woman. Furthermore she is even Portuguese speaker. Gariwai was perfect for us!! In fact Senora Maria de Jesus Belo is a very nice person, she is very active for the community and very willing to all kind of initiatives. Maybe because she can speak very well Portuguese, I also developed with her since the beginning a very direct and special relation. For instead I feel comfortable to give her a phone call or to drop by her place whenever I am passing by. Very interesting is also the fact that she set up a form of collective action in Gariwai. In fact three females groups which are engaged in agricultural activities and some manufactures production are present in the suco. I can say that Gariwai is a very clear example of how much important are the women in Timor, which is still a sectarian and machista society.

We immediately thought that to show and to valorize this kind of activities would be very good for the local community in order to promote their initiatives. So decision was taken, Gariwai was our place.

After several visits and meetings with the suco chief in order to plan the visit, the D-Day finally came.

With a slightly delay on the fixed time, while all of the Baucau UN staff were ready with all the cars in line at the Bacuu airport, the white old Russian helicopter with the black UN label laded. All the people (22) got out and so the formal welcome started. Of course I was especially waiting for Fabrizio, the FAO country coordinator and in fact my chief in Timor which was represented FAO in the visit. The first place that the long cars caravan visited was at the District Office for the ordinary greetings with the local administration.

The morning visit has been planned in our project and for the noon in the UNICEF one. In order to be ready for the visit Custodio and Jose, the two local agronomists in my team early in the morning went to Gariwai in order to be sure that everything was ready.  Anyhow in order to be ready also for the welcome ceremonial at the time that the delegation was at the District Office I also went to Gariwai.

After about 45 minuts the delegation arrived in Gariwai. Two of the guests received the Thais, the traditional scarf that in the Timorense tradition is given to the guest at their arrival as welcome. During the meeting the women association explains their works and at the same times also the worries. Many women and not only had the chance to speak and say their ideas to the big delegation and I think this was cause of happiness for the community.

After the meeting the community offered some traditional snacks and café. About an hour and half after their arrival in Gariwai, the delegation left in order to go back to Baucau for continuing the visit. Of course I stayed in Gariwai for the after commentaries and the impression from the people. So I could see a very interesting reaction: since all the important people left, the audience started to clean the snacks left on the table. Everybody became more spontaneous and loud and since I was the only international remained but they did not care about me, for the first time I felt the feeling to be no so extraneous anymore to the community.

Maybe this was my true achievement of the day.

here we go.

Several things are happened during the last weeks but today I want to talk about one of the element which enrich strongly the area where my project is going on and let me say, also my experience here in Timor-Leste.

I want to talk about an Italian priest named Padre Locatelli. He is a very interesting and special man and his story is so complex, long and interesting that I am not that one able or accredited to write down about it here. The only thing I would like to do it is just to introduce him and to show some pics from my first visit in a community together with him.

Padre Locatelli is originating from the north Italian city of Bergamo but he spent long periods in Turin where he was engaged in theology studies at the local Salesians college. After to complete his studies, during the 1960s he was sent as missionary to the nowadays Indian city but at that time Portuguese colony of Goa. He served there as missionary for several year until the British invasion. As catholic missionary which means represented of the Portuguese system, Padre Locatelli was displaced person out of the country. Following the Portuguese colonies, in 1964 he arrived in Timor-Leste, as at those time it was still an integrant part of the Lusitanian territory. He was sent to the Salesians school of Fatumaca in the Baucau district, where in fact he is still living and working.

In so long time in Timor Padre Locatelli had the chance to know personally the last part of the Portuguese time in the islan, the Indonesian invasion in 1975, the struggle for the independence until the proclamation referendum 1999 and the United Nation transitory regency until nowadays complete autonomy of the youngest democracy of the world.  According with the Padre Locatelli personal life story it is easy to find out a strict symmetry with the Timor-Leste history. He gained a vast popularity from the population in the rual area especially in Baucau district but at the same time he is highly listened also to the highest political spheres. As I already said I am not the right person who is able to write about the personal story of such man and here is not the right place to do it. Just I wanted to present a person which is fundamental in my Timor-Leste experience as well as for my project activities.

