Key issues in the 2012 State Budget

This page is condensed from a fuller discussion on La’o Hamutuk’s website, which links to the budget documents and includes more information and graphics. 
On 21 October, La'o Hamutuk presented a submission on the State Budget to Parliament's economics committee.

Last week, Timor-Leste’s Government presented Parliament with a proposal to spend $1.76 billion during 2012, including $1.56 from the Petroleum Fund and $33 million in foreign loans.Timor-Leste's proposed 2012 budget is 35% larger than 2011, and is more than five times as large as the 2008 budget proposed four years ago. According to the IMF, Zimbabwe (with runaway inflation) is the only country in the world whose state budget grew faster during this time; Congo (DRC) places third with an increase of 3½ times.

The budget violates the principles of sustainable use of the Petroleum Fund, although it explains that Bayu-Undan oil and gas production is declining. The projected 2013 budget will spend as much from the fund as oil revenues will bring in.This year's Estimated Sustainable Income (ESI) is $665 million. This is $69 million lower than last year's, because the Government overspent the ESI during 2011 and because ConocoPhillips expects higher Bayu-Undan operating costs and lower future production. However, every state budget since 2009 has broken the 3% sustainable spending rule, which has more to do with public relations than with policy.

The proposed budget includes $33 million in loans for water and roads during 2012, with more in future years. This is the first time the Government has asked Parliament to approve borrowing.  The budget proposal "does not show repayment because most of the loans have a ten year grace period."  Over the next four years, the budget anticipates borrowing $447 million dollars. This is a small fraction of what will probably be needed to implement the Strategic Development Plan, but full information is not given. We urge the Government to provide information on the full costs of mega-projects like the Suai-Beacu highway before Parliament approves the budget and the loans, rather than repeating the mistakes of the Heavy Oil project.

In the 2012 budget, capital expenditures for electricity are $282 million (down from $447 million in 2011), although the new power plants require more money for generator fuel, from $46 to $89 million. Notwithstanding the increases in generating capacity and prepaid meter installations, EDTL gross revenues only to go up a little, from $14.5 to $16.1 million, requiring a $73 million subsidy (not including hundreds of millions in capital costs).

The Infrastructure Fund allocates $163 million to the Tasi Mane south coast petroleum infrastructure project. More than half of this is to build the Suai supply base for offshore oil operations, which is budgeted at $329 million between 2011 and 2014. The Government has just appointed Eastlog Holdings PTE to construct the supply base, which will become the property of the new TimorGAP national oil company. Another $45 million is allocated during 2011 for the Suai-Beacu highway, which is budgeted to absorb $547 from the Infrastructure Fund and $220 million in loans between now and 2016.

Timor-Leste 2012 State Budget continues to neglect Timor-Leste's human resources essential to economic development and quality of life. Only 6.3% of state expenditures will go for education, and only 2.9% for health. UNDP recently pointed out that countries making progress toward the MDGs spend about 28% of their budgets on education and health, concluding that “not enough priority is being accorded to education and health. If Timor-Leste is to move faster in achieving the MDGs in these areas, then the share of social services in the budget will have to be virtually doubled.” The 2012 budget moves in the opposite direction, reducing the budget allocation for these social services from 9.6% of the 2011 budget to 9.2% for 2012.

The Decree-Law establishing a state-owned investment company went into force two weeks ago, and the Timor-Leste Investment Company (CITL) will be capitalized with $200 million from the 2012 State Budget. CITL is intended "promote the development of investment opportunities and national wealth growth, leading important strategic projects with significant commercial impact." Like Singapore’s Temasek, “CITL is a state owned enterprise with profit seeking objectives. It is owned by the Government but functions on a commercial basis." CITL is empowered to incur debt by issuing bonds; it can also purchase shares in other companies.

Orsamentu Estadu 2012 loke inovasaun

Iha loron 21 Outubro, La'o Hamutuk hato'o submisaun kona ba OJE2012 ba Parlamentu Nasional.

Orsamentu Jeral Estadu ba tinan eleisaun 2012 nian haksoit sai maka’as liu 35% ba orsamentu estadu 2011  ne’ebe maka’as mos. Proposta orsamentu biliaun $1.76 ne’e inklui imprestimus kiik primeira vez ba Timor-Leste. Mayor parte rendimentu ba orsamentu ne’e mai husi  Fundu Petroleu ho montante biliaun $1.59, maske estimasaun Governu ba rendimentu sustentavel ne’ebe atu foti husi Fundu Petroleu iha biliaun $0.67 deit.