As I am new in Timor-Leste as well as in Baucau, to use my easy contact due to my common origins with Padre Locatelli was an obligation. Because that the two agronomist introduced me to Padre Locatelli in one of our visit to the valley. In order to get familiar with him and with the area but especially with the local people I immediately asked to P. Locatelli if I could follow him in one of his visit in the communities. In fact P. Locatelli uses to visit several communities in the Seiçal Valley in rotation every week end in order to celebrate the Mass. Moreover he utilizes the time to spend together with the people in order to keep in touch with the population and the economical and social development of the area. For instead he is the promoter of several local development project especially in the field of irrigation.

It was one of my first visit in the south west past of the Seiçal Valley and I really enjoy to go together with P. Locatelli in the rough track with his Land Rover. Here some pics.

Anyhow, here I am and I am doing fine. Slowly slowly I am getting in touch with my new town but most important I am discovering the Valley where my project is based. It is called Seiçal Valley due to Seiçal River that it runs along it. It is located nearby toward east from Baucau town. On the east side of the Valley is located the Matebien Mountain which from its almost 3 000 m asl dominates the entire valley. In Seiçal valley there are located 15 communities (Sucos) which are divided in several small villages (Aldeas) for an estimated population of 65 000 people.

Our rural development project aims to include all the inhabitants of the Valley in a root based crops and livestock production activities support. The project aims to develop some basic technique for agriculture production and animal breeding. In order to archive that, we are planning to organize some training courses and at the same time we will supply some basic production inputs such as seeds and some hand tools. I can guess that many of you will demand: why you and FAO need to go in such far valley in order to teach to local people how to grow crops and to breed animals? I have to say that such question can appear normal as well as justified from a far point of view. But in order to understand the local situation, it is necessary to go back along the history of this young country. In fact it is not an aim of this blog to give opinion about what is right and what is not concerning Timor-Leste future social and economical development. This is especially due to the fact that I am here since too short period of time which does not allow me to give a personal relevant opinion about the issue yet. What I can say for the moment is that Timor-Leste has been colonized by Portuguese for several centuries as far as it has been occupied by Indonesia from 1975 until 1999. Before the two historical periods indigenous were not engaged in agriculture, they were more a collect and fisheries society. At the same time the population increased dramatically until today. In fact Timor-Leste account the highest birth rate in the worlds and to guarantee food security to this country which is still a net food importer is the priority. During the colonial periods both Portugal and Indonesia did not contribute too much to the local economy development, so nowadays lack of technical skills can be considerate as the main problem towards development. That is the reason why, amongst our main objectives there is to spread knowledge and practical skills concerning local resources uses amongst the population. In particular the project aims is to improve production of food and at the same time to transfer knowledge concerning how to manage it, especially in term of conservation.

For the moment it seems a hard task but we just started. Only the coming months or years will be able to tell us the true.

During the last weeks I have been involved into the first phase of the project: I started to carry on a participative approach in the field in order to point out the main problems for the people and at the same time to figure out the main local strengths in order to coordinate and connect the project activities between the two points. I have to confess that the night before to go for the very first time to a community I was very excited and worry at the same time. I carried out such methodology already several times but I have never done it as the unique manager of the operation. During my development studies and professional experience I already did the planning of the work steps, the communication of them to the participants and the implementation. But to do all together alone it seemed to me a very weird task. Of course I was supported by Jose and Custodio, my two local agronomists, but their role is basically put in practice what I say, so I did not have so many advisors. Because that, the night before to start I even consulted some colleagues in Dili but also in Italy and in Germany. Mainly it was for a moral support I have to say, but some external contribution was necessary.

Finally I have to say that the first five community evaluation worked out pretty well. The participants – with normal variation – were pretty much involved and I did not have so much communication problems. I prepared a Tetun presentation of myself and the rest public talks I did in English while Jose were translating for me. During the group discussion I spoke in Portuguese, since the oldest generations still  retain the former colonial language. Here some pics of the suco Bahamori, the first community visited.

Soon more updates.

 For the moment I am still based in a school residence waiting for to find my final place where to stay. It has been impressive how quickly the rumour spread around about an “Italian FAO member” that was looking for a house to rent in town. A kind of competition to bring me around started up in town and now, I think to have seen almost the entire properties available (and more) in the surrounding. Of the several places visited, three are my favourite. But since I will open the new FAO office in town exactly in my house, my word is important but it is not the only one. For the next week a meeting with the rest of the FAO staff is fixed here in town, so decision will be taken soon.

 Very soon some more description of the place. Keep tuned.