Governu aprezenta orsamentu ba Parlamentu iha Sesta-Feira semana kotuk, hodi hadiak pratika pasadu, hodi publika tiha ona iha website Ministeriu Finansas. Ami rona katak ida ne’e akontese tamba iha preokupasaun katak website La’o Hamutuk bele sai tan fontes de facto ba Orsamentu Estadu. Ami sente orgulhu hodi partisipa iha kompetisaun ida ne’e, no publika ona tan dokumentus orsamentu nian ida ne’ebe fasil atu bele asesu ba iha pajina web la’o Hamutuk nian kona-ba orsamentu estadu 2012 (mos iha Ingles), ne’ebe sei inklui analiza no komentariu durante iha semana balun oin mai.

2012 Budget breaks new ground

Soaring 35% above the already huge Timor-Leste State Budget for 2011, the proposed $1.76 billion State Budget for election year 2012 includes a little borrowing for the first time. The bulk of its revenue, $1.59 billion, comes from the Petroleum Fund, notwithstanding the Government's estimate of the sustainable withdrawal (ESI) from the fund at only $0.67 billion.

The Government presented the budget to Parliament last Friday and, in an improvement over past practice, has already posted the budget documents on the Ministry of Finance website. We have heard that this welcome increase in transparency is because they feared that La'o Hamutuk's website would again become the de facto budget source. We're honored to participate in that competition, and have posted the budget documents in a more accessible form to La'o Hamutuk's page on the 2012 budget (also Tetum), which will include analysis and commentary over the next few weeks.

On 7 October, we blogged a summary of some key issues in this budget.

Ativista justisa sei vizita TL husi Arjentina

Telespetadór sira televizaun nian sei iha biban hodi aprende kona-ba susesu kampañia justisa ba krime sira hasoru umanidade nian.

TVTL sei hatudu filme El Cerco (Serku) kona-ba Patricia Isasa ninia kampañia ba justisa iha Arjentina iha Domingo, 09 Outubru, tuku 08:30 kalan. [Ami husi deskulpa tanba TVTL la tuir sira nia promete atu hatudu filme iha loron 1 Outubro.]  Filme ne’e iha dalen Español ho subtítulu iha dalen Inglés no Tetun.

Patricia Isasa nu’udar organizadora  estudante ho tinan 16 iha Santa Fé, Arjentina, bainhira polisia no soldadu sira kaer na’ok nia no tortura, no hatama nia ba prizaun la prosesu durante tinan rua ho balun iha ida hosi sentru sira detensaun no tortura klandestina 585 ne’ebé harii durante tempu ditadura. Depois batalla legál hodi lori ninia torturadór sira ba justisa, ema na’in neen hosi sira ne’ebé tortura nia simu sentensa ho tinan naruk iha prizaun iha tinan 2009. Sira balun nu’udar majór no juís durante dekada tolu entre bainhira sira komete krime no bainhira hetan justisa.

La’o Hamutuk organiza hatudu filme ida ne’e ba preparasaun vizita Patricia Isasa nian mai Timor-Leste iha Outubru, ne’ebé sei inklui ko’alia haleu nasaun ka enkontru ho komunidade no eventu balun iha Dili. Sra. Isasa sei fahe ninia esperiénsia kona-ba ninia susesu luta ba hakotu impuniade iha Arjentina liuhosi lori perpetradór sira krime sériu nian ba julgamentu no preizaun. Ninia esperiénsia sei fó esperansa no motivasaun ba ema Timoran sira ne’ebé kontinua sofre hosi klima impunidade ne’ebé iha daudaun ba krime sira hasoru umanidade ne’ebé komete durante tinan 24 nia laran hosi okupasaun Indonézia iha Timor-Leste.

Hakarak informasaun tan, ka atu organiza hatudu filme ne’e ka hasoru malu ho Sra. Patricia Isasa, favor ida kontaktu Jose Pereira iha La’o Hamutuk: jose@laohamutuk.org ka 3321040 ka 736-7518.

Argentina justice activist to visit Timor-Leste

Timor-Leste television viewers will have an opportunity to learn about a successful campaign for justice for crimes against humanity.

TVTL will broadcast the film El Cerco (The Circle) about Patricia Isasa's work for justice in Argentina on Sunday, 9 October, at 8:30 pm. The film is in Spanish with English and Tetum subtitles. [We apologize that TVTL did not broadcast the film on 1 October, as they had promised.]


Patricia Isasa was a 16-year-old student union organizer in 1976 in Santa Fe, Argentina, when she was kidnapped by police and soldiers and tortured and held prisoner without trial for two-and-a-half years at one of the 585 clandestine detention and torture centers set up during the dictatorship. After a long legal battle to bring her torturers to justice, six of the people who tortured her were  sentenced to decades in prison in 2009. Some of them had become mayor and judges during the three decades between when they committed their crimes and when justice was finally achieved.

La'o Hamutuk has arranged for this broadcast in preparation for Patricia Isasa's visit to Timor-Leste later in October, which will include a speaking tour around the country and several events in Dili.  Ms. Isasa will share experiences of her successful struggle to achieve accountability in Argentina by bringing perpetrators of serious crimes to trial and prison.  Her victory gives hope and motivation to Timor-Leste's people who continue to suffer from the ongoing impunity for crimes against humanity committed during 24 years of Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste.

For more information, or to arrange a showing of the film or a meeting with Patricia Isasa, please contact Jose Pereira at La'o Hamutuk: jose@laohamutuk.org or 3321040 or 7367518.

Comment on Basic Environment Law, Take 2

Komentariu ba Lei Baziku Ambiental, ba dala rua (Tetum iha kraik)

The heavy oil power plant at Hera is being
built without complying with environmental laws.
Sentral eletrika oleo pezadu ne’e hari’i dadaun hela lahoo tuir lei ambiental.

Last February, Timor-Leste's National Environment Directorate (DNMA) circulated a draft of Timor-Leste's proposed Base Law on Environment. La'o Hamutuk used input from many people to write a 42-page submission. DNMA realized that the law was not ready for enactment, and made many changes.

On 20 September 2011, the DNMA circulated a revised draft (Portuguese). They asked for comments within two weeks, prior to submission to the Council of Ministers.  DNMA gave La'o Hamutuk permission to circulate the draft on our website, and we have also done a quick, unofficial, English translation.

The new draft is significantly improved over the February version, but would still benefit from additional input.  We encourage everyone interested in protecting Timor-Leste's environment to look it over. If you have thoughts, you can send them to DNMA directly.

Update: On 7 October, La'o Hamutuk submitted our comments on the September draft to DNMA.

Link to the February draft of the law, as well as analysis and commentary
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Iha Fevereiru liu ba, Diresaun Nasional Meio Ambiente (DNMA) fahe esbosu ida kona ba proposta Lei Baziku Ambiental Timor-Leste. La’o Hamutuk uza hanoin sira ne’ebe mai husi ema barak atu hakerek submisaun ho pajina 42. DNMA realiza katak lei ne’e seidauk pronto atu envigor, no halo mudansa barak.

Iha 20 Setembru 2011, DNMA fahe esbosu ne’ebe hetan revizaun iha Portugese. Sira husu komentariu iha semana rua, molok hato’o ba Konseilu Ministeriu atu hetan aprovasaun.  DNMA fo lisensa ba La’o Hamutuk atu fahe esbosu ne’e iha ami nia website, no ami halo tradusaun Ingles ho lalais no la ofisial. Ami husu deksulpa tanba seidauk iha tradusaun ba Tetum.

Esbosu foun ne’e  hadiak ho signifikante kompara ho versaun iha Fevereiru, maibe sei iha benefisiu nafatin atu hetan hanoin adisional sira. Ami enkouraza ema hotu ne’ebe interese ba protesaun ambiente Timor-Leste nian atu tau matan ba lei ne'e. Karik ita boot sira hakarak atu ajuda La’o Hamutuk atu dezenvolve idea ba ami nia submisaun, favor haruka ita boot sira nia sujestaun iha karta eletroniku ba environment@laohamutuk.org molok loron 30 Setembru. 

Liga ba esbosu lei iha Fevereiru, no mos analiza no komentariu.