I have to be sincere, before to leave Berlin I realized that I have never seen a tropical beach before in my life. Since then, I have not been able to hidden my special emotion to anybody. My mind was able only to imagine something which I only saw in tour operator books or holiday’s friends’ pics. My mind created into itself imagines of quite and sunny lines of white sand, which are stroked by a waveless sea and surrounded by a green line of palm trees. Well that what I started to expect when I decided to move to Timor. In some conversation before to leave Berlin, I made present this situation with some friends already: I have never been before in a tropical country near the sea side. I do not know for instead the Caribbean countries, Thailand or Bali and son on. So for me, the last Saturday, when I visited the Comoro beach a bit outside Dili city, it was officially my very first time.

So with a good and relaxed time schedule and after a pretty good breakfast at the Tropical Bakery, together with my friend Magda, we decided to visit one of the various beaches of Dili. As it easily understandable, around Dili, the capital city of Timor Leste, there are no the best beaches of the country. Everybody says that the best ones are located in other parts of the island, especially in the north east, but well, here we are and somewhere we have to start.

The way to go the Comoro beach is quite special. It goes through a very original Timorese district made of wood houses, plenty of banana trees and chicken and goats scattered around. The beach is located exactly in the nearby of the Dili airport, which is not as annoying as it would be normal to expect: That is due to the fact that in Dili regularly there are only two flies per day.

Arrived at destination, I was obviously impressed already from the first view. Despite to be so near to the urban area, this part of the sea side is pretty much wild and spectacular. In fact many of the elements that I imagined in my mind before, they resulted to be there in their place: the sea, the beach and the palms are exactly where I expected they are. But even more impressive was the temperature of the water. Despite to be used to the warmish Mediterranean Sea, here the feeling is very different. It doesn’t even came up the lightest cold perception. Maybe the sea was not so calm but it was very very warm and to be flooded for while it was a truly pleasure.

Nevertheless at the beginning, despite Magda was making fun of me, I did not stay so quite and relaxed in the water. In this part of the world, the sea is quite famous for the presence of a quite broad variety of marine species of animals of all sorts. Amongst them, they are very well-known the maritime crocodiles.  Yes, they are not as frequent as it used to be along the coastlines of the near Australia, but well, there are somehow. At the compulsory UN security course, it is one of the most argued issues as well as amongst the international community of Timor Leste. Despite that, the statistics are on behalf of the almost totally security of the sea in Timor. But as you can imagine, the statistics of course are important, but to float in the water thinking about to who suddenly can come out to make strange gag, it is a different issue. Anyhow standing up the Magda’s jokes and keeping it as a simply little story, we just enjoyed until something else really likewise unexpected came out.

Suddenly form the palms trees on the back of the beach, a happy and loud crew of funny local boys came out. They became immediately familiar and they started to try to find out some kind of games to play together in the water with us. It was pretty crazy and funny. Since I do not speak Tetun, the local language, I could not really communicate with them. Magda a bit more then me, but we could not really chatt with them. Finally after some water jokes we left the water still followed by the funny crew that started to enjoy my camera. They became crazy to see them inside the screen of and all the time when they were in front of the camera lens, they acted as fighters. The funniest thing was when they brought to us a coconut in order to open and share with us. In fact this was my first coconut in Timor. The coconut milk was pretty good but the pulp I have to say it was not the best ever. Nevertheless it was very funny to open and share the nut with such funny crew.

The day runs away simply and nicely like this. Despite that Comoro Beach is not considerate the best beach in Timor Leste, for me it was absolutely a great beginning.

After the normal greetings and hugs with Luis and the introduction to the driver, they drove me straight to the hotel which was my first location in Dili. During the short car tour along the street from the airport to the hotel, I started to watch out of the window in order to quiet the strong feeling of curiosity that I started to acquire at the moment that I became aware about this new experience in Timor.

But I would not have so long time for looking around or anything, I was of course very excited and curios. Since it was still afternoon time, I was very much happy when I got a message from Fabrizio, the FAO project director, which invited me to take a short rest in the hotel and afterwards to go to the office for the in order to have the first presentation and to start to solve several bureaucratic issues.

So in about an hour, I was already ready to go to have a look of the base, which would be my future reference office.

Since I have never experienced an UN base, going there made me pretty much excited. At the moment that I went inside for the very first time, the security procedures to get into the base also made me think about to be still in a country which became reconciled just few months ago. At that time my knowledge about Timor Leste were still pretty much limited. But of course my curiosity suddenly starts to run very fast.

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