Hamos vidru iha Portal Aprovisionamentu

Iha konferensia Inisiativa Transparensia iha Industria Ekstrativa (EITI) iha fulan kotuk, Ministra Finansa  loke oituan sesaun foun Portal Transparensia nian kona-ba aprovisionamentu. La’o Hamutuk apresia ba inisiativa ne’e, ne’ebe sei lori Timor-Leste ba iha diresaun ne’ebe los, aumenta informasaun publiku no hamenus posibilidade ba kolusaun no korupsaun.

Maske dalaruma susar atu utiliza no presiza asesu internet, Portal ne’e kompostu husi informasaun sira ne’ebe iha valor kona-ba kontratu sira ne’ebe asina durante tinan tolu liu ba. Ami download ona informasaun sira husi portal ne’e kona-ba kontratu 288 ne’ebe nia valor kada projeitu nian tokon $250 ba leten no tau iha spreadsheet ho tu-tuir malu ne’ebe bele halo informasaun ne’e sai fasil atu hetan asesu.

Husi biliaun $1,100 iha lista kontratu nian, miliaun $844 (inklui kontratu ne’en husi kontratu boot hitu) gasta ona ba eletrisidade. Kontratu boot ne’ebe entrega iha fulan Setembru liu ba hamutuk tokon $406 ba Puri Akraya Engineering atu hari sentral eletrisidade oleo pezadu iha Hera no Betano. Infelizmente, kontratu ida ne’e laiha tenderizasaun publiku no asina deit ho kompania ne’ebe foin harii husi Indonezia, ne’ebe nia asoens 69% kaer husi kompania ida husi Ilha Virgin Britaniku nian, “Dooks Group Holding Ltd.”

Portal la hatudu  sai projeitu barak ne’ebe nakloke ba tenderizasaun

Infelizmente portal ne’e  la inklui buat barak kona-ba “Oportunidade Negosiu,” maibe hatudu deit tenderizasaun nakloke tolu, rua husi ne’e taka ona iha Agustu. No iha parte seluk Tenderizasaun Foun iha website Ministeriu Finansa nian hatudu tenderizasaun nakloke hat, no hat seluk hein atu fo kontratu.

Tenderizasaun nakloke iha parte Ministeriu Finansa nian inklui ida ba konsultan atu halao Avaliasaun ba Impaktu Ambiental ba projeitu infraestrutura petroleu Tasi Mane.

Dalaruma ida ne’ebe interesante liu mak 'intende atu entrega' kontratu tokon $100 hodi importa 9,237 uma pre-fabrikadu ba programa MDG-Suco ne’ebe sei hari uma lima iha kada aldeia iha Timor-Leste durante tinan 2011. Kontratu ba Carya Timor-Leste no Jonize Construction ne’e liu dala rua ba montante tokon $44.6 ne’ebe aloko husi Orsamentu Jeral Estadu 2011 nian ba projeitu ne’e. Tenderizasaun orizinal (dokumentu konkursu  3.5 MB), atu importa no harii uma 11,855 ho $4,000 ba kada uma, maibe kontratu ne’ebe foin dadaun ne’ebe asina ne’e halo kustu kada uma sei sai ba $10,800. Governu hamenus numeru uma nian hafoin Carya/Jonize halo tender ho tokon $144 “tamba ho orsamentu menus ne’be Governu hasoru.”

La’o Hamutuk konkorda ho kontrator lokal sira katak projeitu ida ne’e nudar lakon oportunidade ida atu uza osan povo nian hodi suporta servisu lokal no negosiu kiik sira, no uza material konstrusaun lokal, maske Governu hateten katak razaun atu importa "uma standar, pre-fabrikadu… atu kompleta konstrusaun ba uma foun sira iha tempu ida ne’ebe apertadu liu.” Aleinde ne’e, husu kompania ida deit atu importa no hari uma rihun sanulu esklui tiha negosiu kiik sira husi konkursu tenderizasaun nian. Ami mos kestiona ho parte material rezerva ne’ebe importa mai (suku cadang) no konhesimentu atu halo manutensaun ba uma sira ne’ebe harii ba povo iha area rural sira hodi hela ba bainhira kompania ne’ebe importa sasan sira ne’e sai ona.